The spectral energy distribution of galaxies at z > 2.5: Implications from the Herschel/SPIRE color-color diagram

We use the Herschel SPIRE color-color diagram to study the spectral energy distribution (SED) and the redshift estimation of high-z galaxies. We compiled a sample of 57 galaxies with spectroscopically confirmed redshifts and SPIRE detections in all three bands at $z=2.5-6.4$, and compared their average SPIRE colors with SED templates from local and high-z libraries. We find that local SEDs are inconsistent with high-z observations. The local calibrations of the parameters need to be adjusted to describe the average colors of high-z galaxies. For high-z libraries, the templates with an evolution from z=0 to 3 can well describe the average colors of the observations at high redshift. Using these templates, we defined color cuts to divide the SPIRE color-color diagram into different regions with different mean redshifts. We tested this method and two other color cut methods using a large sample of 783 Herschel-selected galaxies, and find that although these methods can separate the sample into populations with different mean redshifts, the dispersion of redshifts in each population is considerably large. Additional information is needed for better sampling.Comment: 17 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication in A&

AKARI/IRC Broadband Mid-infrared data as an indicator of Star Formation Rate

AKARI/Infrared Camera (IRC) Point Source Catalog provides a large amount of flux data at {\it S9W} ($9\ {\rm \mu m}$) and {\it L18W} ($18\ {\rm \mu m}$) bands. With the goal of constructing Star-Formation Rate(SFR) calculations using IRC data, we analyzed an IR selected GALEX-SDSS-2MASS-AKARI(IRC/Far-Infrared Surveyor) sample of 153 nearby galaxies. The far-infrared fluxes were obtained from AKARI diffuse maps to correct the underestimation for extended sources raised by the point-spread function photometry. SFRs of these galaxies were derived by the spectral energy distribution fitting program CIGALE. In spite of complicated features contained in these bands, both the {\it S9W} and {\it L18W} emission correlate with the SFR of galaxies. The SFR calibrations using {\it S9W} and {\it L18W} are presented for the first time. These calibrations agree well with previous works based on Spitzer data within the scatters, and should be applicable to dust-rich galaxies.Comment: PASJ, in pres

GAMA/H-ATLAS: common star-formation rate indicators and their dependence on galaxy physical parameters

We compare common star-formation rate (SFR) indicators in the local Universe in the GAMA equatorial fields (around 160 sq. deg.), using ultraviolet (UV) photometry from GALEX, far-infrared (FIR) and sub-millimetre (sub-mm) photometry from H-ATLAS, and Halpha spectroscopy from the GAMA survey. With a high-quality sample of 745 galaxies (median redshift 0.08), we consider three SFR tracers: UV luminosity corrected for dust attenuation using the UV spectral slope beta (SFRUV,corr), Halpha line luminosity corrected for dust using the Balmer decrement (BD) (SFRHalpha,corr), and the combination of UV and IR emission (SFRUV+IR). We demonstrate that SFRUV,corr can be reconciled with the other two tracers after applying attenuation corrections by calibrating IRX (i.e. the IR to UV luminosity ratio) and attenuation in the Halpha (derived from BD) against beta. However, beta on its own is very unlikely to be a reliable attenuation indicator. We find that attenuation correction factors depend on parameters such as stellar mass, z and dust temperature (Tdust), but not on Halpha equivalent width (EW) or Sersic index. Due to the large scatter in the IRX vs beta correlation, when compared to SFRUV+IR, the beta-corrected SFRUV,corr exhibits systematic deviations as a function of IRX, BD and Tdust

GAMA/H-ATLAS: Common star-formation rate indicators and their dependence on galaxy physical parameter

We compare common star-formation rate (SFR) indicators in the local Universe in the GAMA equatorial fields (∼ 160 deg2), using ultraviolet (UV) photometry from GALEX, far-infrared (FIR) and sub-millimetre (sub-mm) photometry from H-ATLAS, and Hα spectroscopy from the GAMA survey. With a high-quality sample of 745 galaxies (median redshift (z) = 0.08), we consider three SFR tracers: UV luminosity corrected for dust attenuation using the UV spectral slope β (SFRUV,corr), Hα line luminosity corrected for dust using the Balmer decrement (BD) (SFRHα,corr), and the combination of UV and IR emission (SFRUV+IR). We demonstrate that SFRUV,corr can be reconciled with the other two tracers after applying attenuation corrections by calibrating IRX (i.e. the IR to UV luminosity ratio) and attenuation in the Hα (derived from BD) against β. However, β on its own is very unlikely to be a reliable attenuation indicator. We find that attenuation correction factors depend on parameters such as stellar mass (M∗), z and dust temperature (Tdust), but not on Hα equivalent width (EW) or Sersic index. Due to the large scatter in the IRX vs β correlation, when compared to SFRUV+IR, the β-corrected SFRUV,corr exhibits systematic deviations as a function of IRX, BD and Tdust

Dust properties of Lyman break galaxies at z∼3z\sim3

We explore from a statistical point of view the far-infrared (far-IR) and sub-millimeter (sub-mm) properties of a large sample of LBGs (22,000) at z~3 in the COSMOS field. The large number of galaxies allows us to split it in several bins as a function of UV luminosity, UV slope, and stellar mass to better sample their variety. We perform stacking analysis in PACS (100 and 160 um), SPIRE (250, 350 and 500 um) and AzTEC (1.1 mm) images. Our stacking procedure corrects the biases induced by galaxy clustering and incompleteness of our input catalogue in dense regions. We obtain the full IR spectral energy distributions (SED) of subsamples of LBGs and derive the mean IR luminosity as a function of UV luminosity, UV slope, and stellar mass. The average IRX is roughly constant over the UV luminosity range, with a mean of 7.9 (1.8 mag). However, it is correlated with UV slope, and stellar mass. We investigate using a statistically-controlled stacking analysis as a function of (stellar mass, UV slope) the dispersion of the IRX-UVslope and IRX-M* plane. Our results enable us to study the average relation between star-formation rate (SFR) and stellar mass, and we show that our LBG sample lies on the main sequence of star formation at z~3.Comment: Accepted to A&A, 17 Pages, 14 Figures, 2 Table

HerMES: point source catalogues from Herschel-SPIRE observations II

Key Programme on the Herschel Space Observatory. With a wedding cake survey strategy, it consists of nested fields with varying depth and area totalling ∼380 deg2. In this paper, we present deep point source catalogues extracted from Herschel-Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE) observations of all HerMES fields, except for the later addition of the 270 deg2 HerMES Large-Mode Survey (HeLMS) field. These catalogues constitute the second Data Release (DR2) made in 2013 October. A sub-set of these catalogues, which consists of bright sources extracted from Herschel-SPIRE observations completed by 2010 May 1 (covering ∼74 deg2) were released earlier in the first extensive data release in 2012 March. Two different methods are used to generate the point source catalogues, the SUSSEXTRACTOR point source extractor used in two earlier data releases (EDR and EDR2) and a new source detection and photometry method. The latter combines an iterative source detection algorithm, STARFINDER, and a De-blended SPIRE Photometry algorithm. We use end-to-end Herschel-SPIRE simulations with realistic number counts and clustering properties to characterize basic properties of the point source catalogues, such as the completeness, reliability, photometric and positional accuracy. Over 500 000 catalogue entries in HerMES fields (except HeLMS) are released to the public through the HeDAM (Herschel Database in Marseille) website (http://hedam.lam.fr/HerMES)

GALEX Detection of Shock Breakout in Type II-P Supernova PS1-13arp: Implications for the Progenitor Star Wind

We present the GALEX detection of a UV burst at the time of explosion of an optically normal Type II-P supernova (PS1-13arp) from the Pan-STARRS1 survey at z=0.1665. The temperature and luminosity of the UV burst match the theoretical predictions for shock breakout in a red supergiant, but with a duration a factor of ~50 longer than expected. We compare the $NUV$ light curve of PS1-13arp to previous GALEX detections of Type IIP SNe, and find clear distinctions that indicate that the UV emission is powered by shock breakout, and not by the subsequent cooling envelope emission previously detected in these systems. We interpret the ~ 1 d duration of the UV signal with a shock breakout in the wind of a red supergiant with a pre-explosion mass-loss rate of ~ 10^-3 Msun yr^-1. This mass-loss rate is enough to prolong the duration of the shock breakout signal, but not enough to produce an excess in the optical plateau light curve or narrow emission lines powered by circumstellar interaction. This detection of non-standard, potentially episodic high mass-loss in a RSG SN progenitor has favorable consequences for the prospects of future wide-field UV surveys to detect shock breakout directly in these systems, and provide a sensitive probe of the pre-explosion conditions of SN progenitors.Comment: Accepted for Publication in Ap

HerMES: The Contribution to the Cosmic Infrared Background from Galaxies Selected by Mass and Redshift

We quantify the fraction of the cosmic infrared background (CIB) that originates from galaxies identified in the UV/optical/near-infrared by stacking 81,250 (~35.7 arcmin^(–2)) K-selected sources (K_(AB) 350 μm. The contribution from galaxies in the log(M/M_☉) = 9.0-9.5 (lowest) and log(M/M_☉) = 11.0-12.0 (highest) stellar-mass bins contribute the least—both of order 5%—although the highest stellar-mass bin is a significant contributor to the luminosity density at z ≳ 2. The luminosities of the galaxies responsible for the CIB shifts from combinations of "normal" and luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs) at λ ≾ 160 μm, to LIRGs at 160 ≾ λ ≾ 500 μm, to finally LIRGs and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies at λ ≳ 500 μm. Stacking analyses were performed using SIMSTACK, a novel algorithm designed to account for possible biases in the stacked flux density due to clustering. It is made available to the public at www.astro.caltech.edu/~viero/viero_homepage/toolbox.html