400 research outputs found
Approximate solutions of radiative transfer in dusty nebulae. 2: Hydrogen and helium
The ionization structure of hydrogen and helium in dusty nebulae is discussed. The general equations for pure hydrogen nebulae are modified to include helium. An approximate analytic solution is presented for Stroemgren radii of hydrogen and helium in the absence of dust. It is shown that these results, with simple modifications, are also applicable to dusty nebulae where the effective absorption cross section of dust grains varies slowly with frequency in the 1000 to 200A range. No analytic solutions are possible if this cross section varies rapidly with frequency. In this case, however, simple coupled differential equations are derived. Approximate analytic expressions are presented for evaluation of the variation of the fraction of ionizing radiation absorbed by dust and the ratio of the volume emission measures of He II to H II regions with the spectrum of the ionizing source, helium abundance, and absorption properties of dust. The effects of dust on the He III zone are discussed. Results are restricted to spherically symmetric nebulae, but nonuniform gas and dust distributions and clumpiness can be taken into account
On the Role of Minor Galaxy Mergers in the Formation of Active Galactic Nuclei
The large scale (~ 100 kpc) environments of Seyfert galaxies are not
significantly different from those of non-Seyfert galaxies. In the context of
the interaction model of the formation of active galactic nuclei (AGN), it has
been proposed that AGN form via "minor mergers" of large disk galaxies with
smaller companions. We test this hypothesis by comparing the nuclear spectra of
105 bright nearby galaxies with measurements of their R or r band morphological
asymmetries at three successive radii. We find no significant differences in
these asymmetries between the 13 Seyfert galaxies in the sample and galaxies
having other nuclear spectral types (absorption, H II-region like, LINER), nor
is there strong qualitative evidence that such mergers have occured among any
of the Seyferts or LINERs. Thus either any minor mergers began > 1 Gyr ago and
are essentially complete, or they did not occur at all, and AGN form
independently of any type of interaction. Support for the latter interpretation
is provided by the growing evidence that supermassive black holes exist in the
cores of most elliptical and early-type spiral galaxies, which in turn suggests
that nuclear activity represents a normal phase in the evolution of the bulges
of massive galaxies. Galaxy mergers may increase the luminosity of Seyfert
nuclei to the level of QSOs, which could explain why the latter objects appear
to be found in rich environments and in interacting systems.Comment: 13 pages, 2 figures, to appear in Astrophysical Journal Letter
New data on the peculiar galaxy MRK 273
Colorimetric and spectral investigations of Markarian 273 and its three neighbors were performed on the basis of direct ultraviolet blue visual (UBV) and spectral observations with the 2-m Tautenburg telescope and the 6-m telescope of the Special Astrophysical Observatory of the USSR Academy of Sciences. The results obtained suggest that this galaxy is a close system of two objects with active nuclei. The observed straight tail with a thermal emission character is probably the result of the interaction of these galaxies
Close pairs of galaxies with different activity levels
We selected and studied 180 pairs with dV < 800 km/s and Dp < 60 kpc
containing Markarian (MRK) galaxies to investigate the dependence of galaxies'
integral parameters, star-formation (SF) and active galactic nuclei (AGN)
properties on kinematics of pairs, their structure and large-scale
environments. Projected radial separation Dp and perturbation level P are
better measures of interaction strength than dV. The latter correlates with the
density of large-scale environment and with the morphologies of galaxies. Both
galaxies in a pair are of the same nature, the only difference is that MRK
galaxies are usually righter than their neighbors. Specific star formation
rates (SSFR) of galaxies in pairs with smaller Dp or dV is in average 0.5 dex
higher than that of galaxies in pairs with larger Dp or dV. Closeness of a
neighbor with the same and later morphological type increases the SSFR, while
earlier-type neighbors do not increase SSFR. Major interactions/mergers trigger
SF and AGN more effectively than minor ones. The fraction of AGNs is higher in
more perturbed pairs and pairs with smaller Dp. AGNs typically are in stronger
interacting systems than star-forming and passive galaxies. There are
correlations of both SSFRs and spectral properties of nuclei between pair
members.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with
arXiv:1310.024
Close neighbors of Markarian galaxies. II. Statistics and discussions
According to the database from the first paper, we select 180 pairs with dV <
800 km/s and Dp < 60 kpc containing Markarian (MRK) galaxies. We study the
dependence of galaxies integral parameters, star-formation (SF) and active
galactic nuclei (AGN) properties on kinematics of pairs, their structure and
large-scale environments. Following main results were obtained: projected
radial separation Dp between galaxies correlates with the perturbation level P
of the pairs. Both parameters do not correlate with line-of-sight velocity
difference dV of galaxies. Dp and P are better measures of interaction strength
than dV. The latter correlates with the density of large-scale environment and
with the morphologies of galaxies. Both galaxies in a pair are of the same
nature, the only difference is that MRK galaxies are usually brighter than
their neighbors in average by 0.9 mag. Specific star formation rates (SSFR) of
galaxies in pairs with smaller Dp or dV is in average 0.5 dex higher than that
of galaxies in pairs with larger Dp or dV. Closeness of a neighbor with the
same and later morphological type increases the SSFR, while earlier-type
neighbors do not increase SSFR. Major interactions/mergers trigger SF and AGN
more effectively than minor ones. The fraction of AGNs is higher in more
perturbed pairs and pairs with smaller Dp. AGNs typically are in stronger
interacting systems than star-forming and passive galaxies. There are
correlations of both SSFRs and spectral properties of nuclei between pair
members.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, 2 table
Stochastic Acceleration of Low Energy Electrons in Cold Plasmas
We investigate the possibility of stochastic acceleration of background
low-energy electrons by turbulent plasma waves. We consider the resonant
interaction of the charged particles with all branches of the transverse plasma
waves propagating parallel to a uniform magnetic field. Numerical results and
asymptotic analytic solutions valid at non-relativistic and ultra-relativistic
energies are obtained for the acceleration and scattering times of electrons.
These times have a strong dependence on plasma parameter alpha = Omega_pe /
Omega_e (the ratio of electron plasma frequency to electron gyrofrequency) and
on the spectral index of plasma turbulence. It is shown that particles with
energies above certain critical value may interact with higher frequency
electromagnetic plasma waves and this interaction is allowed only in plasmas
with alpha < 1. We show that for non-relativistic and semi-relativistic
electrons in low-alpha plasmas the ratio of the acceleration time to the
scattering time can be less than unity for a wide range of energies. From this
we conclude that the transport equation derived for cosmic rays which requires
this ratio to be much larger than one is not applicable at these energies. An
approximate "critical" value of particle energy above which the dynamics of
charged particles may be described by this transport equation is determined as
a function of plasma parameters. We propose new transport equation for the
opposite limit (energies less than this critical value) when the acceleration
rate is much faster than the pitch angle scattering rate. This equation is
needed to describe the electron dynamics in plasmas with alpha <= 0.1.Comment: 22 pages, 13 figures, Latex, submitted to Astrophysical Journa
Recovering the Internal Dynamics and the Shapes of Galaxy Clusters: Virgo Cluster
We describe a method for recovering of the substructure, internal dynamics
and geometrical shapes of clusters of galaxies. Applying the method to the
Virgo cluster, we, first, reveal the substructure of the central 4 arc degree
field of the Virgo cluster by means of S-tree technique. The existence of three
main subgroups of galaxies is revealed and their dynamical characteristics are
estimated. Then, using the previously suggested technique (Gurzadyan and Rauzy
1997), the bulk flow velocities of the subgroups are evaluated based on the
distribution of the redshifts of the galaxies. The results enable us also to
obtain a secure indication of the elongation of the Virgo cluster and its
positional inclination.Comment: to appear in Int.Journ.Mod.Phys.
On The Non Thermal Emission and Acceleration of Electrons in Coma and Other Clusters of Galaxies
Some clusters of galaxies in addition to thermal bremsstrahlung (TB), emit
diffuse radiation from the intercluster medium (ICM) at radio, EUV and hard
x-ray (HXR) ranges. The radio radiation is due to synchrotron by relativistic
electrons, and the inverse Compton (IC) scattering by the cosmic microwave
background radiation of the same electrons is the most natural source for the
HXR and perhaps the EUV emissions. However, simple estimates give a weaker
magnetic field than that suggested by Faraday rotation measurements.
Consequently, non-thermal bremsstrahlung (NTB) and TB have also been suggested
as sources of these emissions. We show that NTB cannot be the source of the
HXRs and that the difficulty with the low magnetic field in the IC model is
alleviated if we take into account the effects of observational bias,
nonisotropic pitch angle distribution and spectral breaks. We derive a spectrum
for the radiating electrons and discuss acceleration scenarios. We show that
continuous and in situ acceleration in the ICM of the background thermal
electrons requires unreasonably high energy input and acceleration of injected
relativistic electrons gives rise to a much flatter spectrum than desired,
unless a large fraction of electrons escape the ICM, in which case one obtains
EUV and HXR emissions extending well beyond the boundaries of the cluster. A
continuous emission by a cooling spectrum resulting from interaction with ICM
of electrons accelerated elsewhere also suffers from similar shortcomings. The
most likely scenario appears to be an episodic injection-acceleration model,
whereby one obtains a time dependent spectrum that for certain phases of its
evolution satisfies all the requirements.Comment: 27 pages, one Table, Four Figures. Latex AAS v5.0. Accepted by Ap
The Extraordinary Infrared Spectrum of NGC 1222 (Mkn 603)
The infrared spectra of starburst galaxies are dominated by the
low-excitation lines of [NeII] and [SIII], and the stellar populations deduced
from these spectra appear to lack stars larger than about 35 Msun. The only
exceptions to this result until now were low metallicity dwarf galaxies. We
report our analysis of the mid-infrared spectra obtained with IRS on Spitzer of
the starburst galaxy NGC 1222 (Mkn 603). NGC 1222 is a large spheroidal galaxy
with a starburst nucleus that is a compact radio and infrared source, and its
infrared emission is dominated by the [NeIII] line. This is the first starburst
of solar or near-solar metallicity, known to us, which is dominated by the
high-excitation lines and which is a likely host of high mass stars. We model
the emission with several different assumptions as to the spatial distibution
of the high- and low-excitation lines and find that the upper mass cutoff in
this galaxy is 40-100 Msun.Comment: accepted, Astronomical Journal. 29 pp, 4 figures. In replacement
version an acknowledgment to NRAO is adde
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