232 research outputs found
Discovery of H alpha absorption in the unusual broad absorption line quasar SDSS J083942.11+380526.3
We discovered an H alpha absorption in a broad H alpha emission line of an
unusual broad absorption line quasar, SDSS J083942.11+380526.3 at z=2.318, by
near-infrared spectroscopy with the Cooled Infrared Spectrograph and Camera for
OHS (CISCO) on the Subaru telescope. The Presence of non-stellar H alpha
absorption is known only in the Seyfert galaxy NGC 4151 to date, thus our
discovery is the first case for quasars. The H alpha absorption line is
blueshifted by 520 km/s relative to the H alpha emission line, and its redshift
almost coincides with those of UV low-ionization metal absorption lines. The
width of the H alpha absorption (~ 340 km/s) is similar to those of the UV
low-ionization absorption lines. These facts suggest that the H alpha and the
low-ionization metal absorption lines are produced by the same low-ionization
gas which has a substantial amount of neutral gas. The column density of the
neutral hydrogen is estimated to be ~ 10^18 cm^-2 by assuming a gas temperature
of 10,000 K from the analysis of the curve of growth. The continuum spectrum is
reproduced by a reddened (E(B-V) ~ 0.15 mag for the SMC-like reddening law)
composite quasar spectrum. Furthermore, the UV spectrum of SDSS
J083942.11+380526.3 shows a remarkable similarity to that of NGC 4151 in its
low state, suggesting the physical condition of the absorber in SDSS
J083942.11+380526.3 is similar to that of NGC 4151 in the low state. As
proposed for NGC 4151, SDSS J083942.11+380526.3 may be also seen through the
close direction of the surface of the obscuring torus.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap
A Slow Merger History of Field Galaxies Since z~1
Using deep infrared observations conducted with the CISCO imager on the
Subaru Telescope, we investigate the field-corrected pair fraction and the
implied merger rate of galaxies in redshift survey fields with Hubble Space
Telescope imaging. In the redshift interval, 0.5 < z < 1.5, the fraction of
infrared-selected pairs increases only modestly with redshift to 7% +- 6% at
z~1. This is nearly a factor of three less than the fraction, 22% +- 8%,
determined using the same technique on HST optical images and as measured in a
previous similar study. Tests support the hypothesis that optical pair
fractions at z~1 are inflated by bright star-forming regions that are unlikely
to be representative of the underlying mass distribution. By determining
stellar masses for the companions, we estimate the mass accretion rate
associated with merging galaxies. At z~1, we estimate this to be 2x10^{9 +-
0.2} solar masses per galaxy per Gyr. Although uncertainties remain, our
results suggest that the growth of galaxies via the accretion of pre-existing
fragments remains as significant a phenomenon in the redshift range studied as
that estimated from ongoing star formation in independent surveys.Comment: 5 pages, accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
Near-Infrared Observations of Powerful High-Redshift Radio Galaxies: 4C 40.36 and 4C 39.37
We present near-infrared imaging and spectroscopic observations of two FR II
high-redshift radio galaxies (HzRGs), 4C 40.36 (z=2.3) and 4C 39.37 (z=3.2),
obtained with the Hubble, Keck, and Hale Telescopes. High resolution images
were taken with filters both in and out of strong emission lines, and together
with the spectroscopic data, the properties of the line and continuum emissions
were carefully analyzed. Our analysis of 4C 40.36 and 4C 39.37 shows that
strong emission lines (e.g., [O III] 5007 A and H alpha+[N II]) contribute to
the broad-band fluxes much more significantly than previously estimated (80%
vs. 20-40%), and that when the continuum sources are imaged through line-free
filters, they show an extremely compact morphology with a high surface
brightness. If we use the R^1/4-law parametrization, their effective radii
(r(e)) are only 2-3 kpc while their restframe B-band surface brightnesses at
r(e) are I(B) ~ 18 mag/arcsec^2. Compared with z ~ 1 3CR radio galaxies, the
former is x3-5 smaller, while the latter is 1-1.5 mag brighter than what is
predicted from the I(B)-r(e) correlation. Although exponential profiles produce
equally good fits for 4C 40.36 and 4C 39.37, this clearly indicates that with
respect to the z~1 3CR radio galaxies, the light distribution of these two
HzRGs is much more centrally concentrated. Spectroscopically, 4C 40.36 shows a
flat (fnu=const) continuum while 4C 39.37 shows a spectrum as red as that of a
local giant elliptical galaxy. Although this difference may be explained in
terms of a varying degree of star formation, the similarities of their surface
brightness profiles and the submillimeter detection of 4C 39.37 might suggest
that the intrinsic spectra is equally blue (young stars or an AGN), and that
the difference is the amount of reddening.Comment: 30 pages, 6 tables, 10 figures; Accepted for publication in
Astronomical Journa
Infrared Imaging of the Gravitational Lens PG 1115+080 with the Subaru Telescope
We present high spatial resolution images of the gravitational-lens system PG
1115+080 taken with the near-infrared camera (CISCO) on the Subaru telescope.
The FWHM of the combined image is in the -band, yielding spatial
resolution of after a deconvolution procedure. This is a first
detection of an extended emission adjacent to the A1/A2 components, indicating
the presence of a fairly bright emission region with a characteristic angular
radius of 5 mas (40 pc). The near-infrared image of the Einstein ring
was extracted in both the and bands. The color is found to be
significantly redder than that of a synthetic model galaxy with an age of 3
Gyr, the age of the universe at the quasar redshift.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in PASJ(2000
Stellar Populations of Luminous Evolved Galaxies at z~1.5
Observational evidence has been mounting over the past decade that at least
some luminous (~2 L*) galaxies have formed nearly all of their stars within a
short period of time only 1-2x10^9 years after the Big Bang. These are examples
of the first major episodes of star formation in the Universe and provide
insights into the formation of the earliest massive galaxies. We have examined
in detail the stellar populations of six z~1.5 galaxies that appear to be
passively evolving, using both ground and space-based photometry covering
rest-frame UV to visible wavelengths. In addition, we have obtained
medium-resolution spectroscopy for five of the six galaxies, covering the
rest-frame UV portion of the spectrum. Spectral synthesis modeling for four of
these galaxies favors a single burst of star formation more than 1 Gyr before
the observed epoch. The other two exhibit slightly younger ages with a higher
dust content and evidence for a small contribution from either recent star
formation or active nuclei. The implied formation redshifts for the oldest of
these sources are consistent with previous studies of passive galaxies at high
redshift, and improved stellar modeling has shown these results to be quite
robust. It now seems clear that any valid galaxy formation scenario must be
able to account for these massive (2x10^11 M_sun) galaxies at very early times
in the Universe.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures (2 in color), accepted for publication in Ap
Spatially-resolved Radio-to-Far-infrared SED of the Luminous Merger Remnant NGC 1614 with ALMA and VLA
We present the results of Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA)
108, 233, 352, and 691 GHz continuum observations and Very Large Array (VLA)
4.81 and 8.36 GHz observations of the nearby luminous merger remnant NGC 1614.
By analyzing the beam (1".0 * 1".0) and uv (> 45 k{\lambda}) matched ALMA and
VLA maps, we find that the deconvolved source size of lower frequency emission
(< 108 GHz) is more compact (420 pc * 380 pc) compared to the higher frequency
emission (> 233 GHz) (560 pc * 390 pc), suggesting different physical origins
for the continuum emission. Based on an SED model for a dusty starburst galaxy,
it is found that the SED can be explained by three components, (1) non-thermal
synchrotron emission (traced in the 4.81 and 8.36 GHz continuum), (2) thermal
free-free emission (traced in the 108 GHz continuum), and (3) thermal dust
emission (traced in the 352 and 691 GHz continuum). We also present the
spatially-resolved (sub-kpc scale) Kennicutt-Schmidt relation of NGC 1614. The
result suggests a systematically shorter molecular gas depletion time in NGC
1614 (average {\tau}_gas of 49 - 77 Myr and 70 - 226 Myr at the starburst ring
and the outer region, respectively) than that of normal disk galaxies (~ 2 Gyr)
and a mid-stage merger VV 114 (= 0.1 - 1 Gyr). This implies that the star
formation activities in U/LIRGs are efficiently enhanced as the merger stage
proceeds, which is consistent with the results from high-resolution numerical
merger simulations.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in PAS
Evolution of the Near-Infrared Tully-Fisher Relation: Constraints on the Relationship Between the Stellar and Total Masses of Disk Galaxies since z=1
Using a combination of Keck spectroscopy and near-infrared imaging, we
investigate the K-band and stellar mass Tully-Fisher relation for 101 disk
galaxies at 0.2 < z < 1.2, with the goal of placing the first observational
constraints on the assembly history of halo and stellar mass. Our main result
is a lack of evolution in either the K-band or stellar mass Tully-Fisher
relation from z = 0 - 1.2. Furthermore, although our sample is not
statistically complete, we consider it suitable for an initial investigation of
how the fraction of total mass that has condensed into stars is distributed
with both redshift and total halo mass. We calculate stellar masses from
optical and near-infrared photometry and total masses from maximum rotational
velocities and disk scale lengths, utilizing a range of model relationships
derived analytically and from simulations. We find that the stellar/total mass
distribution and stellar-mass Tully-Fisher relation for z > 0.7 disks is
similar to that at lower redshift, suggesting that baryonic mass is accreted by
disks along with dark matter at z < 1, and that disk galaxy formation at z < 1
is hierarchical in nature. We briefly discuss the evolutionary trends expected
in conventional structure formation models and the implications of extending
such a study to much larger samples.Comment: ApJ, in press, 9 page
High-redshift Ly alpha emitters with a large equivalent width: Properties of i-dropout galaxies with an NB921-band depression in the Subaru Deep Field
We report new follow-up spectroscopy of i-dropout galaxies with an NB921-band
depression found in the Subaru Deep Field. The NB921-depressed i-dropout
selection method is expected to select galaxies with large equivalent width Ly
alpha emission over a wide redshift range, 6.0<z<6.5. Two of four observed
targets show a strong emission line with a clear asymmetric profile, identified
as Ly alpha emitters at z=6.11 and 6.00. Their rest-frame equivalent widths are
153A and 114A, which are lower limits on the intrinsic equivalent widths.
Through our spectroscopic observations (including previous ones) of
NB921-depressed i-dropout galaxies, we identified 5 galaxies in total with a
rest-frame equivalent width larger than 100A at 6.0<z<6.5 out of 8 photometric
candidates, which suggests that the NB921-depressed i-dropout selection method
is possibly an efficient way to search for Ly alpha emitters with a large Ly
alpha equivalent width, in a wider redshift range than usual narrow-band excess
techniques. By combining these findings with our previous observational
results, we infer that the fraction of broad-band selected galaxies having a
rest-frame equivalent width larger than 100A is significantly higher at z~6
(the cosmic age of ~1 Gyr) than that at z~3 (~2 Gyr), being consistent with the
idea that the typical stellar population of galaxies is significantly younger
at z~6 than that at z~3. The NB921-depressed i-dropout galaxies may be
interesting candidates for hosts of massive, zero-metallicity Population III
stars.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Nebular Spectra and Explosion Asymmetry of Type Ia Supernovae
The spectral signatures of asymmetry in Type Ia Supernova (SN Ia) explosions
are investigated, using a sample of late-time nebular spectra. First, a
kinematical model is constructed for SN Ia 2003hv, which can account for the
main features in its optical, Near-Infrared (NIR), and Mid-Infrared (Mid-IR)
late-time spectra. It is found that an asymmetric off-center model can explain
the observed characteristics of SN 2003hv. This model includes a relatively
high density, Fe-rich region which displays a large velocity off-set, and a
relatively low density, extended 56Ni-rich region which is more spherically
distributed. The high density region consists of the inner stable Fe-Ni region
and outer 56Ni-rich region. Such a distribution may be the result of a
delayed-detonation explosion, in which the first deflagration produces the
global asymmetry in the innermost ejecta, while the subsequent detonation can
lead to the bulk spherical symmetry. This configuration, if viewed from the
direction of the off-set, can consistently explain the blueshift in some of the
emission lines and virtually no observed shift in other lines in SN 2003hv. For
this model, we then explore the effects of different viewing angles and the
implications for SNe Ia in general. The model predicts that a variation of the
central wavelength, depending on the viewing angle, should be seen in some
lines (e.g., [Ni II]7378), while the strongest lines (e.g., [Fe III] blend at
4700A) will not show this effect. By examining optical nebular spectra of 12
SNe Ia, we have found that such a variation indeed exists. We suggest that the
global asymmetry in the innermost ejecta, as likely imprint of the deflagration
flame propagation, is a generic feature of SNe Ia (abridged).Comment: 14 pages, 11 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in the
Astrophysical Journal. Minor correction
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