3,390 research outputs found
Jet-induced star formation in 3C 285 and Minkowski Object
How efficiently star formation proceeds in galaxies is still an open
question. Recent studies suggest that AGN can regulate the gas accretion and
thus slow down star formation (negative feedback). However, evidence of AGN
positive feedback has also been observed in a few radio galaxies (eg. Centaurus
A).
Here we present CO observations of 3C 285 and Minkowski Object (MO), which
are examples of jet-induced star formation. A spot (named 09.6) aligned with
the 3C 285 radio jet, at a projected distance of ~70 kpc from the galaxy
centre, shows star formation, detected in optical emission. MO is located along
the jet of NGC 541 and also shows star formation. To know the distribution of
molecular gas along the jets is a way to study the physical processes at play
in the AGN interaction with the intergalactic medium.
We observed CO lines in 3C 285, NGC 541, 09.6 and MO with the IRAM-30m
telescope. In the central galaxies, the spectra present a double-horn profile,
typical of a rotation pattern, from which we are able to estimate the molecular
gas density profile of the galaxy. The molecular gas appears to be in a compact
reservoir. In addition, no kinematic signature of a molecular outflow is
detected by the 30m-telescope.
Interestingly, 09.6 and MO are not detected in CO. The cold gas mass upper
limits are consistent with a star formation induced by the compression of dense
ambient material by the jet. The depletion time scales are of the order of and
even smaller than what is found in 3C 285, NGC 541 and local spiral galaxies
(10^9 yr). The molecular gas surface density in 09.6 follows a
Schmidt-Kennicutt law if the emitting region is very compact, while MO is found
to have a much higher SFE (very short depletion time). Higher sensitivity and
spatial resolution are necessary to detect CO in the spots of star formation,
and map the emission in these jet-induced star forming regions.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures, submitted to A&
On the global structure of distant galactic disks
Radial and vertical profiles are determined for a sample of 34 edge-on disk
galaxies in the HDFs, selected for their apparent diameter larger than 1.3
arcsec and their unperturbed morphology. The thickness and flatness of their
galactic disks are determined and discussed with regard to evolution with
redshift. We find that sub-L* spiral galaxies with z \sim 1 have a relative
thickness or flatness (characterized by h_z/h the scaleheight to scalelength
ratio) globally similar to those in the local Universe. A slight trend is
however apparent, with the h_z/h flatness ratio larger by a factor of \sim 1.5
in distant galaxies if compared to local samples. In absolute value, the disks
are smaller than in present-day galaxies. About half of the z \sim 1 spiral
disks show a non-exponential surface brightness distribution.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, accepted in A and
The Burdwood Bank Circulation
A suite of high-resolution numerical simulations characterizes the oceanic circulation in the Burdwood Bank, a shallow seamount located in the northeastern end of the Drake Passage. Model analysis shows energetic upwelling and mixing uplifting deep and benthic waters into the photic layer. Tides and the Antarctic Circumpolar Current are the primary drivers of the bank's circulation. Tidal forcing is the main driver for the entrainment of deep waters into the upper layers of the bank and local wind forcing for the detrainment of these waters into the deep ocean. Passive tracer diagnostics suggest that the dynamical processes triggered by the Burdwood Bank could have a significant impact on local ecosystems and the biogeochemical balance of the southwestern Atlantic region, which is one of the most fertile portions of the Southern Ocean. Model results are robust—they are reproduced in a wide array of model configurations—but there is insufficient observational evidence to corroborate them. Satellite color imagery does not show substantial chlorophyll blooms in this region but it shows strong phytoplankton plumes emanating from the bank. There are several potential explanations for the chlorophyll deficit, including lack of light due to persistent cloud cover, deep mixing layers, fast ocean currents, and the likelihood that blooms, while extant, might not develop on the surface. None of these possibilities can be confirmed at this stage.Fil: Matano, Ricardo P.. State University of Oregon; Estados UnidosFil: Palma, Elbio Daniel. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Física; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía; ArgentinaFil: Combes, Vincent. State University of Oregon; Estados Unido
Quantifying stellar radial migration in an N-body simulation: blurring, churning, and the outer regions of galaxy discs
Radial stellar migration in galactic discs has received much attention in
studies of galactic dynamics and chemical evolution, but remains a dynamical
phenomenon that needs to be fully quantified. In this work, using a Tree-SPH
simulation of an Sb-type disc galaxy, we quantify the effects of blurring
(epicyclic excursions) and churning (change of guiding radius). We quantify
migration (either blurring or churning) both in terms of flux (the number of
migrators passing at a given radius), and by estimating the population of
migrators at a given radius at the end of the simulation compared to
non-migrators, but also by giving the distance over which the migration is
effective at all radii. We confirm that the corotation of the bar is the main
source of migrators by churning in a bar-dominated galaxy, its intensity being
directly linked to the episode of a strong bar, in the first 1-3 Gyr of the
simulation. We show that within the outer Lindblad resonance (OLR), migration
is strongly dominated by churning, while blurring gains progressively more
importance towards the outer disc and at later times. Most importantly, we show
that the OLR limits the exchange of angular momentum, separating the disc in
two distinct parts with minimal or null exchange, except in the transition
zone, which is delimited by the position of the OLR at the epoch of the
formation of the bar, and at the final epoch. We discuss the consequences of
these findings for our understanding of the structure of the Milky Way disc.
Because the Sun is situated slightly outside the OLR, we suggest that the solar
vicinity may have experienced very limited churning from the inner disc.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics (acceptance
date: 27/04/15), 24 pages, 24 figure
Star formation efficiency in galaxy interactions and mergers: a statistical study
We investigate the enhancement of star formation efficiency in galaxy
interactions and mergers, by numerical simulations of several hundred galaxy
collisions. All morphological types along the Hubble sequence are considered in
the initial conditions of the two colliding galaxies, with varying
bulge-to-disk ratios and gas mass fractions. Different types of orbits are
simulated, direct and retrograde, according to the initial relative energy and
impact parameter, and the resulting star formation history is compared to that
occuring in the two galaxies when they are isolated. Our principal results are:
(1) retrograde encounters have a larger star formation efficiency (SFE) than
direct encounters; (2) the amount of gas available in the galaxy is not the
main parameter governing the SFE in the burst phase; (3) there is an
anticorrelation between the amplitude of the star forming burst and the tidal
forces exerted per unit of time, which is due to the large amount of gas
dragged outside the galaxy by tidal tails in strong interactions; (4) globally,
the Kennicutt-Schmidt law is retrieved statistically for isolated galaxies,
interacting pairs and mergers; (5) the enhanced star formation is essentially
occurring in nuclear starbursts, triggered by inward gas flows driven by
non-axisymmetries in the galaxy disks. Direct encounters develop more
pronounced asymmetries than retrograde ones. Based on these statistical
results, we derive general laws for the enhancement of star formation in galaxy
interactions and mergers, as a function of the main parameters of the
encounter.Comment: 22 pages, 37 figures, 4 tables. Accepted on Astronomy & Astrophysic
Search for cold and hot gas in the ram pressure stripped Virgo dwarf galaxy IC3418
We present IRAM 30m sensitive upper limits on CO emission in the ram pressure
stripped dwarf Virgo galaxy IC3418 and in a few positions covering HII regions
in its prominent 17 kpc UV/Ha gas-stripped tail. In the central few arcseconds
of the galaxy, we report a possible marginal detection of about 1x10^6 M_sun of
molecular gas (assuming a Galactic CO-to-H_2 conversion factor) that could
correspond to a surviving nuclear gas reservoir. We estimate that there is less
molecular gas in the main body of IC3418, by at least a factor of 20, than
would be expected from the pre-quenching UV-based star formation rate assuming
the typical gas depletion timescale of 2 Gyr. Given the lack of star formation
in the main body, we think the H_2-deficiency is real, although some of it may
also arise from a higher CO-to-H_2 factor typical in low-metallicity, low-mass
galaxies. The presence of HII regions in the tail of IC3418 suggests that there
must be some dense gas; however, only upper limits of < 1x10^6 M_sun were found
in the three observed points in the outer tail. This yields an upper limit on
the molecular gas content of the whole tail < 1x10^7 M_sun, which is an amount
similar to the estimates from the observed star formation rate over the tail.
We also present strong upper limits on the X-ray emission of the stripped gas
in IC3418 from a new Chandra observation. The measured X-ray luminosity of the
IC3418 tail is about 280 times lower than that of ESO 137-001, a spiral galaxy
in a more distant cluster with a prominent ram pressure stripped tail.
Non-detection of any diffuse X-ray emission in the IC3418 tail may be due to a
low gas content in the tail associated with its advanced evolutionary state
and/or due to a rather low thermal pressure of the surrounding intra-cluster
medium.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures, A&A accepte
Cold gas in the inner regions of intermediate redshift clusters
Determining gas content and star formation rate has known remarkable progress
in field galaxies, but has been much less investigated in galaxies inside
clusters. We present the first CO observations of luminous infrared galaxies
(LIRGs) inside the virial radii of two intermediate redshift clusters,
CL1416+4446 (z=0.397) and CL0926+1242 (z=0.489). We detect three galaxies at
high significance (5 to 10 sigma), and provide robust estimates of their CO
luminosities, L'CO. In order to put our results into a general context, we
revisit the relation between cold and hot gas and stellar mass in nearby field
and cluster galaxies. We find evidence that at fixed LIR (or fixed stellar
mass), the frequency of high L'CO galaxies is lower in clusters than in the
field, suggesting environmental depletion of the reservoir of cold gas. The
level of star formation activity in a galaxy is primarily linked to the amount
of cold gas, rather than to the galaxy mass or the lookback time. In clusters,
just as in the field, the conversion between gas and stars seems universal. The
relation between LIR and L'CO for distant cluster galaxies extends the relation
of nearby galaxies to higher IR luminosities. Nevertheless, the intermediate
redshift galaxies fall well within the dispersion of the trend defined by local
systems. Considering that L'CO is generally derived from the CO(1-0) line and
sensitive to the vast majority of the molecular gas in the cold interstellar
medium of galaxies, but less to the part which will actually be used to form
stars, we suggest that molecular gas can be stripped before the star formation
rate is affected. Combining the sample of Geach et al. (2009, 2011) and ours,
we find evidence for a decrease in CO towards the cluster centers. This is the
first hint of an environmental impact on cold gas at intermediate redshift.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic
The overmassive black hole in NGC 1277: new constraints from molecular gas kinematics
We report the detection of CO(1-0) emission from NGC 1277, a lenticular
galaxy in the Perseus Cluster. NGC 1277 has previously been proposed to host an
overmassive black hole (BH) compared to the galaxy bulge luminosity (mass),
based on stellar-kinematic measurements. The CO(1-0) emission, observed with
the IRAM Plateau de Bure Interferometer (PdBI) using both, a more compact
(2.9-arcsec resolution) and a more extended (1-arcsec resolution)
configuration, is likely to originate from the dust lane encompassing the
galaxy nucleus at a distance of 0.9 arcsec (~320 pc). The double-horned CO(1-0)
profile found at 2.9-arcsec resolution traces of
molecular gas, likely orbiting in the dust lane at $\sim 550\ \mathrm{km\
s^{-1}}\sim 2\times 10^{10}\
M_\odot\sim
1.7\times 10^{10}\ M_\odotM/L_V=6.3\sim 5\times 10^{9}\ M_\odotM/L_V=10$. While the molecular gas reservoir
may be associated with a low level of star formation activity, the extended
2.6-mm continuum emission is likely to originate from a weak AGN, possibly
characterized by an inverted radio-to-millimetre spectral energy distribution.
Literature radio and X-ray data indicate that the BH in NGC 1277 is also
overmassive with respect to the Fundamental Plane of BH activity.Comment: 15 pages, 13 figures; accepted for publication in MNRAS on 20 January
2016; updated version including minor changes and note added in proo
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