分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19
摘要: We present the first statistical analysis of kinematically-resolved, spatially-extended Ly$\alpha$ emission around $z = 2-3$ galaxies in the Keck Baryonic Structure Survey (KBSS) using the Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI). Our sample of 59 star-forming galaxies ($z_\mathrm{med} = 2.29$) comprises the subset with typical KCWI integration times of ~5 hours and with existing imaging data from the Hubble Space Telescope and/or adaptive optics-assisted integral field spectroscopy. The high resolution images were used to evaluate the azimuthal dependence of the diffuse Ly$\alpha$ emission with respect to the stellar continuum within projected galactocentric distances of $\lesssim 30$ proper kpc. We introduce cylindrically-projected 2D spectra (CP2D) that map the averaged Ly$\alpha$ spectral profile over a specified range of azimuthal angle, as a function of impact parameter around galaxies. The averaged CP2D spectrum of all galaxies shows clear signatures of Ly$\alpha$ resonant scattering by outflowing gas. We stacked the CP2D spectra of individual galaxies over ranges of azimuthal angle with respect to their major axes. The extended Ly$\alpha$ emission along the galaxy principal axes are statistically indistinguishable, with residual asymmetry of $\le$ 2% ($\sim 2 \sigma$) of the integrated Ly$\alpha$ emission. The symmetry implies that the Ly$\alpha$ scattering medium is dominated by outflows in all directions within 30 kpc. Meanwhile, we find that the blueshifted component of Ly$\alpha$ emission is marginally stronger along galaxy minor axes for galaxies with relatively weak Ly$\alpha$ emission. We speculate that this weak directional dependence of Ly$\alpha$ emission becomes discernible only when the Ly$\alpha$ escape fraction is low. These discoveries highlight the need for similar analyses in simulations with Ly$\alpha$ radiative transfer modeling.
分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19
摘要: Massive colliding-wind binaries that host a Wolf-Rayet (WR) star present a potentially important source of dust and chemical enrichment in the interstellar medium (ISM). However, the chemical composition and survival of dust formed from such systems is not well understood. The carbon-rich WR (WC) binary WR~140 presents an ideal astrophysical laboratory for investigating these questions given its well-defined orbital period and predictable dust-formation episodes every 7.93 years around periastron passage. We present observations from our Early Release Science program (ERS1349) with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) Medium-Resolution Spectrometer (MRS) and Imager that reveal the spectral and spatial signatures of nested circumstellar dust shells around WR~140. MIRI MRS spectroscopy of the second dust shell and Imager detections of over 17 shells formed throughout the past $\gtrsim130$ years confirm the survival of carbonaceous dust grains from WR~140 that are likely carriers of "unidentified infrared" (UIR)-band features at 6.4 and 7.7 $\mu$m. The observations indicate that dust-forming WC binaries can enrich the ISM with organic compounds and carbonaceous dust.
分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19
摘要: A fundamental assumption adopted in nearly every extragalactic emission-line study is that the attenuation of different emission lines can be described by a single attenuation curve. Here we show this assumption fails in many cases with important implications for derived results. We developed a new method to measure the differential nebular attenuation among three kinds of transitions: the Balmer lines of hydrogen, high-ionization transitions, and low-ionization transitions. This method bins the observed data in a multidimensional space spanned by attenuation-insensitive line ratios. Within each small bin, the variations in line ratios are mainly driven by the variations in the nebular attenuation. This allows us to measure the nebular attenuation using both forbidden lines and Balmer lines. We applied this method to a sample of 2.4 million star-forming spaxels from SDSS-IV MaNGA. We found that the attenuation of high ionization lines and Balmer lines can be well described by a single Fitzpatrick (1999) extinction curve with $R_V=3.1$. However, no single attenuation curve can simultaneously account for all three transitions. This strongly suggests that different lines have different effective attenuations, likely because spectroscopy at kiloparsec resolutions mixes multiple regions with different intrinsic line ratios and different levels of attenuation. As a result, the assumption that different lines follow the same attenuation curve breaks down. Using a single attenuation curve determined by Balmer lines to correct attenuation-sensitive forbidden line ratios could bias the nebular parameters derived by 0.06--0.25 dex at $A_V = 1$, depending on the details of the dust attenuation model. Observations of a statistically large sample of H II regions with high spatial resolutions and large spectral coverage are vital for improved modeling and deriving accurate corrections for this effect.
分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19
摘要: The nearby, luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG) NGC 7469 hosts a Seyfert nucleus with a circumnuclear star-forming ring and is thus the ideal local laboratory for investigating the starburst--AGN connection in detail. We present integral-field observations of the central 1.3 kpc region in NGC 7469 obtained with the JWST Mid-InfraRed Instrument. Molecular and ionized gas distributions and kinematics at a resolution of {\sim}100 pc over the 4.9 - 7.6{\mu}m region are examined to study gas dynamics influenced by the central AGN. The low-ionization [Fe II] {\lambda}5.34{\mu}m and [Ar II] {\lambda}6.99{\mu}m lines are bright on the nucleus and in the starburst ring, as opposed to H2 S(5) {\lambda}6.91{\mu}m which is strongly peaked at the center and surrounding ISM. The high-ionization [Mg V] line is resolved and shows a broad, blueshifted component associated with the outflow. It has a nearly face-on geometry that is strongly peaked on the nucleus, where it reaches a maximum velocity of -650 km/s, and extends about 400 pc to the East. Regions of enhanced velocity dispersion in H2 and [Fe II] {\sim}180 pc from the AGN that also show high L(H2)/L(PAH) and L([Fe II])/L(Pf{\alpha}) ratios to the W and N of the nucleus pinpoint regions where the ionized outflow is depositing energy, via shocks, into the dense interstellar medium between the nucleus and the starburst ring. These resolved mid-infrared observations of the nuclear gas dynamics demonstrate the power of JWST and its high-sensitivity integral-field spectroscopic capability to resolve feedback processes around supermassive black holes in the dusty cores of nearby LIRGs.
分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19
摘要: To test the current theory on galaxy formation and evolution, it is essential to strengthening the synergy between simulations and observations. For this reason, in our previous paper of this series, we presented a method to mock SDSS-IV/MaNGA integral-field spectroscopic galaxy observations from cosmological simulations of galaxy formation. Here we present the resulting mock galaxy catalogue. This catalogue consists of 1,000 unique galaxies in TNG50 falling into the SDSS-IV/MaNGA-Primary target footprint, defined in the redshift and i-band absolute magnitude space, i.e. the iMaNGA sample. In this paper, we describe the general characteristics of the catalogue, in terms of morphology, kinematics, and stellar population properties. We also investigate our ability to recover the galaxy characteristics, as given by the simulations, analysing the synthetic spectra. We demonstrate that the `intrinsic' and recovered stellar kinematics, and stellar age and metallicity are consistent with zero within the 1$-{\sigma}$ level, for all the $\sim 8$ million tassels in the iMaNGA sample presented in this paper. We also compare `intrinsic' and recovered star formation histories, noting a strong resemblance. Therefore, our mocking and spectral fitting processes do not distort `intrinsic' galaxy properties, hence we can use these results for scientific analysis. In the future papers of this series, we will present a comprehensive comparison and scientific analysis of TNG50 simulations with MaNGA observational results.