577 research outputs found
Multiple merging in the Abell cluster 1367
We present a dynamical analysis of the central ~1.3 square degrees of the
cluster of galaxies Abell 1367, based on 273 redshift measurements (of which
119 are news). From the analysis of the 146 confirmed cluster members we derive
a significantly non-Gaussian velocity distribution, with a mean location C_{BI}
= 6484+/-81 km/s and a scale S_{BI} = 891+/-58 km/s. The cluster appears
elongated from the North-West to the South-East with two main density peaks
associated with two substructures. The North-West subcluster is probably in the
early phase of merging into the South-East substructure (~ 0.2 Gyr before core
crossing). A dynamical study of the two subclouds points out the existence of a
group of star-forming galaxies infalling into the core of the South-East
subcloud and suggests that two other groups are infalling into the NW and SE
subclusters respectively. These three subgroups contain a higher fraction of
star-forming galaxies than the cluster core, as expected during merging events.
Abell 1367 appears as a young cluster currently forming at the intersection of
two filaments.Comment: 15 pages, 13 figures, 7 tables. Accepted for publication on A&A. High
resolution figures at http://goldmine.mib.infn.it/papers/a1367.htm
The X-ray luminosity function of galaxies in the Coma cluster
The XMM-Newton survey of the Coma cluster of galaxies covers an area of 1.86
square degrees with a mosaic of 16 pointings and has a total useful integration
time of 400 ksec. Detected X-ray sources with extent less than 10" were
correlated with cataloged galaxies in the Coma cluster region. The redshift
information, which is abundant in this region of the sky, allowed us to
separate cluster members from background and foreground galaxies. For the
background sources, we recover a typical LogN-LogS in the flux range 1.e-15 -
1.e-13 ergs/s/cm^2 in the 0.5-2.0 keV band. The X-ray emission from the cluster
galaxies exhibits X-ray colors typical of thermal emission. The luminosities of
Coma galaxies lie in the 1.e39-1.e41 ergs/s interval in the 0.5-2.0 keV band.
The luminosity function of Coma galaxies reveals that their X-ray activity is
suppressed with respect to the field by a factor of 5.6, indicating a lower
level of X-ray emission for a given stellar mass.Comment: 16 pages, 2004 A&A in pres
Aperture-free star formation rate of SDSS star-forming galaxies
Large area surveys with a high number of galaxies observed have undoubtedly
marked a milestone in the understanding of several properties of galaxies, such
as star-formation history, morphology, and metallicity. However, in many cases,
these surveys provide fluxes from fixed small apertures (e.g. fibre), which
cover a scant fraction of the galaxy, compelling us to use aperture corrections
to study the global properties of galaxies. In this work, we derive the current
total star formation rate (SFR) of Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) star-forming
galaxies, using an empirically based aperture correction of the measured flux for the first time, thus minimising the uncertainties associated
with reduced apertures. All the fluxes have been
extinction-corrected using the ratio free from aperture
effects. The total SFR for 210,000 SDSS star-forming galaxies has been
derived applying pure empirical and aperture
corrections based on the Calar Alto Legacy Integral Field Area (CALIFA) survey.
We find that, on average, the aperture-corrected SFR is 0.65dex higher
than the SDSS fibre-based SFR. The relation between the SFR and stellar mass
for SDSS star-forming galaxies (SFR--) has been obtained, together
with its dependence on extinction and equivalent width. We
compare our results with those obtained in previous works and examine the
behaviour of the derived SFR in six redshift bins, over the redshift range . The SFR-- sequence derived here is in
agreement with selected observational studies based on integral field
spectroscopy of individual galaxies as well as with the predictions of recent
theoretical models of disc galaxies
The extended HeII4686-emitting region in IZw18 unveiled: clues for peculiar ionizing sources
New integral field spectroscopy has been obtained for IZw18, the nearby
lowest-metallicity galaxy considered our best local analog of systems forming
at high-z. Here we report the spatially resolved spectral map of the nebular
HeII4686 emission in IZw18, from which we derived for the first time its total
HeII-ionizing flux. Nebular HeII emission implies the existence of a hard
radiation field. HeII-emitters are observed to be more frequent among high-z
galaxies than for local objects. So investigating the HeII-ionizing source(s)
in IZw18 may reveal the ionization processes at high-z. HeII emission in
star-forming galaxies, has been suggested to be mainly associated with
Wolf-Rayet stars (WRs), but WRs cannot satisfactorily explain the
HeII-ionization at all times, in particular at lowest metallicities. Shocks
from supernova remnants, or X-ray binaries, have been proposed as additional
potential sources of HeII-ionizing photons. Our data indicate that conventional
HeII-ionizing sources (WRs, shocks, X-ray binaries) are not sufficient to
explain the observed nebular HeII4686 emission in IZw18. We find that the
HeII-ionizing radiation expected from models for either low-metallicity
super-massive O stars or rotating metal-free stars could account for the
HeII-ionization budget measured, while only the latter models could explain the
highest values of HeII4686/Hbeta observed. The presence of such peculiar stars
in IZw18 is suggestive and further investigation in this regard is needed. This
letter highlights that some of the clues of the early Universe can be found
here in our cosmic backyard.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
Spatially resolved integral field spectroscopy of the ionized gas in IZw18
We present a detailed 2D study of the ionized ISM of IZw18 using new PMAS-IFU
optical observations. IZw18 is a high-ionization galaxy which is among the most
metal-poor starbursts in the local Universe. This makes IZw18 a local benchmark
for understanding the properties most closely resembling those prevailing at
distant starbursts. Our IFU-aperture (~ 1.4 kpc x 1.4 kpc) samples the entire
IZw18 main body and an extended region of its ionized gas. Maps of relevant
emission lines and emission line ratios show that higher-excitation gas is
preferentially located close to the NW knot and thereabouts. We detect a
Wolf-Rayet feature near the NW knot. We derive spatially resolved and
integrated physical-chemical properties for the ionized gas in IZw18. We find
no dependence between the metallicity-indicator R23 and the ionization
parameter (as traced by [OIII]/[OII]) across IZw18. Over ~ 0.30 kpc^2, using
the [OIII]4363 line, we compute Te[OIII] values (~ 15000 - 25000 K), and oxygen
abundances are derived from the direct determinations of Te[OIII]. More than
70% of the higher-Te[OIII] (> 22000 K) spaxels are HeII4686-emitting spaxels
too. From a statistical analysis, we study the presence of variations in the
ISM physical-chemical properties. A galaxy-wide homogeneity, across hundreds of
parsecs, is seen in O/H. Based on spaxel-by-spaxel measurements, the
error-weighted mean of 12 + log(O/H) = 7.11 +/- 0.01 is taken as the
representative O/H for IZw18. Aperture effects on the derivation of O/H are
discussed. Using our IFU data we obtain, for the first time, the IZw18
integrated spectrum.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS, 13 pages, 10 figures, 4 table
Effect of strontium and cooling rate upon eutectic temperatures of A319 aluminum alloy
DTA analysis was used to investigate the solidification reactions of alloy A319 with either 12 or 136 ppm of Sr added. Strontium does not affect primary solidification of (Al) dendrites but modifies the kinetics of the (Al)âSi eutectic. The effects of Sr level and of cooling rate on the characteristic temperatures for the (Al)âSi and other eutectic reactions are described
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