The Lyman Alpha Reference Sample: V. The impact of neutral ISM kinematics and geometry on Lyman Alpha escape

We present high-resolution far-UV spectroscopy of the 14 galaxies of the Lyman Alpha Reference Sample; a sample of strongly star-forming galaxies at low redshifts ($0.028 < z < 0.18$). We compare the derived properties to global properties derived from multi band imaging and 21 cm HI interferometry and single dish observations, as well as archival optical SDSS spectra. Besides the Lyman $\alpha$ line, the spectra contain a number of metal absorption features allowing us to probe the kinematics of the neutral ISM and evaluate the optical depth and and covering fraction of the neutral medium as a function of line-of-sight velocity. Furthermore, we show how this, in combination with precise determination of systemic velocity and good Ly$\alpha$ spectra, can be used to distinguish a model in which separate clumps together fully cover the background source, from the "picket fence" model named by Heckman et al. (2011). We find that no one single effect dominates in governing Ly$\alpha$ radiative transfer and escape. Ly$\alpha$ escape in our sample coincides with a maximum velocity-binned covering fraction of $\lesssim 0.9$ and bulk outflow velocities of $\gtrsim 50$ km s$^{-1}$, although a number of galaxies show these characteristics and yet little or no Ly$\alpha$ escape. We find that Ly$\alpha$ peak velocities, where available, are not consistent with a strong backscattered component, but rather with a simpler model of an intrinsic emission line overlaid by a blueshifted absorption profile from the outflowing wind. Finally, we find a strong anticorrelation between H$\alpha$ equivalent width and maximum velocity-binned covering factor, and propose a heuristic explanatory model.Comment: 28 pages, 19 figures, 5 table

The Lyman Alpha Reference Sample: III. Properties of the Neutral ISM from GBT and VLA Observations

We present new H I imaging and spectroscopy of the 14 UV-selected star-forming galaxies in the Lyman Alpha Reference Sample (LARS), aimed for a detailed study of the processes governing the production, propagation, and escape of Ly$\alpha$ photons. New H I spectroscopy, obtained with the 100m Green Bank Telescope (GBT), robustly detects the H I spectral line in 11 of the 14 observed LARS galaxies (although the profiles of two of the galaxies are likely confused by other sources within the GBT beam); the three highest redshift galaxies are not detected at our current sensitivity limits. The GBT profiles are used to derive fundamental H I line properties of the LARS galaxies. We also present new pilot H I spectral line imaging of 5 of the LARS galaxies obtained with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA). This imaging localizes the H I gas and provides a measurement of the total H I mass in each galaxy. In one system, LARS 03 (UGC 8335 or Arp 238), VLA observations reveal an enormous tidal structure that extends over 160 kpc from the main interacting systems and that contains $>$10$^9$ M$_{\odot}$ of H I. We compare various H I properties with global Ly$\alpha$ quantities derived from HST measurements. The measurements of the Ly$\alpha$ escape fraction are coupled with the new direct measurements of H I mass and significantly disturbed H I velocities. Our robustly detected sample reveals that both total H I mass and linewidth are tentatively correlated with key Ly$\alpha$ tracers. Further, on global scales, these data support a complex coupling between Ly$\alpha$ propagation and the H I properties of the surrounding medium.Comment: Preprint form, 16 figures, accepted in Ap

The Lyman alpha reference sample. VII. Spatially resolved Hα\alpha kinematics

We present integral field spectroscopic observations with the Potsdam Multi Aperture Spectrophotometer of all 14 galaxies in the $z\sim 0.1$ Lyman Alpha Reference Sample (LARS). We produce 2D line of sight velocity maps and velocity dispersion maps from the Balmer $\alpha$ (H$\alpha$) emission in our data cubes. These maps trace the spectral and spatial properties of the LARS galaxies' intrinsic Ly$\alpha$ radiation field. We show our kinematic maps spatially registered onto the Hubble Space Telescope H$\alpha$ and Lyman $\alpha$ (Ly$\alpha$) images. Only for individual galaxies a causal connection between spatially resolved H$\alpha$ kinematics and Ly$\alpha$ photometry can be conjectured. However, no general trend can be established for the whole sample. Furthermore, we compute non-parametric global kinematical statistics -- intrinsic velocity dispersion $\sigma_0$, shearing velocity $v_\mathrm{shear}$, and the $v_\mathrm{shear}/\sigma_0$ ratio -- from our kinematic maps. In general LARS galaxies are characterised by high intrinsic velocity dispersions (54\,km\,s$^{-1}$ median) and low shearing velocities (65\,km\,s$^{-1}$ median). $v_\mathrm{shear}/\sigma_0$ values range from 0.5 to 3.2 with an average of 1.5. Noteworthy, five galaxies of the sample are dispersion dominated systems with $v_\mathrm{shear}/\sigma_0 <1$ and are thus kinematically similar to turbulent star forming galaxies seen at high redshift. When linking our kinematical statistics to the global LARS Ly$\alpha$ properties, we find that dispersion dominated systems show higher Ly$\alpha$ equivalent widths and higher Ly$\alpha$ escape fractions than systems with $v_\mathrm{shear}/\sigma_0 > 1$. Our result indicates that turbulence in actively star-forming systems is causally connected to interstellar medium conditions that favour an escape of Ly$\alpha$ radiation.Comment: 26 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in A&

CLusters in the Uv as EngineS (CLUES). II. Sub-kpc scale outflows driven by stellar feedback

We analyze the far-ultraviolet spectroscopy of 20 young and massive star clusters (YSCs) in 11 nearby star-forming galaxies. We probe the interstellar gas intervening along the line of sight, detecting several metal absorption lines of a wide range of ionization potentials, from 6.0 eV to 77.5 eV. Multiple-component Voigt fits to the absorption lines are used to study the kinematics of the gas. We find that nearly all targets in the sample feature gas outflowing from 30 up to 190 km per second, often both in the neutral and ionized phase. The outflow velocities correlate with the underlying stellar population properties directly linked to the feedback: the mass of the YSCs, the photon production rate and the instantaneous mechanical luminosity produced by stellar winds and SNe. We detect a neutral inflow in 4 targets, which we interpret as likely not associated with the star cluster but tracing larger scale gas kinematics. A comparison between the outflows energy and that produced by the associated young stellar populations suggests an average coupling efficiency of 10 per cent with a broad scatter. Our results extend the relation found in previous works between galactic outflows and the host galaxy star-formation rate to smaller scales, pointing towards the key role that clustered star formation and feedback play in regulating galaxy growth.Comment: Accepted for publication on the Astronomical Journal on 14th February 2024. 32 pages, 13 figure

The Lyman alpha reference sample. II. Hubble space telescope imaging results, integrated properties, and trends

We report new results regarding the Lyα output of galaxies, derived from the Lyman Alpha Reference Sample, and focused on Hubble Space Telescope imaging. For 14 galaxies we present intensity images in Lyα, Hα, and UV, and maps of Hα/Hβ, Lyα equivalent width (EW), and Lyα/Hα. We present Lyα and UV radial light profiles and show they are well-fitted by Sérsic profiles, but Lyα profiles show indices systematically lower than those of the UV (n ≈ 1-2 instead of gsim 4). This reveals a general lack of the central concentration in Lyα that is ubiquitous in the UV. Photometric growth curves increase more slowly for Lyα than the far ultraviolet, showing that small apertures may underestimate the EW. For most galaxies, however, flux and EW curves flatten by radii ≈10 kpc, suggesting that if placed at high-z only a few of our galaxies would suffer from large flux losses. We compute global properties of the sample in large apertures, and show total Lyα luminosities to be independent of all other quantities. Normalized Lyα throughput, however, shows significant correlations: escape is found to be higher in galaxies of lower star formation rate, dust content, mass, and nebular quantities that suggest harder ionizing continuum and lower metallicity. Six galaxies would be selected as high-z Lyα emitters, based upon their luminosity and EW. We discuss the results in the context of high-z Lyα and UV samples. A few galaxies have EWs above 50 Å, and one shows $f_\mathrm{esc}^{\mathrm{Ly}\alpha }$ of 80%; such objects have not previously been reported at low-z

Ionized and atomic interstellar medium in star-forming galaxies

Star forming galaxies in the local Universe are an important laboratory for learning about conditions in the distant, early Universe. With a high frequency of interactions and mergers, strong star formation activity, and complex kinematics and often disturbed or irregular morphology, these galaxies are believed to be the best local analogs to the galaxies at early times, and can therefore help understand the galaxies we observe at high redshifts in the early Universe. These early galaxies in turn hold the key to cosmological insights about the early Universe, including galaxy formation and early evolution, the onset of the first stars, formation of the cosmic large scale structure, and the Epoch of Reionization. Many of these galaxies are primarily or only visible in the wavelengths of the Lyman α (Lyα) transition, corresponding to the energy shift in a transition from the first excited energy level to the ground state in atomic Hydrogen. However, Lyα radiation emitted from a galaxy interacts strongly with the neutral hydrogen in and around the galaxy, often transporting it over large distances before it is either absorbed by dust or escapes the galaxy far from the line of sight from its point of origin to Earth. Despite the intrinsic strength of the Lyα line, it is often completely absorbed or spread out over large projected areas of low surface density. The observed strength of Lyα is almost completely decoupled from the intrinsic strength and mainly regulated by the conditions in the gas it travels through. Therefore, to correctly interpret what we observe int Lyα at high redshifts, it is necessary to understand which processes regulate and which conditions facilitate its escape. Young starburst galaxies are also the main suspect for causing the reionization of the young Universe. To do so, the ionizing photons produced in the central starburst regions of the galaxies need to be able to reach the intergalactic gas. Like Lyα, the ionizing radiation (the Lyman Continuum) also interacts with the neutral medium. While not as strongly as for Lyα, it is still strong enough that at the onset of this project, only two galaxies in the local Universe were confirmed Lyman Continuum leakers. Since then, another few handful local candidates and confirmed leakers have been announced, but still far from the escape fractions needed at high redshift to reionize the early Universe. Identifying which properties of the ISM govern Lyman Continuum escape, and how these evolve with redshift, is a hot topic in extragalactic astronomy these years. This thesis consists of projects which, in each their way, aim to deepen our understanding of these matters. One project, the Lyman Alpha Reference Sample (LARS), aims to understand which processes govern Lyα radiative transfer through careful, in-depth studies of a sample of 14 local starburst galaxies with a selection of powerful telescopes and instruments. My contribution to this was a spectroscopic analysis of the central star-forming regions to understand their physical properties (Paper I), and of neutral Hydrogen interstellar and circumgalactic systems which interact with Lyα radiation on its way out of the galaxies (Paper II). In Paper III, I performed a deeper, more detailed spectroscopic analysis of the central recombination regions in two local-universe starburst galaxies, of which one is a known Lyman Continuum leaker. Finally, in Papers IV and V, we shift focus focus somewhat to combine information in Lyα and Lyman Continuum (and, in the case of Paper IV, other auxiliary data) from observations of the two first known Lyman Continuum leakers, to understand which configurations of neutral gas would allow for the combination of Lyman Continuum leakage and Lyα spectral and physical morphology that is observed.Aktivt stjärnbildande galaxer är en viktig och värdefull källa till kunskap om förhållanden i det unga, avlägsna universum. Med en hög frekvens av interaktioner och krockar, stark stjärnbildningsaktivitet, komplicerad kinematik och ofta rubbade eller helt oregelbundna former, är det en vanlig uppfattning bland astronomer att dessa galaxer är det närmaste vi kommer en lokal analog till galaxerna i universums barndom. De är därför mycket värdefulla som nyckel till att förstå vad vi ser när vi observerar unga galaxer vid hög rödförskjutning i det unga universum. Dessa unga galaxer i sin tur är viktiga nycklar till kosmologisk insikt om universums tidigaste epoker, t.ex. de första stjärnornas uppkomst, hur universums storskaliga struktur bildats, och det tidiga universums återjonisering. Många av dessa tidiga, avlägsna galaxern är primärt eller uteslutande synliga i våglängdsområdet runt den så kallade Lyman α (Lyα) linjen; våglängden motsvarande energin i övergången från första exciterade energinivån till grundnivån i en neutral väteatom. Lyα-strålning utsänds från de centrala delarna av en galax och växelverkar starkt med neutrala vätemoln i och omkring galaxen. Ofta transporteras en Lyα-foton genom talrika växelverkningar lång bort från sin ursprungspunkt innan den antingen absorberas av stoftpartiklar eller slipper ut ur galaxen till den intergalaktiska rymden.  Trots Lyα-linjens ursprungliga styrka absorberas den ofta totalt, eller sprids ut över stora projicerade arealer med relativt låg ytdensitet. Den ljusstyrka som observeras i Lyα är statistiskt nästan fullständigt frånkopplad från den ursprungliga styrkan och regleras i huvudsak av fysiska förhållanden i gasen, som strålningen passerar genom. För att kunna tolka observationer av Lyα vid hög rödförskjutning rätt är det därför viktigt att förstå, vilka processer som reglerar, och vilka förhållanden som tillåter, att strålningen slipper ut ur galaxen. Unga, så kallade Starburst-galaxer anses även vara den mest sannolika huvudorsaken till återjoniseringen av det unga universum. För att kunna göra detta måste de joniserande UV-fotonerna (i det så kallade Lyman Continuum), som produceras i de centrala starburst-regionerna av dessa galaxer, lyckas slippa igenom galaxens många och ofta tjocka vätemoln och ut ur galaxen. Precis som med Lyα, interagerar även dessa Lyman Continuum-fotoner med neutrala vätemoln, fast inte lika starkt som Lyα. Dock är det tillräckligt starkt för att astronomer, när detta projekt påbörjades, ba- ra skulle känna till två galaxer som utstrålar mätbara mängder Lyman Continuum-strålning. Sedan dess har det hittats ett tiotals kandidater och bekräftade fall där Lyman Continuum-fotoner observerats från lokala galaxer, men fortfarande långt ifrån tillräckligt med joniserande strålning för att återjonisera det unga universum. Astronomer arbetar därför med att identifiera vilka egenskaper hos det interstellara mediet som reglerar Lyman Continuum-utstrålning, och hur dessa utvecklar sig med rördförskjutning över kosmologisk tid. Denna avhandling består av projekt som, var på sitt sätt, syftar till att förbättra vår förståelse av dessa frågor. Det första projektet, LARS, har som målsättning att förstå vilka processer som reglerar Lyα-strålningstransport genom fördjupade studier av 14 lokala, stjärnbildande galaxer med en rad av kraftfulla teleskop och instrument. Mitt bidrag var spektroskopisk analys av de centrala stjärnbildande regionerna för att förstå dessa regioners fysiska egenskaper (Artikel I); och av neutrala vätemolnen genom vilka Lyα-strålningen måste transporteras för att nå fram till våra teleskop (Artikel II). I Artikel III företar vi ännu djupare, mer detaljerade spektroskopiska studier av de heta centrala, högt joniserade regionerna i två lokala, stjärnbildande galaxer. I Artikel IV och V flyttas fokus till att kombinera den tillgängliga informationen om Lyα och Lyman Continuum-strålning i de två första kända Lyman Continuum-utstrålande galaxerna för att förstå vilka konfigurationer av det interstellara mediet som kan föranleda utstrålning av joniserande fotoner och Lyα i den utformning det observeras.At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Submitted. Paper 4: Submitted. Paper 5: Manuscript.</p

Slicing the cool circumgalactic medium along the major axis of a star-forming galaxy at z = 0.7

We present spatially resolved Echelle spectroscopy of an intervening Mg II–Fe II–Mg I absorption-line system detected at zabs = 0.73379 towards the giant gravitational arc PSZ1 G311.65–18.48. The absorbing gas is associated with an inclined disc-like star-forming galaxy, whose major axis is aligned with the two arc-segments reported here. We probe in absorption the galaxy’s extended disc continuously, at ≈3 kpc sampling, from its inner region out to 15× the optical radius. We detect strong (⁠W27960>0.3Å) coherent absorption along 13 independent positions at impact parameters D = 0–29 kpc on one side of the galaxy, and no absorption at D = 28–57 kpc on the opposite side (all de-lensed distances at zabs). We show that (1) the gas distribution is anisotropic; (2) W27960⁠, W26000⁠, W28520⁠, and the ratio W26000/W27960⁠, all anticorrelate with D; (3) the W27960–D relation is not cuspy and exhibits significantly less scatter than the quasar-absorber statistics; (4) the absorbing gas is co-rotating with the galaxy out to D ≲ 20 kpc, resembling a ‘flat’ rotation curve, but at D ≳ 20 kpc velocities decline below the expectations from a 3D disc-model extrapolated from the nebular [O II] emission. These signatures constitute unambiguous evidence for rotating extra-planar diffuse gas, possibly also undergoing enriched accretion at its edge. Arguably, we are witnessing some of the long-sought processes of the baryon cycle in a single distant galaxy expected to be representative of such phenomena

CLusters in the Uv as EngineS (CLUES). II. Subkiloparsec-scale Outflows Driven by Stellar Feedback

We analyze the far-ultraviolet (1130−1770 Å rest frame) spectroscopy of 20 young (10 ^4 M _⊙ ) star clusters (YSCs) in 11 nearby star-forming galaxies. We probe the interstellar gas intervening along the line of sight, detecting several metal absorption lines of a wide range of ionization potentials, from 6.0 to 77.5 eV. Multiple-component Voigt fits to the absorption lines are used to study the kinematics of the gas. We find that nearly all targets in the sample feature gas outflowing from 30 up to 190 km s ^−1 , often in both the neutral and ionized phases. The outflow velocities correlate with the underlying stellar population properties directly linked to the feedback: the mass of the YSCs, the photon production rate, and the instantaneous mechanical luminosity produced by stellar winds and supernovae. We detect a neutral inflow in four targets, which we interpret as likely not associated with the star cluster but tracing larger-scale gas kinematics. A comparison between the outflows’ energy and that produced by the associated young stellar populations suggests an average coupling efficiency of 10% with a broad scatter. Our results extend the relation found in previous works between galactic outflows and the host galaxy star formation rate to smaller scales, pointing toward the key role that clustered star formation and feedback play in regulating galaxy growth