1,252 research outputs found
Galaxy number counts in the Hubble Deep Field as a strong constraint on a hierarchical galaxy formation model
Number counts of galaxies are re-analyzed using a semi-analytic model (SAM)
of galaxy formation based on the hierarchical clustering scenario. We have
determined the astrophysical parameters in the SAM that reproduce observations
of nearby galaxies, and used them to predict the number counts and redshifts of
faint galaxies for three cosmological models for (1) the standard cold dark
matter (CDM) universe, (2) a low-density flat universe with nonzero
cosmological constant, and (3) a low-density open universe with zero
cosmological constant. The novelty of our SAM analysis is the inclusion of
selection effects arising from the cosmological dimming of surface brightness
of high-redshift galaxies, and also from the absorption of visible light by
internal dust and intergalactic \ion{H}{1} clouds. Contrary to previous SAM
analyses which do not take into account such selection effects, we find, from
comparison with observed counts and redshifts of faint galaxies in the Hubble
Deep Field (HDF), that the standard CDM universe is {\it not} preferred, and a
low-density universe either with or without cosmological constant is favorable,
as suggested by other recent studies. Moreover, we find that a simple
prescription for the time scale of star formation (SF), being proportional to
the dynamical time scale of the formation of the galactic disk, is unable to
reproduce the observed number- redshift relation for HDF galaxies, and that the
SF time scale should be nearly independent of redshift, as suggested by other
SAM analyses for the formation of quasars and the evolution of damped
Ly- systems.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, LaTeX, using emulateapj5.st
Unavoidable Selection Effects in the Analysis of Faint Galaxies in the Hubble Deep Field: Probing the Cosmology and Merger History of Galaxies
(Abridged) We present a detailed analysis of the number count and photometric
redshift distribution of faint galaxies in the Hubble Deep Field (HDF), paying
a special attention to the selection effects including the cosmological dimming
of surface brightness of galaxies. We find a considerably different result from
previous studies ignoring the selection effects, and these effects should
therefore be taken into account in the analysis. We find that the model of pure
luminosity evolution (PLE) of galaxies in the Einstein-de Sitter (EdS) universe
predicts much smaller counts than those observed at faint magnitude limits by a
factor of more than 10, so that a very strong number evolution of galaxies with
\eta > 3-4 must be invoked to reproduce the I_{814} counts, when parametrized
as \phi^* \propto (1+z)^\eta. However we show that such a strong number
evolution under realistic merging processes of galaxies can not explain the
steep slope of the B_{450} and V_{606} counts, and it is seriously inconsistent
with their photometric redshift distribution. We find that these difficulties
still persist in an open universe with \Omega_0 > 0.2, but are resolved only
when we invoke a -dominated flat universe, after examining various
systematic uncertainties in modeling the formation and evolution of galaxies.
The present analysis revitalizes the practice of using faint number counts as
an important cosmological test, giving one of the arguments against the EdS
universe and suggests acceleration of the cosmic expansion by vacuum energy
density. While a modest number evolution of galaxies with \eta ~ 1 is still
necessary even in a Lambda-dominated universe, a stronger number evolution with
\eta > 1 is rejected from the HDF data, giving a strong constraint on the
merger history of galaxies.Comment: 24 pages, 15 figures, final version matching publication in ApJ. Some
references added. The complete ps file of Table 3 is available at
http://th.nao.ac.jp/~totani/images/paper/ty2000-table3.p
Galaxy Evolution, Deep Galaxy Counts and the Near-IR Cosmic Infrared Background
Accurate synthetic models of stellar populations are constructed and used in
evolutionary models of stellar populations in forming galaxies. Following their
formation, the late type galaxies are assumed to follow the Schmidt law for
star formation, while early type galaxies are normalized to the present-day
fundamental plane relations assumed to mimic the metallicity variations along
their luminosity sequence. We then compute predictions of these models for the
observational data at early epochs for various cosmological parameters and . We find good match to the metallicity data from the
damped systems and the evolution of the luminosity density out to
. Likewise, our models provide good fits for low values of
to the deep number counts of galaxies in all bands where data is available;
this is done without assuming existence of extra populations of galaxies at
high . Our models also match the data on the redshift distribution of galaxy
counts in and bands. We compute the predicted mean levels and angular
distribution of the cosmic infrared background produced from the early
evolution of galaxies. The predicted fluxes and fluctuations are still below
the current observational limits, but not by a large factor. Finally, we find
that the recent detection of the diffuse extragalactic light in the visible
bands requires for our models high redshift of galaxy formation, (3-4); otherwise the produced flux of the extragalactic light at optical
bands exceeds the current observational limits.Comment: Accepted to Ap
Galaxy Number Counts in the Subaru Deep Field: Multi-band Analysis in a Hierarchical Galaxy Formation Model
Number counts of galaxies are re-analyzed using a semi-analytic model (SAM)
of galaxy formation based on the hierarchical clustering scenario. Faint
galaxies in the Subaru Deep Field (SDF) and the Hubble Deep Field (HDF) are
compared with our model galaxies. We have determined the astrophysical
parameters in the SAM that reproduce observations of nearby galaxies, and used
them to predict the number counts and redshifts of faint galaxies for three
cosmological models, the standard cold dark matter (CDM) universe, a flat
lambda-CDM, and an open CDM. The novelty of our SAM analysis is the inclusion
of selection effects arising from the cosmological dimming of surface
brightness of high-z galaxies, and from the absorption of visible light by
internal dust and intergalactic HI clouds. As was found in our previous work,
in which the UV/optical HDF galaxies were compared with our model galaxies, we
find that our SAM reproduces counts of near-IR SDF galaxies in low-density
models, and that the standard CDM universe is not preferred, as suggested by
other recent studies. Moreover, we find that simple prescriptions for (1) the
timescale of star formation being proportional to the dynamical time scale of
the formation of galactic disks, (2) the size of galactic disks being
rotationally supported with the same specific angular momentum as that of
surrounding dark halo, and (3) the dust optical depth being proportional to the
metallicity of cold gas, cannot completely explain all of observed data.
Improved prescriptions incorporating mild z-dependence for those are suggested
from our SAM analysis.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, to appear in Ap
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A reassessment of Antarctic plateau reactive nitrogen based on ANTCI 2003 airborne and ground based measurements
The first airborne measurements of nitric oxide (NO) on the Antarctic plateau have demonstrated that the previously reported elevated levels of this species extend well beyond the immediate vicinity of South Pole. Although the current database is still relatively weak and critical laboratory experiments are still needed, the findings here suggest that the chemical uniqueness of the plateau may be substantially greater than first reported. For example, South Pole ground-based findings have provided new evidence showing that the dominant process driving the release of nitrogen from the snowpack during the spring/summer season (post-depositional loss) is photochemical in nature with evaporative processes playing a lesser role. There is also new evidence suggesting that nitrogen, in the form of nitrate, may undergo multiple recycling within a given photochemical season. Speculation here is that this may be a unique property of the plateau and much related to its having persistent cold temperatures even during summer. These conditions promote the efficient adsorption of molecules like HNO3 (and very likely HO2NO2) onto snow-pack surface ice where we have hypothesized enhanced photochemical processing can occur, leading to the efficient release of NOx to the atmosphere. In addition, to these process-oriented tentative conclusions, the findings from the airborne studies, in conjunction with modeling exercises suggest a new paradigm for the plateau atmosphere. The near-surface atmosphere over this massive region can be viewed as serving as much more than a temporary reservoir or holding tank for imported chemical species. It defines an immense atmospheric chemical reactor which is capable of modifying the chemical characteristics of select atmospheric constituents. This reactor has most likely been in place over geological time, and may have led to the chemical modulation of some trace species now found in ice cores. Reactive nitrogen has played a critical role in both establishing and in maintaining this reactor. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
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