The Molecular Gas in the Circumnuclear Region of Seyfert Galaxies

Sub-arcsecond IRAM Plateau de Bure mm-interferometric observations of the 12CO (2-1) line emission in the Seyfert~1 NGC 3227 and the Seyfert~2 NGC 1068 have revealed complex kinematic systems in the inner 100 pc to 300 pc that are not consistent with pure circular motion in the host galaxies. Modeling of these kinematic systems with elliptical orbits in the plane of the host galaxy (representing gas motion in a bar potential) is a possible solution but does not reproduce all features observed. A better description of the complex kinematics is achieved by circular orbits which are tilted out of the plane of the host galaxy. This could indicate that the thin circumnuclear gas disk is warped. In the case of NGC 1068 the warp model suggests that at a radius of about 70 pc, the gas disk is oriented edge-on providing material for the obscuration of the AGN nucleus. The position-velocity diagrams show rising rotation curves at r 2 x 10^7 M_solar for NGC 3227 and > 10^8 M_solar for NGC 1068 within the central 25 pc.Comment: 14 pages, Ap.J. letter, accepte

Tests of the Las Campanas Distant Cluster Survey from Confirmation Observations for the ESO Distant Cluster Survey

The ESO Distant Cluster Survey (EDisCS) is a photometric and spectroscopic study of the galaxy cluster population at two epochs, z~0.5 and z~0.8, drawn from the Las Campanas Distant Cluster Survey (LCDCS). We report results from the initial candidate confirmation stage of the program and use these results to probe the properties of the LCDCS. Of the 30 candidates targeted, we find statistically significant overdensities of red galaxies near 28. Of the ten additional candidates serendipitously observed within the fields of the targeted 30, we detect red galaxy overdensities near six. We test the robustness of the published LCDCS estimated redshifts to misidentification of the brighest cluster galaxy (BCG) in the survey data, and measure the spatial alignment of the published cluster coordinates, the peak red galaxy overdensity, and the brightest cluster galaxy. We conclude that for LCDCS clusters out to z~0.8, 1) the LCDCS coordinates agree with the centroid of the red galaxy overdensity to within 25'' (~150 h^{-1} kpc) for 34 out of 37 candidates with 3\sigma galaxy overdensities, 2) BCGs are typically coincident with the centroid of the red galaxy population to within a projected separation of 200 h^{-1} kpc (32 out of 34 confirmed candidates), 3) the red galaxy population is strongly concentrated, and 4) the misidentification of the BCG in the LCDCS causes a redshift error >0.1 in 15-20% of the LCDCS candidates. These findings together help explain the success of the surface brightness fluctuations detection method.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in the November 10 issue of Ap

Luminosity Evolution of Early-type Galaxies to z=0.83: Constraints on Formation Epoch and Omega

We present deep spectroscopy with the Keck telescope of eight galaxies in the luminous X-ray cluster MS1054-03 at z=0.83. The data are combined with imaging observations from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The spectroscopic data are used to measure the internal kinematics of the galaxies, and the HST data to measure their structural parameters. Six galaxies have early-type spectra, and two have "E+A" spectra. The galaxies with early-type spectra define a tight Fundamental Plane (FP) relation. The evolution of the mass-to-light ratio is derived from the FP. The M/L ratio evolves as \Delta log M/L_B \propto -0.40 z (Omega_m=0.3, Omega_Lambda=0). The observed evolution of the M/L ratio provides a combined constraint on the formation redshift of the stars, the IMF, and cosmological parameters. For a Salpeter IMF (x=2.35) we find that z_form>2.8 and Omega_m<0.86 with 95% confidence. The constraint on the formation redshift is weaker if Omega_Lambda>0: z_form>1.7 if Omega_m=0.3 and Omega_Lambda=0.7. At present the limiting factor in constraining z_form and Omega from the observed luminosity evolution of early-type galaxies is the poor understanding of the IMF. We find that if Omega_m=1 the IMF must be significantly steeper than the Salpeter IMF (x>2.6).Comment: To be published in ApJ Letters, Volume 504, September 1, 1998. 5 pages, 4 figure

Observing the build-up of the colour-magnitude relation at redshift ~0.8

We analyse the rest-frame (U-V) colour-magnitude relation for 2 clusters at redshift 0.7 and 0.8, drawn from the ESO Distant Cluster Survey. By comparing with the population of red galaxies in the Coma cluster, we show that the high redshift clusters exhibit a deficit of passive faint red galaxies. Our results show that the red-sequence population cannot be explained in terms of a monolithic and synchronous formation scenario. A large fraction of faint passive galaxies in clusters today has moved onto the red sequence relatively recently as a consequence of the fact that their star formation activity has come to an end at z<0.8.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, to appear in Proc. of IAU Colloq. 195: "Outskirts of Galaxy Clusters: Intense Life in the Suburbs" -- minor typos correcte

B3 0003+387: AGN Marked Large-Scale Structure at z=1.47?

We present evidence for a significant overdensity of red galaxies, as much as a factor of 14 over comparable field samples, in the field of the z=1.47 radio galaxy B3 0003+387. The colors and luminosities of the brightest red galaxies are consistent with their being at z>0.8. The radio galaxy and one of the red galaxies are separated by 5" and show some evidence of a possible interaction. However, the red galaxies do not show any strong clustering around the radio galaxy nor around any of the brighter red galaxies. The data suggest that we are looking at a wall or sheet of galaxies, possibly associated with the radio galaxy at z=1.47. Spectroscopic redshifts of these red galaxies will be necessary to confirm this large-scale structure.Comment: 19 pages, 7 figures, LaTeX2e/AASTeX v5.0.2. The full photometric catalog is included as a separate deluxetable file. To appear in the Astronomical Journal (~Nov 00

An Optical/Near-Infrared Study of Radio-Loud Quasar Environments II. Imaging Results

We use optical and near-IR imaging to examine the properties of the significant excess population of K>=19 galaxies found in the fields of 31 z=1-2 radio-loud quasars by Hall, Green & Cohen (1998). The excess occurs on two spatial scales: a component at <40'' from the quasars significant compared to the galaxy surface density at >40'' in the same fields, and a component roughly uniform to ~100'' significant compared to the galaxy surface density seen in random-field surveys in the literature. The r-K color distributions of the excess galaxy populations are indistinguishable and are significantly redder than the color distribution of the field population. The excess galaxies are consistent with being predominantly early-type galaxies at the quasar redshifts, and there is no evidence that they are associated with intervening MgII absorption systems. The average excess within 0.5 Mpc (~65'') of the quasars corresponds to Abell richness class ~0 compared to the galaxy surface density at >0.5 Mpc from the quasars, and to Abell richness class ~1.5 compared to that from the literature. We discuss the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of galaxies in fields with data in several passbands. Most candidate quasar-associated galaxies are consistent with being 2-3 Gyr old early-types at the quasar redshifts of z~1.5. However, some objects have SEDs consistent with being 4-5 Gyr old at z~1.5, and a number of others are consistent with ~2 Gyr old but dust-reddened galaxies at the quasar redshifts. These potentially different galaxy types suggest there may be considerable dispersion in the properties of early-type cluster galaxies at z~1.5. There is also a population of galaxies whose SEDs are best modelled by background galaxies at z>2.5.Comment: Accepted to ApJ; 54 pages including 30 figures; 2 color GIF files available separately; also available from http://www.astro.utoronto.ca/~hall/thesis.htm

A Rich Cluster of Galaxies Near the Quasar B2 1335+28 at z=1.1: Color Distribution and Star-Formation Properties

We previously reported a significant clustering of red galaxies (R-K=3.5--6) around the radio-loud quasar B2 1335+28 at z=1.086. In this paper, we establish the existence of a rich cluster at the quasar redshift, and study the properties of the cluster galaxies through further detailed analysis of the photometric data. The color distribution of the galaxies in the cluster is quite broad and the fraction of blue galaxies (\sim 70%) is much larger than in intermediate-redshift clusters. Using evolutionary synthesis models, we show that this color distribution can be explained by galaxies with various amounts of star-formation activity mixed with the old stellar populations. Notably, there are about a dozen galaxies which show very red optical-NIR colors but also show significant UV excess with respect to passive-evolution models. They can be interpreted as old early-type galaxies with a small amount of star formation. The fact that the UV-excess red galaxies are more abundant than the quiescent red ones suggests that a large fraction of old galaxies in this cluster are still forming stars to some extent. However, a sequence of quiescent red galaxies is clearly identified on the R-K versus K color-magnitude (C-M) diagram. The slope and zero point of their C-M relation appear to be consistent with those expected for the precursors of the C-M relation of present-day cluster ellipticals when observed at z=1.1. We estimate the Abell richness class of the cluster to be R \sim 1. New X-ray data presented here place an upper limit of L_x < 2 10^{44} erg s^{-1} for the cluster luminosity. Inspections of the wider optical images reveal some lumpy structure, suggesting that the whole system is still dynamically young.Comment: 54 pages including 13 Postscript figures, 1 jpg figure, and 1 table, uses aasms4.sty and epsf.sty. Accepted for publication in ApJ: Replaced as the older verison was missed to include the figure 2c, 2d, and figure

How are risk ratios reported in orthopaedic surgery journals? A descriptive study of formats used to report absolute risks

The numerical format in which risks are communicated can affect risk comprehension and perceptions of medical professionals. We investigated what numerical formats are used to report absolute risks in empirical articles, estimated the frequency of biasing formats and rated the quality of figures used to display the risks. Descriptive study of reporting practices. We randomly sampled articles published in seven leading orthopaedic surgery journals during a period of 13 years. From these, we selected articles that reported group comparisons on a binary outcome (eg, revision rates in two groups) and recorded the numerical format used to communicate the absolute risks in the results section. The quality of figures was assessed according to published guidelines for transparent visual aids design. Prevalence of information formats and quality of figures. The final sample consisted of 507 articles, of which 14% reported level 1 evidence, 13% level 2 and 73% level 3 or lower. The majority of articles compared groups of different sizes (90%), reported both raw numbers and percentages (64%) and did not report the group sizes alongside (50%). Fifteen per cent of articles used two formats identified as biasing: only raw numbers (8%, '90 patients vs 100 patients') or raw numbers reported alongside different group sizes (7%, '90 out of 340 patients vs 100 out of 490 patients'). The prevalence of these formats decreased in more recent publications. Figures (n=79) had on average two faults that could distort comprehension, and the majority were rated as biasing. Authors use a variety of formats to report absolute risks in scientific articles and are likely not aware of how some formats and graph design features can distort comprehension. Biases can be reduced if journals adopt guidelines for transparent risk communication but more research is needed into the effects of different formats

Cluster detection from surface-brightness fluctuations in SDSS data

Galaxy clusters can be detected as surface brightness enhancements in smoothed optical surveys. This method does not require individual galaxies to be identifiable, and enables clusters to be detected out to surprisingly high redshifts, as recently demonstrated by the Las Campanas Distant Cluster Survey (LCDCS). Here, we investigate redshift limits for cluster detection in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Calibrating assumptions about the surface brightness profile, the mass-to-light ratio, and the spectral energy distribution of galaxy clusters using available observational data, we show that it should be possible to detect galaxy groups out to redshifts of ~0.5, and massive galaxy clusters out to redshifts of ~1.2 in summed r'+i'+z' SDSS data. Redshift estimates can be derived from the SDSS magnitudes of brightest cluster members out to redshifts near unity. Over the area of sky it covers, SDSS should find >~98% of the clusters detectable by the Planck satellite through the thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect. The few Planck clusters not detected in SDSS will almost all be at z>~1.2.Comment: 7 pages, submitted to Astronomy & Astrophysic

HST Photometry and Keck Spectroscopy of the Rich Cluster MS1054-03: Morphologies, Butcher-Oemler Effect and the Color-Magnitude Relation at z=0.83

We present a study of 81 I selected, spectroscopically-confirmed members of the X-ray cluster MS1054-03 at z=0.83. Redshifts and spectral types were determined from Keck spectroscopy. Morphologies and accurate colors were determined from a large mosaic of HST WFPC2 images in F606W and F814W. Early-type galaxies constitute only 44% of this galaxy population. Thirty-nine percent are spiral galaxies, and 17% are mergers. The early-type galaxies follow a tight and well-defined color-magnitude relation, with the exception of a few outliers. The observed scatter is 0.029 +- 0.005 magnitudes in restframe U-B. Most of the mergers lie close to the CM relation defined by the early-type galaxies. They are bluer by only 0.07 +- 0.02 magnitudes, and the scatter in their colors is 0.07 +- 0.04 magnitudes. Spiral galaxies in MS1054-03 exhibit a large range in their colors. The bluest spiral galaxies are 0.7 magnitudes bluer than the early-type galaxies, but the majority is within +- 0.2 magnitudes of the early-type galaxy sequence. The red colors of the mergers and the majority of the spiral galaxies are reflected in the fairly low Butcher-Oemler blue fraction of MS1054-03: f_B=0.22 +- 0.05. The slope and scatter of the CM relation of early-type galaxies are roughly constant with redshift, confirming previous studies that were based on ground-based color measurements and very limited membership information. However, the scatter in the combined sample of early-type galaxies and mergers is twice as high as the scatter of the early-type galaxies alone. This is a direct demonstration of the ``progenitor bias'': high redshift early-type galaxies seem to form a homogeneous, old population because the progenitors of the youngest present-day early-type galaxies are not included in the sample.Comment: Accepted for publication in the ApJ. At http://astro.caltech.edu/~pgd/cm1054/ color figures can be obtaine