554 research outputs found
A Method To Remove Fringes From Images Using Wavelets
We have developed a new method that uses wavelet analysis to remove
interference fringe patterns from images. This method is particularly useful
for flat fields in the common case where fringes vary between the calibration
and object data. We analyze the efficacy of this method by creating fake flats
with fictitious fringes and removing the fringes. We find that the method
removes 90% of the fringe pattern if its amplitude is equal to the random noise
level and 60% if the fringe amplitude is of the noise level. We
also present examples using real flat field frames. A routine written in the
Interactive Data Language (IDL) that implements this algorithm is available
from the authors and as an attachment to this paper.Comment: 7 pages, 14 figures. Accepted to the Astrophysical Journal. (The
quality of the figures in this preprint has been downgraded in order to
fulfill arXiv requirements. Check journal for the high-quality figures
IR Colors and Sizes of Faint Galaxies
We present J and Ks band galaxy counts down to J=24 and Ks=22.5 obtained with
the new infrared imager/spectrometer, SOFI, at the ESO New Technology
Telescope. The co-addition of short, dithered, images led to a total exposure
time of 256 and 624 minutes respectively, over an area of arcmin
centered on the NTT Deep Field. The total number of sources with S/N is
1569 in the J sample and 1025 in the Ks-selected sample. These are the largest
samples currently available at these depths. A d/d relation with slope
of in J and in Ks is found with no evident sign of a
decline at the magnitude limit. The observed surface density of ``small''
sources is much lower than ``large'' ones at bright magnitudes and rises more
steeply than the large sources to fainter magnitudes. Fainter than
and Ks, small sources dominate the number counts. Galaxies get redder
in J-K down to
J and Ks. At fainter magnitudes, the median color becomes
bluer with an accompanying increase in the compactness of the galaxies. We show
that the blue, small sources which dominate the faint IR counts are not
compatible with a high redshift () population. On the contrary, the
observed color and compactness trends, together with the absence of a turnover
at faint magnitudes and the dominance of small sources, can be naturally
explained by an increasing contribution of sub- galaxies when going to
fainter apparent magnitudes. Such evidence strongly supports the existence of a
steeply rising () faint end of the local infrared luminosity
function of galaxies - at least for luminosities .Comment: Accepted for publication on A&A; 15 pages, 13 figure
Spatially Resolved Near-Infrared Spectroscopy of Seyfert 2 Galaxies Mk 1066, NGC 2110, NGC 4388, and Mk 3
We present near-infrared spectra with resolutions of lambda/dlambda~1200 in
the emission lines of Pa-beta, [FeII] (1.2567um), Br-gamma, and H2 v=1-0S(1) of
the nuclei and circumnuclear regions of the four Seyfert 2 galaxies Mk 1066,
NGC 2110, NGC 4388, and Mk 3. All of these galaxies show strong near-infrared
line emission that is detected at radii several times the spatial resolution,
corresponding to projected physical scales of 0.07 to 0.7 kpc. Velocity
gradients are detected in these nuclei, as are spatial variations in line
profiles and flux ratios. We compare the spatial and velocity distribution of
the line emission to previously observed optical line and radio emission. The
evidence indicates that the [FeII] emission is associated with the Seyfert
activity in the galaxies. Our data are consistent with X-ray heating being
responsible for most of the [FeII] emission, although differences in [FeII] and
Pa-beta line profiles associated with radio emission suggests that the [FeII]
emission is enhanced by fast shocks associated with radio outflows. The H2
emission is not as strongly associated with outflows or ionization cones as is
the emission in other lines, but rather appears to be primarily associated with
the disk of the galaxy.Comment: 35 pages, 24 figure
Photometric redshifts and selection of high redshift galaxies in the NTT and Hubble Deep Fields
We present and compare in this paper new photometric redshift catalogs of the
galaxies in three public fields: the NTT Deep Field, the HDF-N and the HDF-S.
Photometric redshifts have been obtained for thewhole sample, by adopting a
minimization technique on a spectral library drawn from the Bruzual
and Charlot synthesis models, with the addition of dust and intergalactic
absorption. The accuracy, determined from 125 galaxies with known spectroscopic
redshifts, is in the redshift intervals . The global redshift distribution of I-selected galaxies shows a
distinct peak at intermediate redshifts, z~0.6 at I_{AB}<26 and z~0.8 at
I_{AB}<27.5 followed by a tail extending to z~6. We also present for the first
time the redshift distribution of the total IR-selected sample to faint limits
( and ). It is found that the number density of galaxies
at 1.25<z<1.5 is ~ 0.1 /arcmin^22 at J<=21 and ~1./arcmin^2} at J<22, and drops
to 0.3/arcmin^2 (at J<22) at 1.5<z<2. The HDFs data sets are used to compare
the different results from color selection criteria and photometric redshifts
in detecting galaxies in the redshift range 3.5<z<4.5 Photometric redshifts
predict a number of high z candidates in both the HDF-N and HDF-S that is
nearly 2 times larger than color selection criteria, and it is shown that this
is primarily due to the inclusion of dusty models that were discarded in the
original color selection criteria by Madau et al 1998. In several cases, the
selection of these objects is made possible by the constraints from the IR
bands. Finally, it is shown that galactic M stars may mimic z>5 candidates in
the HDF filter set and that the 4 brightest candidates at in the HDF-S
are indeed most likely M stars. (ABRIDGED)Comment: Version accepted on July, 20, 2000. To appear on Astronomical
Journal, Nov 2000. The data and photometric redshift catalogs presented here
are available on line at http://www.mporzio.astro.it/HIGH
The nature and evolution of Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxies: A mid-infrared spectroscopic survey
We report the first results of a low resolution mid-infrared spectroscopic
survey of an unbiased, far-infrared selected sample of 60 ultraluminous
infrared galaxies, using ISOPHOT-S on board ISO. We use the ratio of the 7.7um
`PAH' emission feature to the local continuum as a discriminator between
starburst and AGN activity. About 80% of all the ULIRGs are found to be
predominantly powered by star formation but the fraction of AGN powered objects
increases with luminosity.
Observed ratios of the PAH features in ULIRGs differ slightly from those in
lower luminosity starbursts. This can be plausibly explained by the higher
extinction and/or different physical conditions in the interstellar medium of
ULIRGs. The PAH feature-to-continuum ratio is anticorrelated with the ratio of
feature-free 5.9um continuum to the IRAS 60um continuum, confirming suggestions
that strong mid-IR continuum is a prime AGN signature. The location of
starburst-dominated ULIRGs in such a diagram is consistent with previous
ISO-SWS spectroscopy which implies significant extinction even in the
mid-infrared.
We have searched for indications that ULIRGs which are advanced mergers might
be more AGN-like, as postulated by the classical evolutionary scenario. No such
trend has been found amongst those objects for which near infrared images are
available to assess their likely merger status.Comment: aastex, 4 eps figures. Revised version, accepted by ApJ (Letters
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