43 research outputs found
Far-infrared properties of cluster galaxies
Far-infrared properties are derived for a sample of over 200 galaxies in seven clusters: A262, Cancer, A1367, A1656 (Coma), A2147, A2151 (Hercules), and Pegasus. The IR-selected sample consists almost entirely of IR normal galaxies, with Log of L(FIR) = 9.79 solar luminosities, Log of L(FIR)/L(B) = 0,79, and Log of S(100 microns)/S(60 microns) = 0.42. None of the sample galaxies has Log of L(FIR) greater than 11.0 solar luminosities, and only one has a FIR-to-blue luminosity ratio greater than 10. No significant differences are found in the FIR properties of HI-deficient and HI-normal cluster galaxies
van der Kruit to Spitzer: A New Look at the FIR-Radio Correlation
We present an initial look at the far infrared-radio correlation within the
star-forming disks of four nearby, nearly face-on galaxies (NGC~2403, NGC~3031,
NGC~5194, and NGC~6946). Using {\it Spitzer} MIPS imaging and WSRT radio
continuum data, we are able to probe variations in the logarithmic
70~m/22~cm () flux density ratios across each disk at sub-kpc
scales. We find general trends of decreasing with declining surface
brightness and with increasing radius. We also find that the dispersion in
within galaxies is comparable to what is measured {\it globally} among
galaxies at around 0.2 dex. We have also performed preliminary phenomenological
modeling of cosmic ray electron (CR) diffusion using an image-smearing
technique, and find that smoothing the infrared maps improves their correlation
with the radio maps. The best fit smoothing kernels for the two less active
star-forming galaxies (NGC~2403 and NGC~3031) have much larger scale-lengths
than that of the more active star-forming galaxies (NGC~5194 and NGC~6946).
This difference may be due to the relative deficit of recent CR
injection into the interstellar medium (ISM) for the galaxies having largely
quiescent disks.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, To appear in the proceedings of the "Island
Universes: Structure and Evolution of Disk Galaxies" conference held in
Terschelling, Netherlands, July 2005, ed. R. de Jong (Springer: Dordrecht
Several New Active Galactic Nuclei Among X-ray Sources Detected by INTEGRAL and SWIFT Observatories
We present the results of the optical identifications of a set of X-ray
sources from the all-sky surveys of INTEGRAL and SWIFT observatories. Optical
data were obtained with Russian-Turkish 1.5-m Telescope (RTT150). Nine X-ray
sources were identified as active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Two of them are
hosted by nearby, nearly exactly edge-on, spiral galaxies MCG -01-05-047 and
NGC 973. One source, IGR J16562-3301, is most probably BL Lac object (blazar).
Other AGNs are observed as stellar-like nuclei of spiral galaxies, with broad
emission lines in their spectra.
For the majority of our hard X-ray selected AGNs, their hard X-ray
luminosities are well-correlated with the luminosities in [OIII],5007 optical
emission line. However, the luminosities of some AGNs deviate from this
correlation. The fraction of these objects can be as high as 20%. In
particular, the flux in [OIII] line turns to be lower in two nearby edge-on
spiral galaxies, which can be explained by the extinction in their galactic
disks.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy Letters,
the original text in Russian can be found at
http://hea.iki.rssi.ru/~rodion/poptid.pd
Confirmation of SBS 1150+599A As An Extremely Metal-Poor Planetary Nebula
SBS 1150+599A is a blue stellar object at high galactic latitude discovered
in the Second Byurakan Survey. New high-resolution images of SBS 1150+599A are
presented, demonstrating that it is very likely to be an old planetary nebula
in the galactic halo, as suggested by Tovmassian et al (2001). An H-alpha image
taken with the WIYN 3.5-m telescope and its "tip/tilt" module reveals the
diameter of the nebula to be 9.2", comparable to that estimated from spectra by
Tovmassian et al. Lower limits to the central star temperature were derived
using the Zanstra hydrogen and helium methods to determine that the star's
effective temperature must be > 68,000K and that the nebula is optically thin.
New spectra from the MMT and FLWO telescopes are presented, revealing the
presence of strong [Ne V] lambda 3425, indicating that the central star
temperature must be > 100,000K. With the revised diameter, new central star
temperature, and an improved central star luminosity, we can constrain
photoionization models for the nebula significantly better than before. Because
the emission-line data set is sparse, the models are still not conclusive.
Nevertheless, we confirm that this nebula is an extremely metal-poor planetary
nebula, having a value for O/H that is less than 1/100 solar, and possibly as
low as 1/500 solar.Comment: 19 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in the Astronomical
Journa
Cold dust in a selected sample of nearby galaxies. I. The interacting galaxy NGC4631
We have observed the continuum emission of the interacting galaxy NGC4631 at
0.87 and 1.23mm using the Heinrich-Hertz-Telescope on Mt. Graham and the IRAM
30-m telescope on Pico Veleta. We have obtained fully sampled maps which cover
the optical emission out to a radius of about 7' at both wavelengths. For a
detailed analysis, we carefully subtracted the line contributions and
synchrotron and free-free emission from the data, which added up to 6% at
1.23mm and 10% at 0.87mm. We combined the flux densities with FIR data to
obtain dust spectra and calculate dust temperatures, absorption cross sections,
and masses. Assuming a ``standard'' dust model, which consists of two
populations of big grains at moderate and warm temperatures, we obtained
temperatures of 18K and 50K for the both components. However, such a model
suffers from an excess of the radiation at 1.23mm, and the dust absorption
cross section seems to be enhanced by a factor 3 compared to previous results
and theoretical expectations. At large galactocentric radii, where the galaxy
shows disturbances as a result of gravitational interaction, this effect seems
to be even stronger. Some possibilities to resolve these problems are
discussed. The data could be explained by a very cold dust component at a
temperature of 4-6K, an increased abundance of very small grains, or a
component of grains with unusual optical properties. We favour the latter
possibility, since the first two lead to inconsistencies.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysics. Updated version with minor errors corrected (typos, LaTeX
formatting, missing citation
Radio spectral index images of the spiral galaxies NGC 0628, NGC 3627, and NGC 7331
In order to understand the cosmic ray propagation mechanism in galaxies, and
its correlation with the sites of star formation, we compare the spatially
resolved radio spectral index of three spiral galaxies with their IR
distribution. We present new low-frequency radio continuum observations of the
galaxies NGC 0628, NGC 3627, and NGC 7331, taken at 327 MHz with the Very Large
Array. We complemented our data set with sensitive archival observations at 1.4
GHz and we studied the variations of the radio spectral index within the disks
of these spiral galaxies. We also compared the spectral index distribution and
the IR distribution, using 70 m Spitzer observations. We found that in
these galaxies the non-thermal spectral index is anticorrelated with the radio
brightness. Bright regions, like the bar in NGC 3627 or the circumnuclear
region in NGC 7331, are characterized by a flatter spectrum with respect to the
underlying disk. Therefore, a systematic steepening of the spectral index with
the increasing distance from the center of these galaxies is observed.
Furthermore, by comparing the radio images with the 70 m images of the
Spitzer satellite we found that a similar anticorrelation exists between the
radio spectral index and the infrared brightness, as expected on the basis of
the local correlation between the radio continuum and the infrared emission.
Our results support the idea that in regions of intense star formation the
electron diffusion must be efficient. The observed anticorrelation between
radio brightness and spectral index, may imply that the cosmic ray density and
the magnetic field strength are significantly higher in these regions than in
their surroundings.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figures, Accepted for pubblication in Astronomy &
Astrophysics A high resolution version of the paper can be downloaded from:
http://astro.uibk.ac.at/~rosita/paper/AA11870.pd
Morphology of the 12-micron Seyfert Galaxies: II. Optical and Near-Infrared Image Atlas
We present 263 optical and near-infrared (NIR) images for 42 Seyfert 1s and
48 Seyfert 2s, selected from the Extended 12-micron Galaxy Sample.
Elliptically-averaged profiles are derived from the images, and isophotal radii
and magnitudes are calculated from these. We also report virtual aperture
photometry, that judging from comparison with previous work, is accurate to
roughly 0.05mag in the optical, and 0.07mag in the NIR. Our B-band isophotal
magnitude and radii, obtained from ellipse fitting, are in good agreement with
those of RC3. When compared with the B band, V, I, J, and K isophotal diameters
show that the colors in the outer regions of Seyferts are consistent with the
colors of normal spirals. Differences in the integrated isophotal colors and
comparison with a simple model show that the active nucleus+bulge is stronger
and redder in the NIR than in the optical. Finally, roughly estimated Seyfert
disk surface brightnesses are significantly brighter in B and K than those in
normal spirals of similar morphological type.Comment: 17 pgs including figures; Table 2 is a separate file. Complete Figure
1 is available by contacting the authors. Accepted for publication in ApJ
High-resolution radio continuum survey of M33 II. Thermal and nonthermal emission
We determine the variation in the nonthermal radio spectral index in the
nearby spiral galaxy M33 at a linear resolution of 360 pc. We separate the
thermal and nonthermal components of the radio continuum emission without the
assumption of a constant nonthermal spectral index. Using the Spitzer FIR data
at 70 and 160 m and a standard dust model, we deredden the H
emission. The extinction corrected H emission serves as a template for
the thermal free-free radio emission. Subtracting from the observed 3.6 cm and
20 cm emission (Effelsberg and the VLA) this free-free emission, we obtain the
nonthermal maps. A constant electron temperature used to obtain the thermal
radio intensity seems appropriate for M~33 which, unlike the Milky Way, has a
shallow metallicity gradient. For the first time, we derive the distribution of
the nonthermal spectral index across a galaxy, M33. We detect strong nonthermal
emission from the spiral arms and star-forming regions. Wavelet analysis shows
that at 3.6 cm the nonthermal emission is dominated by contributions from
star-forming regions, while it is smoothly distributed at 20 cm. For the whole
galaxy, we obtain thermal fractions of 51% and 18% at 3.6 cm and 20 cm,
respectively. The thermal emission is slightly stronger in the southern than in
the northern half of the galaxy. We find a clear radial gradient of mean
extinction in the galactic plane. The nonthermal spectral index map indicates
that the relativistic electrons suffer energy-loss when diffusing from their
origin in star-forming regions towards interarm regions and the outer parts of
the galaxy. We also conclude that the radio emission is mostly nonthermal at R
5 kpc in M33.Comment: 15 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication in the Astronomy and
Astrophysics journa
Radio-loud Narrow-Line Type 1 Quasars
We present the first systematic study of (non-radio-selected) radio-loud
narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) galaxies. Cross-correlation of the `Catalogue of
Quasars and Active Nuclei' with several radio and optical catalogues led to the
identification of 11 radio-loud NLS1 candidates including 4 previously known
ones. Most of the radio-loud NLS1s are compact, steep spectrum sources
accreting close to, or above, the Eddington limit. The radio-loud NLS1s of our
sample are remarkable in that they occupy a previously rarely populated regime
in NLS1 multi-wavelength parameter space. While their [OIII]/H_beta and
FeII/H_beta intensity ratios almost cover the whole range observed in NLS1
galaxies, their radio properties extend the range of radio-loud objects to
those with small widths of the broad Balmer lines. Among the radio-detected
NLS1 galaxies, the radio index R distributes quite smoothly up to the critical
value of R ~ 10 and covers about 4 orders of magnitude in total. Statistics
show that ~7% of the NLS1 galaxies are formally radio-loud while only 2.5%
exceed a radio index R > 100. Several mechanisms are considered as explanations
for the radio loudness of the NLS1 galaxies and for the lower frequency of
radio-louds among NLS1s than quasars. While properties of most sources (with
2-3 exceptions) generally do not favor relativistic beaming, the combination of
accretion mode and spin may explain the observations. (abbreviated)Comment: Astronomical Journal (first submitted in Dec. 2005); 45 pages incl. 1
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The Herschel Virgo Cluster Survey: I. Luminosity functions
We describe the Herschel Virgo Cluster Survey (HeViCS) and the first data
obtained as part of the Science Demonstration Phase (SDP). The data cover a
central 4x4 sq deg region of the cluster. We use SPIRE and PACS photometry data
to produce 100, 160, 250, 350 and 500 micron luminosity functions (LFs) for
optically bright galaxies that are selected at 500 micron and detected in all
bands. We compare these LFs with those previously derived using IRAS, BLAST and
Herschel-ATLAS data. The Virgo Cluster LFs do not have the large numbers of
faint galaxies or examples of very luminous galaxies seen previously in surveys
covering less dense environments.Comment: Letter accepted for publication in A&A (Herschel special issue