190 research outputs found
Cold gas in group-dominant elliptical galaxies
We present IRAM 30m telescope observations of the CO(1-0) and (2-1) lines in
a sample of 11 group-dominant elliptical galaxies selected from the CLoGS
nearby groups sample. Our observations confirm the presence of molecular gas in
4 of the 11 galaxies at >4 sigma significance, and combining these with data
from the literature we find a detection rate of 43+-14%, comparable to the
detection rate for nearby radio galaxies, suggesting that group-dominant
ellipticals may be more likely to contain molecular gas than their non-central
counterparts. Those group-dominant galaxies which are detected typically
contain ~2x10^8 Msol of molecular gas, and although most have low star
formation rates (<1 Msol/yr) they have short depletion times, indicating that
the gas must be replenished on timescales ~100 Myr. Almost all of the galaxies
contain active nuclei, and we note while the data suggest that CO may be more
common in the most radio-loud galaxies, the mass of molecular gas required to
power the active nuclei through accretion is small compared to the masses
observed. We consider possible origin mechanisms for the gas, through cooling
of stellar ejecta within the galaxies, group-scale cooling flows, and gas-rich
mergers, and find probable examples of each type within our sample, confirming
that a variety of processes act to drive the build up of molecular gas in
group-dominant ellipticals.Comment: 9 pages, 5 postscript figures, 4 tables, accepted by A&A. Revised
throughout in response to referee's comments, including updates to Table 1
and Figure 4, and addition of Figure
Deep Chandra Observations of HCG 16 - II. The Development of the Intra-group Medium in a Spiral-Rich Group
We use a combination of deep Chandra X-ray observations and radio continuum
imaging to investigate the origin and current state of the intra-group medium
in the spiral-rich compact group HCG 16. We confirm the presence of a faint
(=1.8710 erg/s), low
temperature (0.30 keV) intra-group medium (IGM) extending
throughout the ACIS-S3 field of view, with a ridge linking the four original
group members and extending to the southeast, as suggested by previous Rosat
and XMM-Newton observations. This ridge contains
6.610 solar masses of hot gas and is at least
partly coincident with a large-scale HI tidal filament, indicating that the IGM
in the inner part of the group is highly multi-phase. We present evidence that
the group is not yet virialised, and show that gas has probably been
transported from the starburst winds of NGC 838 and NGC 839 into the
surrounding IGM. Considering the possible origin of the IGM, we argue that
material ejected by galactic winds may have played a significant role,
contributing 20-40% of the observed hot gas in the system.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, 1 table, accepted for publication in ApJ;
updated references and fixed typos identified at proof stag
AGN Feedback in groups and clusters of galaxies
The lack of very cool gas at the cores of groups and clusters of galaxies,
even where the cooling time is significantly shorter than the Hubble time, has
been interpreted as evidence of sources that re-heat the intergalactic medium.
Most studies of rich clusters adopt AGN feedback to be this source of heating.
From ongoing GMRT projects involving clusters and groups, we demonstrate how
low-frequency GMRT radio observations, together with Chandra/XMM-Newton X-ray
data, present a unique insight into the nature of feedback, and of the energy
transfer between the AGN and the IGM.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, To appear in ASP Conference Series, Vol. 407, The
Low-Frequency Radio Universe, Eds: D. J. Saikia, D. A. Green, Y. Gupta and T.
Venturi (Invited talk, conference held at NCRA-TIFR, Pune, INDIA, 8-12
December, 2008
The Complete Local Volume Groups Sample - I. Sample Selection and X-ray Properties of the High-Richness Subsample
We present the Complete Local-Volume Groups Sample (CLoGS), a statistically
complete optically-selected sample of 53 groups within 80 Mpc. Our goal is to
combine X-ray, radio and optical data to investigate the relationship between
member galaxies, their active nuclei, and the hot intra-group medium (IGM). We
describe sample selection, define a 26-group high-richness subsample of groups
containing at least 4 optically bright (log L_B>=10.2 LBsol) galaxies, and
report the results of XMM-Newton and Chandra observations of these systems. We
find that 14 of the 26 groups are X-ray bright, possessing a group-scale IGM
extending at least 65kpc and with luminosity >10^41 erg/s, while a further 3
groups host smaller galaxy-scale gas halos. The X-ray bright groups have masses
in the range M_500=0.5-5x10^13 Msol, based on system temperatures of 0.4-1.4
keV, and X-ray luminosities in the range 2-200x10^41 erg/s. We find that
~53-65% of the X-ray bright groups have cool cores, a somewhat lower fraction
than found by previous archival surveys. Approximately 30% of the X-ray bright
groups show evidence of recent dynamical interactions (mergers or sloshing),
and ~35% of their dominant early-type galaxies host AGN with radio jets. We
find no groups with unusually high central entropies, as predicted by some
simulations, and confirm that CLoGS is in principle capable of detecting such
systems. We identify three previously unrecognized groups, and find that they
are either faint (L_X,R500<10^42 erg/s) with no concentrated cool core, or
highly disturbed. This leads us to suggest that ~20% of X-ray bright groups in
the local universe may still be unidentified.Comment: Accepted for publication by MNRAS, 25 Manuscript pages with 6 tables
and 10 figures, plus 30 pages of appendices. v2 corrects minor typographical
errors identified at proof stag
Deep Chandra Observations of HCG 16 - I. Active Nuclei, Star formation and Galactic Winds
We present new, deep Chandra X-ray and Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope
610~MHz observations of the spiral-galaxy-rich compact group HCG 16, which we
use to examine nuclear activity, star formation and the high luminosity X-ray
binary populations in the major galaxies. We confirm the presence of obscured
active nuclei in NGC 833 and NGC 835, and identify a previously unrecognized
nuclear source in NGC 838. All three nuclei are variable on timescales of
months to years, and for NGC 833 and NGC 835 this is most likely caused by
changes in accretion rate. The deep Chandra observations allow us to detect for
the first time an Fe-K emission line in the spectrum of the Seyfert 2
nucleus of NGC 835. We find that NGC 838 and NGC 839 are both
starburst-dominated systems, with only weak nuclear activity, in agreement with
previous optical studies. We estimate the star formation rates in the two
galaxies from their X-ray and radio emission, and compare these results with
estimates from the infra-red and ultra-violet bands to confirm that star
formation in both galaxies is probably declining after galaxy-wide starbursts
were triggered ~400-500 Myr ago. We examine the physical properties of their
galactic superwinds, and find that both have temperatures of ~0.8 keV. We also
examine the X-ray and radio properties of NGC 848, the fifth largest galaxy in
the group, and show that it is dominated by emission from its starburst.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures, 11 tables, accepted for publication in ApJ;
updated references and fixed typos identified at proof stag
Cavities and shocks in the galaxy group HCG 62 as revealed by Chandra, XMM and GMRT data
We report on the results of an analysis of Chandra, XMM-Newton and new GMRT
data of the X-ray bright compact group of galaxies HCG 62, which is one of the
few groups known to possess clear, small X-ray cavities in the inner regions.
This is part of an ongoing X-ray/low-frequency radio study of 18 groups,
initially chosen for the availability of good-quality X-ray data and evidence
for AGN/hot gas interaction. At higher frequency (1.4 GHz), the HCG 62 cavity
system shows minimal if any radio emission, but the new GMRT observations at
235 MHz and 610 MHz clearly detect extended low-frequency emission from radio
lobes corresponding to the cavities. By means of the synergy of X-ray and
low-frequency radio observations, we compare and discuss the morphology,
luminosity and pressure of the gas and of the radio source. We find that the
radio source is radiatively inefficient, with a ratio of radio luminosity to
mechanical cavity power of , and that the radio pressure of the
lobes is about one order of magnitude lower than the X-ray pressure of the
surrounding thermal gas. Thanks to the high spatial resolution of the Chandra
surface brightness and temperature profiles, we also identify a shock front
located at 36 kpc to the south-west of the group center, close to the southern
radio lobe, with a Mach number and a total power which is about one
order of magnitude higher than the cavity power. Such a shock may have heated
the gas in the southern region, as indicated by the temperature map. The shock
may also explain the arc-like region of enriched gas seen in the iron abundance
map, as this may be produced by a non-Maxwellian electron distribution near its
front.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ. Revised version
including minor comments and expanded discussion (version with full
resolution figures available at
http://hea-www.harvard.edu/~mgitti/hcg62-gitti.pdf
M31 Transverse Velocity and Local Group Mass from Satellite Kinematics
We present several different statistical methods to determine the transverse
velocity vector of M31. The underlying assumptions are that the M31 satellites
on average follow the motion of M31 through space, and that the galaxies in the
outer parts of the Local Group on average follow the motion of the Local Group
barycenter through space. We apply the methods to the line-of-sight velocities
of 17 M31 satellites, to the proper motions of the 2 satellites M33 and IC 10,
and to the line-of-sight velocities of 5 galaxies near the Local Group turn
around radius, respectively. This yields 4 independent but mutually consistent
determinations of the heliocentric M31 transverse velocities in the West and
North directions, with weighted averages = -78+/-41 km/s and =
-38+/-34 km/s. The Galactocentric tangential velocity of M31 is 42 km/s, with
1-sigma confidence interval V_tan <= 56 km/s. The implied M31-Milky Way orbit
is bound if the total Local Group mass M exceeds 1.72^{+0.26}_{-0.25}x10^{12}
solar masses. If indeed bound, then the timing argument combined with the known
age of the Universe implies that M = 5.58^{+0.85}_{-0.72}x10^{12} solar masses.
This is on the high end of the allowed mass range suggested by cosmologically
motivated models for the individual structure and dynamics of M31 and the Milky
Way, respectively. It is therefore possible that the timing mass is an
overestimate of the true mass, especially if one takes into account recent
results from the Millennium Simulation that show that there is also a
theoretical uncertainty of 41 percent (Gaussian dispersion) in timing mass
estimates. The M31 transverse velocity implies that M33 is in a tightly bound
orbit around M31. This may have led to some tidal deformation of M33. It will
be worthwhile to search for observational evidence of this.Comment: ApJ in press, 14 pages, including 3 figures (has minor revisions with
respect to previously posted version to address referee comments
Globular Clusters and X-ray Point Sources in Centaurus A (NGC 5128)
We detect 353 X-ray point sources, mostly low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs), in
four Chandra observations of Centaurus A (NGC 5128), the nearest giant
early-type galaxy, and correlate this point source population with the largest
available ensemble of confirmed and likely globular clusters associated with
this galaxy. Of the X-ray sources, 31 are coincident with 30 globular clusters
that are confirmed members of the galaxy by radial velocity measurement (2
X-ray sources match one globular cluster within our search radius), while 1
X-ray source coincides with a globular cluster resolved by HST images. Another
36 X-ray point sources match probable, but spectroscopically unconfirmed,
globular cluster candidates. The color distribution of globular clusters and
cluster candidates in Cen A is bimodal, and the probability that a red, metal
rich GC candidate contains an LMXB is at least 1.7 times that of a blue, metal
poor one. If we consider only spectroscopically confirmed GCs, this ratio
increases to ~3. We find that LMXBs appear preferentially in more luminous
(massive) GCs. These two effects are independent, and the latter is likely a
consequence of enhanced dynamical encounter rates in more massive clusters
which have on average denser cores. The X-ray luminosity functions of the LMXBs
found in GCs and of those that are unmatched with GCs reveal similar underlying
populations, though there is some indication that fewer X-ray faint LMXBs are
found in globular clusters than X-ray bright ones. Our results agree with
previous observations of the connection of GCs and LMXBs in early-type galaxies
and extend previous work on Centaurus A.Comment: 34 pages, 10 figures, 2 tables, Accepted for Publication in The
Astrophysical Journa
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