Extremely red galaxies at $z=5-9$ with MIRI and NIRSpec: dusty galaxies or obscured AGNs? [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.14418


We study a new population of extremely red objects (EROs) recently discovered by JWST based on their NIRCam colors F277W$-$F444W $>1.5$ mag. We find 37 EROs in the CEERS field with F444W $<28$ mag and photometric redshifts between $5<z<7$, with median $z=6.9^{+1.0}{-1.6}$. Surprisingly, despite their red long-wavelength colors, these EROs have blue short-wavelength colors (F150W$-$F200W$\sim$0 mag) indicative of bimodal SEDs with a red, steep slope in the rest-frame optical, and a blue, flat slope in the rest-frame UV. Moreover, all these EROs are unresolved, point-like sources in all NIRCam bands. We analyze the spectral energy distributions of 8 of them with MIRI and NIRSpec observations using stellar population models and AGN templates. We find that a dusty galaxy or an obscured AGN provide similarly good SED fits but different stellar properties: massive and dusty, log M/M_sun$\sim$10 and A${\rm V}\gtrsim3$ mag, or low mass and obscuration, log M/M_sun$\sim$7.5 and A${\rm V}\sim0$ mag, hosting an obscured QSO. SED modeling does not favor either scenario, but their unresolved sizes are more suggestive of an AGN. If any EROs are confirmed to have log M/M_sun$\gtrsim10.5$, it would increase pre-JWST number densities at $z>7$ by up to a factor $\sim$60. Similarly, if they are OSOs with luminosities in the L${\rm bol}>10^{46-47}$ erg s$^{-1}$ range, their number would exceed that of bright blue QSOs by more than two orders of magnitude. Additional photometry at mid-IR wavelengths will reveal the true nature of the red continuum emission in these EROs and will place this puzzling population in the right context of galaxy evolution.

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G. Barro, P. Perez-Gonzalez, D. Kocevski, et. al.
Thu, 25 May 23
64/64

Comments: 26 pages, 10 figures, submitted to ApJ

VERTICO VI: Cold-gas asymmetries in Virgo cluster galaxies [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.14823


We analyze cold-gas distributions in Virgo cluster galaxies using resolved CO(2-1) (tracing molecular hydrogen, H2) and HI observations from the Virgo Environment Traced In CO (VERTICO) and the VLA Imaging of Virgo in Atomic Gas (VIVA) surveys. From a theoretical perspective, it is expected that environmental processes in clusters will have a stronger influence on diffuse atomic gas compared to the relatively dense molecular gas component, and that these environmental perturbations can compress the cold interstellar medium in cluster galaxies leading to elevated star formation. In this work we observationally test these predictions for star-forming satellite galaxies within the Virgo cluster. We divide our Virgo galaxy sample into HI-normal, HI-tailed, and HI-truncated classes and show, unsurprisingly, that the HI-tailed galaxies have the largest quantitative HI asymmetries. We also compare to a control sample of non-cluster galaxies and find that Virgo galaxies, on average, have HI asymmetries that are 40 +/- 10 per cent larger than the control. There is less separation between control, HI-normal, HI-tailed, and HI-truncated galaxies in terms of H2 asymmetries, and on average, Virgo galaxies have H2 asymmetries that are only marginally (20 +/- 10 per cent) larger than the control sample. We find a weak correlation between HI and H2 asymmetries over our entire sample, but a stronger correlation for those specific galaxies being strongly impacted by environmental perturbations. Finally, we divide the discs of the HI-tailed Virgo galaxies into a leading half and trailing half according to the observed tail direction. We find evidence for excess molecular gas mass on the leading halves of the disc. This excess molecular gas on the leading half is accompanied by an excess in star formation rate such that the depletion time is, on average, unchanged.

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I. Roberts, T. Brown, N. Zabel, et. al.
Thu, 25 May 23
64/64

Comments: 15 pages, 8 figures, 1 table, accepted for publication in A&A

Extreme broad He\2 emission at high and low redshifts: the dominant role of VMS in NGC 3125-A1 and CDFS131717 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.14563


Super star cluster (SSC) A1 (3.1E5 Msun) in NGC 3125 has one of the strongest (EW = 4.6 +/- 0.5 Ang) broad (FWHM = 1131 +- 40 km/s) He II 1640 emission lines in the nearby Universe and constitutes an important template for interpreting observations of extreme He II emitters out to redshifts of z = 2-3. We use Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) observations of A1 to show that there is no significant contamination of the He II line with nebular emission and that the line is redshifted by 121 +/-17 km/s relative to ISM lines. We compare the COS G130M + G160M observations of A1 to recent binary BPASS and single-star Charlot & Bruzual (C&B) simple stellar population (SSP) models with Very Massive Stars (VMS) of up to 300 Msun. We suggest why BPASS models fail to reproduce A1’s He II emission. On the other hand, a C&B model with Z = 0.008, age = 2.2 Myr, and VMS approaching the Eddington limit provides an excellent fit to the He II emission and fits reasonably well C III 1175, N V 1238,1241, and C IV 1548, 1551. We present O V 1371 line-profile predictions showing that this line constitutes an important tracer of youth and VMS in galaxies. Finally, we discuss the presence of VMS in CDFS131717, a highly star-forming low-metallicity galaxy located at z = 3.071, which has a tentative detection of O V absorption and strong broad He II emission. These features are rare and hint to the presence of short-lived VMS in the galaxy. Our results show the effect of the latest developments of stellar wind theory and the importance of accounting for VMS in models.

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A. Wofford, A. Sixtos, S. Charlot, et. al.
Thu, 25 May 23
64/64

Comments: 17 pages, 17 figures, accepted in MNRAS

COOL-LAMPS. V. Discovery of COOL J0335$-$1927, a Gravitationally Lensed Quasar at $z$=3.27 with an Image Separation of 23.3" [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.14317


We report the discovery of COOL J0335$-$1927, a quasar at $z$ = 3.27 lensed into three images with a maximum separation of 23.3″ by a galaxy cluster at $z$ = 0.4178. We construct a parametric strong gravitational lens model using ground-based imaging, constrained by the redshift and positions of the quasar images as well as the positions of three other multiply-imaged background galaxies. Using our best-fit lens model, we calculate the predicted time delays between the three quasar images to be $\Delta$t${AB}=$ $241^{+41}{-12}$ and $\Delta$t${AC}=$ $-64^{+3}{-33}$ days. We also present g-band photometry from archival DECaLS imaging, and new multi-epoch observations obtained between September 18, 2022 UT and February 22, 2023 UT, which demonstrate significant variability in the quasar and which will eventually enable a measurement of the time delay between the three quasar images.

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K. Napier, M. Gladders, K. Sharon, et. al.
Wed, 24 May 23
81/81

Comments: 8 pages, 4 figures, 1 table

The MeerKAT Fornax Survey — II. The rapid removal of HI from dwarf galaxies in the Fornax cluster [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.13163


We present MeerKAT Fornax Survey atomic hydrogen (HI) observations of the dwarf galaxies located in the central ~2.5 x 4 deg$^2$ of the Fornax galaxy cluster. The HI images presented in this work have a $3\sigma$ column density sensitivity between 2.7 and 50 x 10$^{18}$ cm$^{-2}$ over 25 km s$^{-1}$ for spatial resolution between 4 and 1 kpc. We are able to detect an impressive MHI = 5 x 10$^{5}$ Msun 3$\sigma$ point source with a line width of 50 km s$^{-1}$ at a distance of 20 Mpc. We detect HI in 17 out of the 304 dwarfs in our field — 14 out of the 36 late type dwarfs (LTDs), and 3 of the 268 early type dwarfs (ETDs). The HI-detected LTDs have likely just joined the cluster and are on their first infall as they are located at large clustocentric radii, with comparable MHI and mean stellar surface brightness at fixed luminosity as blue, star-forming LTDs in the field. The HI-detected ETDs have likely been in the cluster longer than the LTDs and acquired their HI through a recent merger or accretion from nearby HI. Eight of the HI-detected LTDs host irregular or asymmetric HI emission and disturbed or lopsided stellar emission. There are two clear cases of ram-pressure shaping the HI, with the LTDs displaying compressed HI on the side closest to the cluster centre and a one-sided, starless tail pointing away from the cluster centre. The HI-detected dwarfs avoid the most massive potentials, consistent with massive galaxies playing an active role in the removal of HI. We create a simple toy model to quantify the timescale of HI stripping in the cluster. We find that a MHI = 10$^{8}$ Msun dwarf will be stripped in ~ 240 Myr. The model is consistent with our observations, where low mass LTDs are directly stripped of their HI from a single encounter and more massive LTDs can harbour a disturbed HI morphology due to longer times or multiple encounters being required to fully strip their HI.

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D. Kleiner, P. Serra, F. Maccagni, et. al.
Tue, 23 May 23
77/77

Comments: Accepted in Astronomy & Astrophysics. 21 pages, 10 figures. Data available at the MeerKAT Fornax Survey website this https URL

Halo formation and evolution in SFDM and CDM: new insights from the fluid approach [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.12982


(abridged) We present simulations of halo formation and evolution in scalar field dark matter (SFDM) cosmologies in the Thomas-Fermi regime, aka SFDM-TF", where a strong repulsive 2-particle self-interaction (SI) is included, being a valuable alternative to CDM, with the potential to resolve itscusp-core” problem. In general, SFDM behaves like a quantum fluid. Previous literature has presented two fluid approximations for SFDM-TF, as well as simulations of halo formation. These results confirmed earlier expectations and are generally in mutual agreement, but discrepancies were also reported. Therefore, we perform dedicated 3D cosmological simulations for the SFDM-TF model, applying both fluid approximations, as well as for CDM. Our results are very well in accordance with previous works and extend upon them, in that we can explain the reported discrepancies as a result of different simulation setups. We find some interesting details: The evolution of both SFDM-TF and CDM halos follows a 2-stage process. In the early stage, the density profile in the center becomes close to a $(n=1.5)$-polytropic core, dominated by an “effective” velocity-dispersion pressure $P_{\sigma}$ which is common to both dark matter models. Consecutively, for CDM halos, the core transitions into a central cusp. In SFDM-TF halos, the additional pressure $P_\text{SI}$ due to SI determines the second stage of the evolution, where the central region follows closely a $(n=1)$-polytropic core, embedded in a nearly isothermal envelope, i.e. the outskirts are similar to CDM. We also encounter a new effect, namely a late-time expansion of both polytropic core plus envelope, because the size of the almost isothermal halo envelope is affected by the expansion of the background universe. So, an initial primordial core of $\sim 100$ pc can evolve into a larger core of $\gtrsim 1$ kpc, even without feedback from baryons.

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H. Foidl, T. Rindler-Daller and W. Zeilinger
Tue, 23 May 23
77/77

Comments: submitted to Phys.Rev.D; 26 pages, 16 figures

Prospects for Detecting Gaps in Globular Cluster Stellar Streams in External Galaxies with the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.12045


Stellar streams form through the tidal disruption of satellite galaxies or globular clusters orbiting a host galaxy. Globular cluster streams are of particular interest since they are thin (dynamically cold) and therefore sensitive to perturbations from low-mass subhalos. Since the subhalo mass function differs depending on the dark matter composition, these gaps can provide unique constraints on dark matter models. However, current samples are limited to the Milky Way. With its large field of view, deep imaging sensitivity, and high angular resolution, the upcoming {\it Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope} ({\it Roman}); presents a unique opportunity to significantly increase the number of observed streams and gaps. This paper presents a first exploration of the prospects for detecting gaps in streams in M31 and other nearby galaxies with resolved stars. We simulate the formation of gaps in a Palomar-5-like stream and generate mock observations of these gaps together with background stars in M31 and foreground Milky Way stellar fields. We assess {\it Roman}’s ability to detect gaps out to 10~Mpc through visual inspection and with the gap-finding tool {\it FindTheGap}. We conclude that gaps of $\approx 1.5$~kpc in streams that are created from subhalos of masses $\geq5 \times 10^6$ {\Msun} are detectable within a 2–3~Mpc volume in exposures of 1000s–1~hour. This volume contains $\approx$ 200 galaxies. Large samples of stream gaps in external galaxies will open up a new era of statistical analyses of gap characteristics in stellar streams and help constrain dark matter models.

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C. Aganze, S. Pearson, T. Starkenburg, et. al.
Tue, 23 May 23
77/77

Comments: Submitted to ApJ. Comments are welcome!

Density biases and temperature relations for DESIRED HII regions [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.13136


We present a first study based on the analysis of the DEep Spectra of Ionized REgions Database (DESIRED). This is a compilation of 190 high signal-to-noise ratio optical spectra of HII regions and other photoionized nebulae, mostly observed with 8-10m telescopes and containing $\sim$29380 emission lines. We find that the electron density –$n_{\rm e}$– of the objects is underestimated when [SII] $\lambda6731/\lambda6716$ and/or [OII] $\lambda3726/\lambda3729$ are the only density indicators available. This is produced by the non-linear density dependence of the indicators in the presence of density inhomogeneities. The average underestimate is $\sim 300$ cm$^{-3}$ in extragalactic HII regions, introducing systematic overestimates of $T_{\rm e}$([OII]) and $T_{\rm e}$([SII]) compared to $T_{\rm e}$([NII]). The high-sensitivity of [OII] $\lambda\lambda7319+20+30+31/\lambda\lambda3726+29$ and [SII] $\lambda\lambda4069+76/\lambda\lambda6716+31$ to density makes them more suitable for the diagnosis of the presence of high-density clumps. If $T_{\rm e}$([NII]) is adopted, the density underestimate has a small impact in the ionic abundances derived from optical spectra, being limited to up to $\sim$0.1 dex when auroral [SII] and/or [OII] lines are used. However, these density effects are critical for the analysis of infrared fine structure lines, such as those observed by the JWST in local star forming regions, implying strong underestimates of the ionic abundances. We present temperature relations between $T_{\rm e}$([OIII]), $T_{\rm e}$([ArIII]), $T_{\rm e}$([SIII]) and $T_{\rm e}$([NII]) for the extragalactic HII regions. We confirm a non-linear dependence between $T_{\rm e}$([OIII])-$T_{\rm e}$([NII]) due to a more rapid increase of $T_{\rm e}$([OIII]) at lower metallicities.

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J. Méndez-Delgado, C. Esteban, J. García-Rojas, et. al.
Tue, 23 May 23
77/77

Comments: Accepted for publication in MNRAS

Revealing mass distributions of dwarf spheroidal galaxies in the Subaru-PFS era [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11309


The Galactic dwarf spheroidal galaxies (dSphs) provide valuable insight into dark matter (DM) properties and its role in galaxy formation. Their close proximity enables the measurement of line-of-sight velocities for resolved stars, which allows us to study DM halo structure. However, uncertainties in DM mass profile determination persist due to the degeneracy between DM mass density and velocity dispersion tensor anisotropy. Overcoming this requires large kinematic samples and identification of foreground contamination. With 1.25 deg$^2$ and 2394 fibers, PFS plus pre-imaging with Hyper Suprime Cam will make significant progress in this undertaking.

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K. Hayashi, L. Dobos, C. Filion, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
1/60

Comments: 6 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in Proceedings of the IAUS 379: Dynamical Masses of Local Group Galaxies, Potsdam, March 20-24, 2023

MUSE AO spectroscopy confirms five dual AGNs and two strongly lensed QSOs at sub-arcsec separation [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11850


The novel Gaia Multi Peak (GMP) technique has proven to be able to successfully select dual and lensed AGN candidates at sub-arcsec separations. Both populations are important because dual AGNs represent one of the central, still largely untested, predictions of lamdaCDM cosmology, and compact lensed quasars allow to probe the central regions of the lensing galaxies. In this work, we present high spatial resolution spectroscopy of twelve GMP-selected systems. We use the the adaptive-optics assisted integral-field spectrograph MUSE at VLT to resolve each system and study the nature of each component. All the targets reveal the presence of two components confirming the GMP selection. We classify five targets as dual AGNs, two as lensed systems, and five as a chance alignment of a star and and AGN. Having separations between 0.30″ and 0.86″, these dual and lensed systems are, to date, among the most compact ever discovered at z >0.3. This is the largest sample of distant dual AGNs with sub-arcsec separations ever presented in a single paper.

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M. Scialpi, F. Mannucci, C. Marconcini, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
2/60

Comments: 11 pages, 9 figures

The JCMT BISTRO Survey: Studying the Complex Magnetic Field of L43 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11306


We present observations of polarized dust emission at 850 $\mu$m from the L43 molecular cloud which sits in the Ophiuchus cloud complex. The data were taken using SCUBA-2/POL-2 on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope as a part of the BISTRO large program. L43 is a dense ($N_{\rm H_2}\sim 10^{22}$-10$^{23}$ cm$^{-2}$) complex molecular cloud with a submillimetre-bright starless core and two protostellar sources. There appears to be an evolutionary gradient along the isolated filament that L43 is embedded within, with the most evolved source closest to the Sco OB2 association. One of the protostars drives a CO outflow that has created a cavity to the southeast. We see a magnetic field that appears to be aligned with the cavity walls of the outflow, suggesting interaction with the outflow. We also find a magnetic field strength of up to $\sim$160$\pm$30 $\mu$G in the main starless core and up to $\sim$90$\pm$40 $\mu$G in the more diffuse, extended region. These field strengths give magnetically super- and sub-critical values respectively and both are found to be roughly trans-Alfv\’enic. We also present a new method of data reduction for these denser but fainter objects like starless cores.

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D. Ward-Thompson, J. Karoly, K. Pattle, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
3/60

Comments: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 23 pages, 9 figures (7 main text, 2 appendix)

Powerful Radio-Loud Quasars are Triggered by Galaxy Mergers in the Cosmic Bright Ages [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11804


While supermassive black holes are ubiquitous features of galactic nuclei, only a small minority are observed during episodes of luminous accretion. The physical mechanism(s) driving the onset of fueling and ignition in these active galactic nuclei (AGN) are still largely unknown for many galaxies and AGN-selection criteria. Attention has focused on AGN triggering by means of major galaxy mergers gravitationally funneling gas towards the galactic center, with evidence both for and against this scenario. However, several recent studies have found that radio-loud AGN overwhelmingly reside in ongoing or recent major galaxy mergers. In this study, we test the hypothesis that major galaxy mergers are important triggers for radio-loud AGN activity in powerful quasars during cosmic noon (1 < z < 2). To this end, we compare Hubble Space Telescope WFC3/IR observations of the z > 1 3CR radio-loud broad-lined quasars to three matched radio-quiet quasar control samples. We find strong evidence for major-merger activity in nearly all radio-loud AGN, in contrast to the much lower merger fraction in the radio-quiet AGN. These results suggest major galaxy mergers are key ingredients to launching powerful radio jets. Given many of our radio-loud quasars are blue, our results present a possible challenge to the “blow-out” paradigm of galaxy evolution models in which blue quasars are the quiescent end result following a period of red quasar feedback initiated by a galaxy merger. Finally, we find a tight correlation between black hole mass and host galaxy luminosity for these different high-redshift AGN samples inconsistent with those observed for local elliptical galaxies.

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P. Breiding, M. Chiaberge, E. Lambrides, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
16/60

Comments: Submitted to ApJ

Temperature inhomogeneities cause the abundance discrepancy in H II regions [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11578


HII regions, ionized nebulae where massive star formation has taken place, exhibit a wealth of emission lines that are the fundamental basis for estimating the chemical composition of the Universe. For more than 80 years, a discrepancy of at least a factor of two between heavy-element abundances derived with collisional excited lines (CELs) and the weaker recombination lines (RLs) has thrown our absolute abundance determinations into doubt. Heavy elements regulate the cooling of the interstellar gas, being essential to the understanding of several phenomena such as nucleosynthesis, star formation and chemical evolution. In this work, we use the best available deep optical spectra of ionized nebulae to analyze the cause of this abundance discrepancy problem. We find for the first time general observational evidence in favor of the temperature inhomogeneities within the gas, quantified by t2. The temperature inhomogeneities inside H II regions are affecting only the gas of high ionization degree and producing the abundance discrepancy problem. This work implies that the metallicity determinations based on CELs must be revised, as they can be severely underestimated, especially in the regions of lower metallicity, such as the JWST high-z galaxies. We present methods to estimate these corrections, which will be critical for robust interpretations of the chemical composition of the Universe over cosmic time.

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J. Méndez-Delgado, C. Esteban, J. García-Rojas, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
18/60

Comments: A Nature paper. The final version of this article can be found here: this https URL This version of ArXiV is the initial version of the article, not refereed and without subsequent editorial changes. The accepted version will be updated here in 6 months. If you are a researcher and do not have access to the final version of Nature, please write me an email

Rotation-tunneling spectrum and astrochemical modeling of dimethylamine, CH$_3$NHCH$_3$, and searches for it in space [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11656


Methylamine has been the only simple alkylamine detected in the interstellar medium for a long time. With the recent secure and tentative detections of vinylamine and ethylamine, respectively, dimethylamine has become a promising target for searches in space. Its rotational spectrum, however, has been known only up to 45 GHz until now. Here we investigate the rotation-tunneling spectrum of dimethylamine in selected regions between 76 and 1091 GHz using three different spectrometers in order to facilitate its detection in space. The quantum number range is extended to $J = 61$ and $K_a = 21$, yielding an extensive set of accurate spectroscopic parameters. To search for dimethylamine, we refer to the spectral line survey ReMoCA carried out with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array toward the high-mass star-forming region Sagittarius B2(N) and a spectral line survey of the molecular cloud G+0.693$-$0.027 employing the IRAM 30 m and Yebes 40 m radio telescopes. We report nondetections of dimethylamine toward the hot molecular cores Sgr B2(N1S) and Sgr B2(N2b) as well as G+0.693$-$0.027 which imply that dimethylamine is at least 14, 4.5 and 39 times less abundant than methylamine toward these sources, respectively. The observational results are compared to computational results from a gas-grain astrochemical model. The modeled methylamine to dimethylamine ratios are compatible with the observational ratios. However, the model produces too much ethylamine compared with methylamine which could mean that the already fairly low levels of dimethylamine in the models may also be too high.

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H. Müller, R. Garrod, A. Belloche, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
27/60

Comments: Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc., accepted. 33 pages including tables, figures, and appendix

Accurate Systemic Redshifts and Outflow Speeds for Extremely Red Quasars (ERQs) [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11223


Extremely Red Quasars (ERQs) are thought to represent a brief episode of young quasar and galactic evolution characterized by rapid outflows and obscured growth due to dusty environments. We use new redshift measurements from CO and Ly$\alpha$ emission-lines to better constrain outflow velocities from previous line measurements. We present sample of 82 ERQs, and the analysis confirms that ERQs have a higher incidence of large CIV blueshifts, accompanied by large Rest Equivalent Widths (REWs) and smaller line widths than blue quasars. We find that strong blueshifts (>2000 km s$^{-1}$) are present in 12/54 (22.22 per cent) of ERQs with the most robust redshift indicators. At least 4 out of 15 ERQs in the sample also have blueshifts in their H$\beta$ and low-ionization UV lines ranging from $-$500 to $-$1500 km s$^{-1}$. ERQs with strong CIV blueshifts are substantially offset in CIV REW and Full-Width at Half-Maximum (FWHM) from typical blue quasars in the same velocity range. ERQs have average values of REW = 124 A and FWHM = 5274 km s$^{-1}$, while blue quasars have REW = 24 A and FWHM = 6973 km s$^{-1}$. The extreme nature of the outflows in ERQs might explain some of their other spectral properties, such as the large CIV REWs and peculiar wingless profiles owing to more extended broad-line regions participating in outflows. The physical reasons for the extreme outflow properties of ERQs are unclear; however, larger Eddington ratios and/or softer ionizing spectra incident on the outflow gas cannot be ruled out.

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J. Gillette, F. Hamann, M. Lau, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
29/60

Comments: 8 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

On the Metallicities and Kinematics of the Circumgalactic Media of Damped Ly$α$ Systems at $z \sim 2.5$ [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11232


We use medium- and high-resolution spectroscopy of close pairs of quasars to analyze the circumgalactic medium (CGM) surrounding 32 damped Ly$\alpha$ absorption systems (DLAs). The primary quasar sightline in each pair probes an intervening DLA in the redshift range $1.6<z_\text{abs}<3.5$, such that the secondary sightline probes absorption from Ly$\alpha$ and a large suite of metal-line transitions (including $~\rm OI$, $~\rm CII$, $~\rm CIV$, $~\rm SiII$, and $~\rm SiIV$) in the DLA host galaxy’s CGM at transverse distances $24\ \text{kpc}\le R_\bot\le284~\rm kpc$. Analysis of Ly$\alpha$ in the CGM sightlines shows an anti-correlation between $R_\bot$ and $~\rm HI$ column density ($N_\text{HI}$) with 99.8$\%$ confidence, similar to that observed around luminous galaxies. The incidences of $~\rm CII$ and $~\rm SiII$ with $N>10^{13}~\rm cm^{-2}$ within 100 kpc of DLAs are larger by $2\sigma$ than those measured in the CGM of Lyman break galaxies (C$f(N\text{CII})>0.89$ and C$f(N\text{SiII})=0.75_{-0.17}^{+0.12}$). Metallicity constraints derived from ionic ratios for nine CGM systems with negligible ionization corrections and $N_\text{HI}>10^{18.5}~\rm cm^{-2}$ show a significant degree of scatter (with metallicities/limits across the range $-2.06\lesssim\log Z/Z_{\odot}\lesssim-0.75$), suggesting inhomogeneity in the metal distribution in these environments. Velocity widths of $\text{CIV}\lambda1548$ and low-ionization metal species in the DLA vs. CGM sightlines are strongly ($>2\sigma$) correlated, suggesting they trace the potential well of the host halo over $R_\bot\lesssim300$ kpc scales. At the same time, velocity centroids for $\text{CIV}\lambda1548$ differ in DLA vs. CGM sightlines by $>100~\rm km\ s^{-1}$ for $\sim50\%$ of velocity components, but few components have velocities that would exceed the escape velocity assuming dark matter host halos of $\ge10^{12}M_\odot$.

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S. Stawinski, K. Rubin, J. Prochaska, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
31/60

Comments: 44 pages, 21 Figures, 5 Tables, accepted for publication in ApJ

Black Hole Feeding and Feedback in a Compact Galaxy [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11415


We perform high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations using the framework of {\it MACER} to investigate supermassive black hole (SMBH) feeding and feedback in a massive compact galaxy, which has a small effective radius but a large stellar mass, with a simulation duration of 10 Gyr. We compare the results with a reference galaxy with a similar stellar mass but a less concentrated stellar density distribution, as typically found in local elliptical galaxies. We find that about 10% of the time, the compact galaxy develops multi-phase gas within a few kpc, but the accretion flow through the inner boundary below the Bondi radius is always a single phase. The inflow rate in the compact galaxy is several times larger than in the reference galaxy, mainly due to the higher gas density caused by the more compact stellar distribution. Such a higher inflow rate results in stronger SMBH feeding and feedback and a larger fountain-like inflow-outflow structure. Compared to the reference galaxy, the star formation rate in the compact galaxy is roughly two orders of magnitude higher but is still low enough to be considered quiescent. Over the whole evolution period, the black hole mass grows by $\sim$50% in the compact galaxy, much larger than the value of $\sim$ 3% in the reference galaxy.

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Y. Di, Y. Li, F. Yuan, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
34/60

Comments: 7 pages, 6 figures

Implementation of Rare Isotopologues into Machine Learning of the Chemical Inventory of the Solar-Type Protostellar Source IRAS 16293-2422 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11193


Machine learning techniques have been previously used to model and predict column densities in the TMC-1 dark molecular cloud. In interstellar sources further along the path of star formation, such as those where a protostar itself has been formed, the chemistry is known to be drastically different from that of largely quiescent dark clouds. To that end, we have tested the ability of various machine learning models to fit the column densities of the molecules detected in source B of the Class 0 protostellar binary IRAS 16293-2422. By including a simple encoding of isotopic composition in our molecular feature vectors, we also examine for the first time how well these models can replicate the isotopic ratios. Finally, we report the predicted column densities of the chemically relevant molecules that may be excellent targets for radioastronomical detection in IRAS 16293-2422B.

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Z. Fried, K. Lee, A. Byrne, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
35/60

Comments: Accepted for publication in Digital Discovery. 18 pages, 8 figures, 5 tables

$clustertools$: A Python Package for Analyzing Star Cluster Simulations [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11222


$clustertools$ is a Python package for analyzing star cluster simulations. The package is built around the $StarCluster$ class, which stores all data read in from the snapshot of a given model star cluster. The package contains functions for loading data from commonly used $N$-body codes, generic snapshots, and software for generating initial conditions. All operations and functions within $clustertools$ are then designed to act on a $StarCluster$. $clustertools$ can be used for unit and coordinate transformations, the calculation of key structural and kinematic parameters, analysis of the cluster’s orbit and tidal tails, and measuring common cluster properties like its mass function, density profile, and velocity dispersion profile (among others). While originally designed with star clusters in mind, $clustertools$ can be used to study other types of $N$-body systems, including stellar streams and dark matter sub-halos.

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J. Webb
Mon, 22 May 23
36/60

Comments: Accepted for Publication in the Journal of Open Source Software, also see this https URL for complete documentation

Quasar Luminosity Function at z = 7 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11225


We present the quasar luminosity function (LF) at $z = 7$, measured with 35 spectroscopically confirmed quasars at $6.55 < z < 7.15$. The sample of 22 quasars from the Subaru High-$z$ Exploration of Low-Luminosity Quasars (SHELLQs) project, combined with 13 brighter quasars in the literature, covers an unprecedentedly wide range of rest-frame ultraviolet magnitudes over $-28 < M_{1450} < -23$. We found that the binned LF flattens significantly toward the faint end populated by the SHELLQs quasars. A maximum likelihood fit to a double power-law model has a break magnitude $M^{1450} = -25.60^{+0.40}{-0.30}$, a characteristic density $\Phi^ = 1.35^{+0.47}{-0.30}$ Gpc$^{-3}$ mag$^{-1}$, and a bright-end slope $\beta = -3.34^{+0.49}{-0.57}$, when the faint-end slope is fixed to $\alpha = -1.2$ as observed at $z \le 6$. The overall LF shape remains remarkably similar from $z = 4$ to $7$, while the amplitude decreases substantially toward higher redshifts, with a clear indication of an accelerating decline at $z \ge 6$. The estimated ionizing photon density, $10^{48.2 \pm 0.1}$ s$^{-1}$ Mpc$^{-3}$, is less than 1 % of the critical rate to keep the intergalactic medium ionized at $z = 7$, and thus indicates that quasars are not a major contributor to cosmic reionization.

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Y. Matsuoka, M. Onoue, K. Iwasawa, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
40/60

Comments: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, in press

The role of grain size in AGN torus dust models [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11331


Fits the infrared spectra from the nuclear regions of AGN can place constraints on the dust properties, distribution, and geometry by comparison with models. However, none of the currently available models fully describe the observations of AGN currently available. Among the aspects least explored, here we focus on the role of dust grain size. We offer the community a new spectral energy distribution (SED) library, hereinafter [GoMar23] model, which is based on the two-phase torus model developed before with the inclusion of the grain size as a model parameter, parameterized by the maximum grain size Psize or equivalently the mass-weighted average grain size < P >. We created 691,200 SEDs using the SKIRT code, where the maximum grain size can vary within the range Psize = 0.01 – 10.0um ( < P >= 0.007 – 3.41um). We fit this new and several existing libraries to a sample of 68 nearby and luminous AGNs with Spitzer/IRS spectra dominated by AGN-heated dust. We find that the [GoMar23] model can adequately reproduce up to 85-88% of the spectra. The dust grain size parameter significantly improves the final fit in up to 90% of these spectra. Statistical tests indicate that the grain size is the third most important parameter in the fitting procedure (after the size and half opening angle of the torus). The requirement of a foreground extinction by our model is lower compared to purely clumpy models. We find that 41% of our sample requires that the maximum dust grain size is as large as Psize =10um (< P >= 3.41um). Nonetheless, we also remark that disk+wind and clumpy torus models are still required to reproduce the spectra of a non-negligible fraction of objects, suggesting the need for several dust geometries to explain the infrared continuum of AGN. This work provides tentative evidence for dust grain growth in the proximity of the AGN.

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O. González-Martín, C. Almeida, J. Fritz, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
41/60

Comments: 26 pages, 14 figures, 4 tables, accepted for publication in A&A

Fitting Probability Distribution Functions in Turbulent Star-Forming Molecular Clouds [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11218


We use a suite of 3D simulations of star-forming molecular clouds, with and without stellar feedback and magnetic fields, to investigate the effectiveness of different fitting methods for volume and column density probability distribution functions (PDFs). The first method fits a piecewise lognormal and power-law (PL) function to recover PDF parameters such as the PL slope and transition density. The second method fits a polynomial spline function and examines the first and second derivatives of the spline to determine the PL slope and the functional transition density. We demonstrate that fitting a spline allows us to directly determine if the data has multiple PL slopes. The first PL (set by the transition between lognormal and PL function) can also be visualized in the derivatives directly. In general, the two methods produce fits that agree reasonably well for volume density but vary for column density, likely due to the increased statistical noise in column density maps as compared to volume density. We test a well-known conversion for estimating volume density PL slopes from column density slopes and find that the spline method produces a better match (\c{hi}2 of 2.38 vs \c{hi}2 of 5.92), albeit with a significant scatter. Ultimately, we recommend the use of both fitting methods on column density data to mitigate the effects of noise.

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A. Kiihne, S. Appel, B. Burkhart, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
44/60

Comments: 14 pages, 8 figures, Submitted to ApJ. Comments welcome

Azimuthal Anisotropy of Magnetic Fields in the Circumgalactic Medium Driven by Galactic Feedback Processes [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11214


We use the TNG50 cosmological magnetohydrodynamical simulation of the IllustrisTNG project to show that magnetic fields in the circumgalactic medium (CGM) have significant angular structure. This azimuthal anisotropy at fixed distance is driven by galactic feedback processes that launch strong outflows into the halo, preferentially along the minor axes of galaxies. These feedback-driven outflows entrain strong magnetic fields from the interstellar medium, dragging fields originally amplified by small-scale dynamos into the CGM. At the virial radius, $z=0$ galaxies with M$\star \sim 10^{10}\,\rm{M\odot}$ show the strongest anisotropy ($\sim 0.35$ dex). This signal weakens with decreasing impact parameter, and is also present but weaker for lower mass as well as higher mass galaxies. Creating mock Faraday rotation measure (RM) sightlines through the simulated volume, we find that the angular RM trend is qualitatively consistent with recent observational measurements. We show that rich structure is present in the circumgalactic magnetic fields of galaxies. However, TNG50 predicts small RM amplitudes in the CGM that make detection difficult as a result of other contributions along the line of sight.

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R. Ramesh, D. Nelson, V. Heesen, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
47/60

Comments: Submitted to MNRAS. Comments welcome

Testing Jeans dynamical models with prolate rotation on a cosmologically simulated dwarf galaxy [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11256


Prolate rotation is characterized by a significant stellar rotation around a galaxy’s major axis, which contrasts with the more common oblate rotation. Prolate rotation is thought to be due to major mergers and thus studies of prolate-rotating systems can help us better understand the hierarchical process of galaxy evolution. Dynamical studies of such galaxies are important to find their gravitational potential profile, total mass, and dark matter fraction. Recently, it has been shown in a cosmological simulation that it is possible to form a prolate-rotating dwarf galaxy following a dwarf-dwarf merger event. The simulation also shows that the unusual prolate rotation can be time enduring. In this particular example, the galaxy continued to rotate around its major axis for at least $7.4$\,Gyr (from the merger event until the end of the simulation). In this project, we use mock observations of the hydro-dynamically simulated prolate-rotating dwarf galaxy to fit various stages of its evolution with Jeans dynamical models. The Jeans models successfully fit the early oblate state before the major merger event, and also the late prolate stages of the simulated galaxy, recovering its mass distribution, velocity dispersion, and rotation profile. We also ran a prolate-rotating N-body simulation with similar properties to the cosmologically simulated galaxy, which gradually loses its angular momentum on a short time scale $\sim100$\,Myr. More tests are needed to understand why prolate rotation is time enduring in the cosmological simulation, but not in a simple N-body simulation.

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A. Sedain and N. Kacharov
Mon, 22 May 23
49/60

Comments: N/A

Catalytic role of HI in the interstellar synthesis of complex organic molecule [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11409


Using quantum chemical calculations, we model the pathways for synthesizing two purine nucleobases, adenine and guanine, in the gas-phase interstellar environment, surrounded by neutral atomic hydrogen (HI). HI is found active in facilitating a series of fundamental proton transfer processes of organic synthesis, including bond formation, cyclization, dehydrogenation, and H migration. The reactive potential barriers were significantly reduced in the alternative pathways created by HI, leading to a remarkable increase in the reaction rate. The presence of HI also lowered the reactive activation temperature from 757.8 K to 131.5-147.0 K, indicating the thermodynamic feasibility of these pathways in star-forming regions where some of the reactants have been astronomically detected. Our findings suggest that HI may serve as an effective catalyst for interstellar organic synthesis.

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S. Yang, P. Xie, E. Liang, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
55/60

Comments: 6 figures

MUSE-ALMA Halos XI: Gas flows in the circumgalactic medium [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.11219


The flow of gas into and out of galaxies leaves traces in the circumgalactic medium which can then be studied using absorption lines towards background quasars. We analyse 27 log(N_HI) > 18.0 HI absorbers at z = 0.2 to 1.4 from the MUSE-ALMA Halos survey with at least one galaxy counterpart within a line of sight velocity of +/-500 km s^{-1}. We perform 3D kinematic forward modelling of these associated galaxies to examine the flow of dense, neutral gas in the circumgalactic medium. From the VLT/MUSE, HST broadband imaging and VLT/UVES and Keck/HIRES high-resolution UV quasar spectroscopy observations, we compare the impact parameters, star-formation rates and stellar masses of the associated galaxies with the absorber properties. We find marginal evidence for a bimodal distribution in azimuthal angles for strong HI absorbers, similar to previous studies of the MgII and OVI absorption lines. There is no clear metallicity dependence on azimuthal angle and we suggest a larger sample of absorbers are required to fully test the relationship predicted by cosmological hydrodynamical simulations. A case-by-case study of the absorbers reveals that ten per cent of absorbers are consistent with gas accretion, up to 30 per cent trace outflows while the remainder trace gas in the galaxy disk, the intragroup medium and low-mass galaxies below the MUSE detection limit. Our results highlight that the baryon cycle directly affects the dense neutral gas required for star-formation and plays a critical role in galaxy evolution.

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S. Weng, C. Péroux, A. Karki, et. al.
Mon, 22 May 23
58/60

Comments: 13 pages, 6 figures, 12 pages of appendix. Accepted for publication in MNRAS

Multifrequency analysis of the radio emission from a post-merger galaxy CGCG 292-057 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10576


Galaxies exhibiting a specific large-scale extended radio emission, such as X-shaped radio galaxies, belong to a rare class of winged radio galaxies. The morphological evolution of these radio sources is explained using several theoretical models, including galaxy mergers. However, such a direct link between a perturbed radio morphology and a galaxy merger remains observationally sparse. Here we investigate a unique radio galaxy J1159+5820, whose host CGCG 292-057 displays the optical signature of a post-merger system with a distinct tidal tail feature, and an X-shaped radio morphology accompanied by an additional pair of inner lobes. We observed the target on a wide range of radio frequencies ranging from 147 MHz to 4959 MHz, using dedicated GMRT and VLA observations, and supplemented it with publicly available survey data for broadband radio analysis. Particle injection models were fitted to radio spectra of lobes and different parts of the wings. Spectral ageing analysis performed on the lobes and the wings favors a fast jet realignment model with a reorientation timescale of a few million years. We present our results and discuss the possible mechanisms for the formation of the radio morphology.

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A. Misra, M. Jamrozy and M. Weżgowiec
Fri, 19 May 23
15/46

Comments: 13 pages, 9 figures, Accepted for publication in MNRAS

The effect of environment on the properties of the most massive galaxies at $0.5<z<2.5$ in the cosmos-dash field [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10677


How the environment influences the most massive galaxies is still unclear. To explore the environmental effects on morphology and star formation in the most massive galaxies at high redshift, we select galaxies with stellar mass $\log(M_{\star}/M_{\odot})>11$ at $0.5<z<2.5$ in the COSMOS-DASH field, which is the largest field with near-infrared photometrical observations using HST/WFC3 to date. Combining with the newly published COSMOS2020 catalog, we estimate the localized galaxy overdensity using a density estimator within the Bayesian probability framework. With the overdensity map, no significant environmental dependence is found in the distributions of S\'{e}rsic index and effective radius. When we consider the star formation state, galaxies in lower density are found to have higher median specific star formation rate (sSFR) at $0.5<z<1.5$. But for star-forming galaxies only, sSFR is independent of the environment within the whole redshift range, indicating that the primary effect of the environment might be to control the quiescent fraction. Based on these observations, the possible environmental quenching process for these massive galaxies might be mergers.

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J. Song, G. Fang, Y. Gu, et. al.
Fri, 19 May 23
16/46

Comments: 13 pages, 7 figures, To be published in ApJ

What boost galaxy mergers in two massive galaxy protoclusters at z = 2.24 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10932


Characterizing the structural properties of galaxies in high-redshift protoclusters is key to our understanding of the environmental effects on galaxy evolution in the early stages of galaxy and structure formation. In this study, we assess the structural properties of 85 and 87 Halpha emission-line candidates (HAEs) in the densest regions of two massive protoclusters, BOSS1244 and BOSS1542, respectively, using HST H-band imaging data. Our results show a true pair fraction of 22+-5 (33+-6) percent in BOSS1244 (BOSS1542), which yields a merger rate of 0.41+-0.09 (0.52+-0.04) per Gyr for massive HAEs with log (M_/M_sun) > 10.3. This rate is 1.8 (2.8) times higher than that of the general fields at the same epoch. Our sample of HAEs exhibits half-light radii and Sersic indices that cover a broader range than field star-forming galaxies. Additionally, about 15 percent of the HAEs are as compact as the most massive (log(M_/M_sun) > 11) spheroid-dominated population. These results suggest that the high galaxy density and cold dynamical state (i.e., velocity dispersion of <400 km/s) are key factors that drive galaxy mergers and promote structural evolution in the two protoclusters. Our findings also indicate that both the local environment (on group scales) and the global environment play essential roles in shaping galaxy morphologies in protoclusters. This is evident in the systematic differences observed in the structural properties of galaxies between BOSS1244 and BOSS1542.

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S. Liu, X. Zheng, D. Shi, et. al.
Fri, 19 May 23
19/46

Comments: 20 pages, 5 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in MNRAS

Searching for Intragroup Light in Deep U-band Imaging of the COSMOS Field [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10516


We present the results of deep, ground based U-band imaging with the Large Binocular Telescope of the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field as part of the near-UV imaging program, UVCANDELS. We utilize a seeing sorted stacking method along with night-to-night relative transparency corrections to create optimal depth and optimal resolution mosaics in the U-band, which are capable of reaching point source magnitudes of AB 26.5 mag at 3 sigma. These ground based mosaics bridge the wavelength gap between the HST WFC3 F27W and ACS F435W images and are necessary to understand galaxy assembly in the last 9-10 Gyr. We use the depth of these mosaics to search for the presence of U-band intragroup light (IGrL) beyond the local Universe. Regardless of how groups are scaled and stacked, we do not detect any U-band IGrL to unprecedented U-band depths of 29.1-29.6 mag/arcsec2, which corresponds to an IGrL fraction of less than 1% of the total group light. This stringent upper limit suggests that IGrL does not contribute significantly to the Extragalactic Background Light at short wavelengths. Furthermore, the lack of UV IGrL observed in these stacks suggests that the atomic gas observed in the intragroup medium (IGrM) is likely not dense enough to trigger star formation on large scales. Future studies may detect IGrL by creating similar stacks at longer wavelengths or by pre-selecting groups which are older and/or more dynamically evolved similar to past IGrL observations of compact groups and loose groups with signs of gravitational interactions.

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T. McCabe, C. Redshaw, L. Otteson, et. al.
Fri, 19 May 23
21/46

Comments: Accepted to PASP

A Multi-Wavelength Investigation of Dust and Stellar Mass Distributions in Galaxies: Insights from High-Resolution JWST Imaging [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10944


We study the morphological properties of mid-infrared selected galaxies at $1.0<z<1.7$ in the SMACS J0723.3-7327 cluster field, to investigate the mechanisms of galaxy mass assembly and structural formation at cosmic noon. We develop a new algorithm to decompose the dust and stellar components of individual galaxies by utilizing high-resolution images in the MIRI F770W and NIRCam F200W bands. Our analyses reveal that most galaxies in the stellar mass range ${\rm 10^{9.5}<M_/M_\odot<10^{10.5}}$ have dust cores relatively compact compared to their stellar cores, whereas the most massive ($\rm{M_ \sim 10^{10.9}\,M_\odot}$) galaxy in our sample displays a comparably compact stellar core as to dust. The observed compactness of the dust component is potentially attributed to the presence of a (rapidly growing) massive bulge, in some cases associated with elevated star formation. Expanding the sample size through a joint analysis of multiple Cycle~1 deep-imaging programs can help to confirm the inferred picture. Our pilot study highlights that MIRI offers an efficient approach to studying the structural formation of galaxies from cosmic noon to the modern universe.

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Z. Liu, T. Morishita and T. Kodama
Fri, 19 May 23
28/46

Comments: 19 pages, 8 figures, submitted to ApJ

HI Self-absorption toward the Cygnus X North: From Atomic Filament to Molecular Filament [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10795


Using the HI self-absorption data from the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST), we perform a study of the cold atomic gas in the Cygnus-X North region. The most remarkable HI cloud is characterized by a filamentary structure, associated in space and in velocity with the principle molecular filament in the Cygnus-X North region. We investigate the transition from the atomic filament to the molecular filament. We find that the HII regions Cygnus OB2 and G081.920+00.138 play a critical role in compressing and shaping the atomic Cygnus-X North filament, where the molecular filament subsequently forms. The cold HI in the DR21 filament has a much larger column density (N(HI) $\sim$ 1 $\times$ 10$^{20}$ cm$^{-2}$) than the theoretical value of the residual atomic gas ($\sim$ 1 $\times$ 10$^{19}$ cm$^{-2}$), suggesting that the HI-to-H$_2$ transition is still in progress. The timescale of the HI-to-H$_2$ transition is estimated to be 3 $\times$ 10$^{5}$ yr, which approximates the ages of massive protostars in the Cygnus-X North region. This implies that the formation of molecular clouds and massive stars may occur almost simultaneously in the DR21 filament, in accord with a picture of rapid and dynamic cloud evolution.

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C. Li, K. Qiu, D. Li, et. al.
Fri, 19 May 23
40/46

Comments: 10 pages, 7 figures

Dissecting the RELICS cluster SPT-CLJ0615-5746 through the intracluster light: confirmation of the multiple merging state of the cluster formation [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10860


The intracluster light (ICL) fraction, measured at certain specific wavelengths, has been shown to provide a good marker for determining the dynamical stage of galaxy clusters, i.e., merging versus relaxed, for small to intermediate redshifts. Here, we apply it for the first time to a high-redshift system, SPT-CLJ0615-5746 at z=0.97, using its RELICS (Reionization Lensing Cluster Survey) observations in the optical and infrared. We find the ICL fraction signature of merging, with values ranging from 16 to 37%. A careful re-analysis of the X-ray data available for this cluster points to the presence of at least one current merger, and plausibly a second merger. These two results are in contradiction with previous works based on X-ray data, which claimed the relaxed state of SPT-CLJ0615-5746, and confirmed the evidences presented by kinematic analyses. We also found an abnormally high ICL fraction in the rest-frame near ultraviolet wavelengths, which may be attributed to the combination of several phenomena such as an ICL injection during recent mergers of stars with average early-type spectra, the reversed star formation-density relation found at this high redshift in comparison with lower-redshift clusters, and projection effects.

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Y. Jiménez-Teja, R. Dupke, P. Lopes, et. al.
Fri, 19 May 23
43/46

Comments: 15 pages, 12 figures, submitted to A&A

Equilibrium dynamical models for the Large Magellanic Cloud [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10980


The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) has a complex dynamics driven by both internal and external processes. The external forces are due to tidal interactions with the Small Magellanic Cloud and the Milky Way, while internally its dynamics mainly depends on the stellar, gas, and dark matter mass distributions. Despite the overall complexity of the system, very often simple physical models can give us important insights about the main driving factors. Here we focus on the internal forces and attempt to model the proper motions of $\sim10^6$ stars in the LMC as measured by Gaia Data Release 3 with an axisymmetric dynamical model, based on the Jeans equations. We test both cored and cusped spherical Navarro-Frenk-White dark matter halos to fit the LMC gravitational potential. We find that this simple model is very successful at selecting a clean sample of genuine LMC member stars and predicts the geometry and orientation of the LMC with respect to the observer within the constraint of axisymmetry. Our Jeans dynamical models describe well the rotation profile and the velocity dispersion of the LMC stellar disc, however they fail to describe the motions of the LMC bar, which is a non-axisymmetric feature dominating the central region. We plan a triaxial Schwarzschild approach as a next step for the dynamical modelling of the LMC.

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N. Kacharov and M. Cioni
Fri, 19 May 23
46/46

Comments: 6 pages, 4 figures, IAUS379: “Dynamical masses of Local group galaxies” proceeding

Simulating the diversity of shapes of the Lyman-$α$ line [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10047


The Ly$\alpha$ line is a powerful probe of distant galaxies, which contains information about inflowing/outflowing gas through which Ly$\alpha$ photons scatter. To develop our understanding of this probe, we post-process a zoom-in radiation-hydrodynamics simulation of a low-mass ($M_* \sim 10^9 M_\odot$) galaxy to construct 22500 mock spectra in 300 directions from $z = 3$ to 4. Remarkably, we show that one galaxy can reproduce the variety of a large sample of spectroscopically observed Ly$\alpha$ line profiles. While most mock spectra exhibit double-peak profiles with a dominant red peak, their shapes cover a large parameter space in terms of peak velocities, peak separation and flux ratio. This diversity originates from radiative transfer effects at ISM and CGM scales, and depends on galaxy inclination and evolutionary phase. Red-dominated lines preferentially arise in face-on directions during post-starburst outflows and are bright. Conversely, accretion phases usually yield symmetric double peaks in the edge-on direction and are fainter. While resonant scattering effects at $< 0.2\times R_{\rm vir}$ are responsible for the broadening and velocity shift of the red peak, the extended CGM acts as a screen and impacts the observed peak separation. The ability of simulations to reproduce observed Ly$\alpha$ profiles and link their properties with galaxy physical parameters offers new perspectives to use Ly$\alpha$ to constrain the mechanisms that regulate galaxy formation and evolution. Notably, our study implies that deeper Ly$\alpha$ surveys may unveil a new population of blue-dominated lines tracing inflowing gas.

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J. Blaizot, T. Garel, A. Verhamme, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
1/67

Comments: Accepted for publication in MNRAS

The Diffuse Ionized Gas of the Large Magellanic Cloud [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09829


The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) has an extensive H${\alpha}$ emission halo that traces an extended, warm ionized component of its interstellar medium. Using the Wisconsin H${\alpha}$ Mapper (WHAM) telescope, we present the first kinematic \ha\ survey of an extensive region around the LMC, from $l,b = (264\deg .5,\,-45\deg .5)$ to $(295\deg .5,\,-19\deg .5)$, covering $+150\leq v_{lsr} \leq +390~ km s^{-1}$. We find that ionized hydrogen exists throughout the galaxy and extends several degrees beyond detected neutral hydrogen emission $(\log{\left(N_{\rm H_{~I}/\rm cm^{-2}}\right)\approx18.3})$ as traced by 21-cm in current surveys. Using the column density structure of the neutral gas and stellar line-of-sight depths as a guide, we estimate the upper limit mass of the ionized component of the LMC to be roughly $M_\mathrm{ionized}\approx (0.6-1.8)\times 10^{9}\,\mathrm{M}{sun}$, which is comparable to the total neutral atomic gas mass in the same region ($M\mathrm{neutral}\approx0.75-0.85\times10^{9}\,\mathrm{M}{sun}$). Considering only the atomic phases, we find $M\mathrm{ionized}/M_\mathrm{ionized+neutral}$, to be 46\%–68\% throughout the LMC and its extended halo. Additionally, we find an ionized gas cloud that extends off of the LMC at $l,b \approx (285\deg, -28\deg)$ into a region previously identified as the Leading Arm complex. This gas is moving at a similar line-of-sight velocity as the LMC and has $M_\mathrm{ionized}/M_\mathrm{ionized+neutral} =$ 13\%–51\%. This study, combined with previous studies of the SMC and extended structures of the Magellanic Clouds, continues to suggest that warm, ionized gas is as massive and dynamically-important as the neutral gas in the Magellanic System.$

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B. Smart, L. Haffner, K. Barger, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
12/67

Comments: 20 pages, 12 figures, 4 tables

Panchromatic simulated galaxy observations from the NIHAO project [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10232


We present simulated galaxy spectral energy distributions (SEDs) from the far ultraviolet through the far infrared, created using hydrodynamic simulations and radiative transfer calculations, suitable for the validation of SED modeling techniques. SED modeling is an essential tool for inferring star formation histories from nearby galaxy observations, but is fraught with difficulty due to our incomplete understanding of stellar populations, chemical enrichment processes, and the non-linear, geometry dependent effects of dust on our observations. Our simulated SEDs will allow us to assess the accuracy of these inferences against galaxies with known ground truth. To create the SEDs, we use simulated galaxies from the NIHAO suite and the radiative transfer code SKIRT. We explore different sub-grid post-processing recipes, using color distributions and their dependence on axis ratio of galaxies in the nearby universe to tune and validate them. We find that sub-grid post-processing recipes that mitigate limitations in the temporal and spatial resolution of the simulations are required for producing FUV to FIR photometry that statistically reproduce the colors of galaxies in the nearby universe. With this paper we release resolved photometry and spatially integrated spectra for our sample galaxies, each from a range of different viewing angles. Our simulations predict that there is a large variation in attenuation laws among galaxies, and that from any particular viewing angle that energy balance between dust attenuation and reemission can be violated by up to a factor of 3. These features are likely to affect SED modeling accuracy.

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N. Faucher, M. Blanton and A. Macciò
Thu, 18 May 23
19/67

Comments: N/A

"Dust Giant": Extended and Clumpy Star-Formation in a Massive Dusty Galaxy at $z=1.38$ [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09709


We present NOEMA CO (2-1) line and ALMA 870 $\mu$m continuum observations of a main-sequence galaxy at $z=1.38$. The galaxy was initially selected as a “gas-giant”, based on the gas mass derived from sub-mm continuum (log$(M_{\rm gas}/M_{\odot})=11.20\pm0.20$), however the gas mass derived from CO (2-1) luminosity brings down the gas mass to a value consistent with typical star-forming galaxies at that redshift (log$(M_{\rm gas}/M_{\odot})=10.84\pm0.03$). Despite that the dust-to-stellar mass ratio remains elevated above the scaling relations by a factor of 5. We explore the potential physical picture and consider an underestimated stellar mass and optically thick dust as possible causes. Based on the updated gas-to-stellar mass ratio we rule out the former, and while the latter can contribute to the dust mass overestimate it is still not sufficient to explain the observed physical picture. Instead, possible explanations include enhanced HI reservoirs, CO-dark H$_2$ gas, an unusually high metallicity, or the presence of an optically dark, dusty contaminant. Using the ALMA data at 870 $\mu$m coupled with $HST$/ACS imaging, we find extended morphology in dust continuum and clumpy star-formation in rest-frame UV in this galaxy, and a tentative $\sim 10$ kpc dusty arm is found bridging the galaxy center and a clump in F814W image. The galaxy shows levels of dust obscuration similar to the so-called $HST$-dark galaxies at higher redshifts, and would fall into the optically faint/dark $JWST$ color-color selection at $z>2$. It is therefore possible that our object could serve as low-$z$ analog of the $HST$-dark populations. This galaxy serves as a caveat to the gas masses based on the continuum alone, with a larger sample required to unveil the full picture.

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V. Kokorev, S. Jin, C. Gómez-Guijarro, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
21/67

Comments: 9 pages, 5 figures, 1 table. Submitted to A&A Letters

The flattening of dark matter halo of Centaurus A galaxy (NGC 5128) out to 40 kpc [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09822


Cosmological simulations predict dark matter shapes that deviate from spherical symmetry. The exact shape depends on the prescription of the simulation and the interplay between dark matter and baryons. This signature is most pronounced in the diffuse galactic haloes that can be observationally probed with planetary nebulae and globular clusters (GCs). The kinematic observations of these halo tracers support intrinsic triaxial shape for the mass generating the gravitational potential. With discrete axisymmetric modelling of GCs as the halo tracers of NGC 5128 we investigate the overall mass distribution of this nearby giant elliptical galaxy. Our modelling approach constrains $c_{200}$, $(M/L){\star, B}$ and inclination. We derive a preliminary $M{200}\sim 1 \times 10^{12}$ M$\odot$ and flattening $q{\mathrm{DM}}\sim 1.3$ indicative of prolate/triaxial halo for NGC 5128.

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T. Veršič, M. Rejkuba, M. Arnaboldi, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
22/67

Comments: 6 pages, 2 figures, Accepted for publication in Proceedings of the IAUS 379: Dynamical Masses of Local Group Galaxies, Potsdam, March 20-24, 2023

An empirical study of dust properties at the earliest epochs [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09714


We present an empirical analysis of the properties of dust-continuum emission in a sample of 17 galaxies in the early Universe ($4 < z < 8$) with well-sampled far-infrared (FIR) spectral energy distributions (SEDs) compiled from the literature. We place our results into context by self-consistently comparing to samples of nearby star-forming galaxies, luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs), and quasars. With the exception of two sources, we find no significant evolution in the dust emissivity index across cosmic time, measuring a consistent value of $\beta_\text{IR} = 1.8 \pm 0.3$ at $z > 4$, suggesting the effective dust properties do not change dramatically for most galaxies. Despite having comparable stellar masses, we find the high-redshift galaxies to be similar to, or even more extreme than, LIRGs in the HERUS sample in terms of dust temperature ($T_\text{dust} > 40 \, \mathrm{K}$) and IR luminosity ($L_\text{IR} > 10^{11} \, \mathrm{L_\odot}$). We find the dust temperature evolves mildly towards high redshift, though the LIRGs and quasars exhibit elevated temperatures indicating a more efficient and/or additional heating mechanism. Where available, we compare stellar-mass estimates to our inferred dust masses, whose degeneracy with dust temperature can only be mitigated with a well-constrained SED. In merely half of the cases the dust yield may be explained by supernovae alone, with four sources ($44\%$) significantly exceeding a highly optimistic yield where $M_\text{dust} \approx 0.01 M_*$. We discuss possible explanations for this apparent inconsistency and potential observational biases in the measurements of the dust properties of high-redshift galaxies, including in the current IR-bright sample.

Read this paper on arXiv…

J. Witstok, G. Jones, R. Maiolino, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
23/67

Comments: 14 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

Investigating kinematics and dynamics of three open clusters towards Galactic anti-center [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10001


We present the intra-cluster kinematics and dynamics of three open clusters: NGC 1193, NGC 2355, and King 12 by incorporating kinematical and photometric data from Gaia DR3, as well as a ground-based telescope. After selecting cluster members based on proper motion data, clusters’ fundamental and structural parameters are investigated. We found the clusters at distances of 4.45, 1.97, and 3.34 kpc from the Sun in the direction of the Galactic anticenter. The luminosity function of the cluster NGC 1193 is flat, whereas it advances towards the fainter ends of the other two clusters. We observed a dip in the luminosity function of King 12. The mass function slopes for all three clusters differ from the solar neighbourhood reported by Salpeter, with NGC 1193 and NGC 2355 being flatter and King 12 having a higher value than the Salpeter value. The intra-cluster kinematics depict that stars in King 12 are moving outwards due to tidal forces from the Galactic disc, which we confirmed by plotting the cluster’s orbit in the Galaxy. Stars in NGC 2355 are moving with smaller relative velocities and have zero mean relative motion, which signifies that the cluster is neither contracting nor evaporating. The Galactic orbits of NGC 1193 suggest that it is orbiting farther from the Galactic disc, and so is less impacted by the Galactic tidal forces.

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G. Rangwal, R. Yadav, D. Bisht, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
26/67

Comments: This article has been accepted for the publication in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society and contains total 19 pages, 22 figures and 11 tables

Mass and Color Dependence of the Hubble Spiral Sequence [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09667


In the classic Hubble spiral sequence, arm windiness correlates with bulge size; Sa type spiral galaxies with larger bulges also have the most tightly wound spirals. Exceptions to this have long been known, and in recent work using Galaxy Zoo morphologies no strong correlation was seen in a volume limited sample. In this Research Note, we explore the impact of galaxy mass and integrated color upon this correlation in the Galaxy Zoo sample, finding that bluer and lower mass spirals show the “expected” correlation; however, it becomes slightly negative for redder and/or more massive spiral galaxies.

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P. Mengistu and K. Masters
Thu, 18 May 23
33/67

Comments: 3 pages, 1 figure. Featured in AAS Journal Author Youtube Series: this https URL

Warm Molecular Gas in the Central Parsecs of the Buried Nucleus of NGC 4418 Traced with the Fundamental CO Ro-vibrational Absorptions [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09959


We investigated the inner buried nucleus of a nearby luminous infrared galaxy NGC 4418 using high-resolution spectroscopy of fundamental carbon monoxide (CO) ro-vibrational absorptions around $4.67 \mu$m for the first time. This method allowed us to examine the physical and kinematical properties in the hot inner region of this nucleus. We detected a series of both very deep (partly saturated) $^{12}$CO and moderately deep (optically thin) $^{13}$CO absorption lines and inferred a large column density ($N_\mathrm{H2}=(5\pm3)\times10^{23}$ cm$^{-2}$ in front of the $5 \mu$m photosphere) of warm ($T_\mathrm{ex}\simeq170$ K) molecular gas by assuming an isothermal plane-parallel slab illuminated by a compact background MIR-emitting source. We modeled that the warm CO absorber almost covers the central heating source and that it is an inner layer around the $5 \mu$m photosphere (at $r=$several pc) of a compact shroud of gas and dust ($d\sim100$ pc). The width of the absorption lines ($110$ km s$^{-1}$) and their small deviation from the systemic velocity ($<10$ km s$^{-1}$) are consistent with a warm and turbulent layer with little bulk motion in the radial direction.

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Y. Ohyama, S. Onishi, T. Nakagawa, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
37/67

Comments: 18 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in ApJ

Survey for Distant Stellar Aggregates in Galactic Disk: Detecting Two Thousand Star Clusters and Candidates, along with the Dwarf Galaxy IC10 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10269


Despite having data for over 10^9 stars from Gaia, only less than 10^4 star clusters and candidates have been discovered. Particularly, distant star clusters are rarely identified, due to the challenges posed by heavy extinction and great distance. However, Gaia data has continued to improve, enabling even fainter cluster members to be distinguished from field stars. In this work, we will introduce a star cluster search method based on the DBSCAN algorithm; we have made improvements to make it better suited for identifying clusters on dimmer and more distant stars. After removing member stars of known Gaia-based clusters, we have identified 2086 objects with |b|<10 deg, of which 1488 are highly reliable open star clusters, along with 569 candidates, 28 globular cluster candidates and 1 irregular galaxy IC 10 at low Galactic latitudes. We found that the proper motion of IC10 is similar yet slightly different from the water maser observations, which is an important result for the comparison with Gaia and VLBA. Besides, when compared with the star clusters appearing in Gaia DR2/EDR3, we have found nearly three times as many new objects above a distance of 5 kpc, including hundreds of them above Av > 5 mag. And it has enabled us to detect a higher number of old clusters, over a billion years old, that are difficult to detect due to observational limitations. Our findings significantly expand the remote cluster sample and enhance our understanding of the limits of Gaia DR3 data in stellar aggregates research. The full figure set for 2085 clusters can be seen in \url{https://nadc.china-vo.org/res/r101258/}

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Z. He, Y. Luo, K. Wang, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
43/67

Comments: 18 pages, a url link with a full figure set (.pdf file with 88 pages) for 2085 distant clusters in abstract, accepted by ApJS

Spectral Stacking of Radio-Interferometric Data [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10240


Mapping molecular line emission beyond the bright low-J CO transitions is still challenging in extragalactic studies, even with the latest generation of (sub-)mm interferometers, such as ALMA and NOEMA. We summarise and test a spectral stacking method that has been used in the literature to recover low-intensity molecular line emission, such as HCN(1-0), HCO+(1-0), and even fainter lines in external galaxies. The goal is to study the capabilities and limitations of the stacking technique when applied to imaged interferometric observations. The core idea of spectral stacking is to align spectra of the low S/N spectral lines to a known velocity field calculated from a higher S/N line expected to share the kinematics of the fainter line, e.g., CO(1-0) or 21-cm emission. Then these aligned spectra can be coherently averaged to produce potentially high S/N spectral stacks. Here, we use imaged simulated interferometric and total power observations at different signal-to-noise levels, based on real CO observations. For the combined interferometric and total power data, we find that the spectral stacking technique is capable of recovering the integrated intensities even at low S/N levels across most of the region where the high S/N prior is detected. However, when stacking interferometer-only data for low S/N emission, the stacks can miss up to 50% of the emission from the fainter line. A key result of this analysis is that the spectral stacking method is able to recover the true mean line intensities in low S/N cubes and to accurately measure the statistical significance of the recovered lines. To facilitate the application of this technique we provide a public Python package, called PyStacker.

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L. Neumann, J. Brok, F. Bigiel, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
45/67

Comments: 10 pages, 10 figures, accepted for pub in A&A, Apr 28, 2023

Role of magnetic pressure forces in Fluctuation dynamo saturation [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09969


Using magnetohydrodynamic simulations of Fluctuation dynamos in turbulent flows with rms Mach numbers $\mathcal{M} \approx 0.2, 1.1$ and $3$, we show that magnetic pressure forces play a crucial role in dynamo saturation in supersonic flows. Firstly, as expected when pressure forces oppose compression, an increase in anti-correlation between density and magnetic field strengths obtains even in subsonic flows with the anti-correlation arising from the intense but rarer magnetic structures. In supersonic flows, due to stronger compressive motions density and magnetic field strength continue to maintain a positive correlation. However, the degree of positive correlation decreases as the dynamo saturates. Secondly, we find that the unit vectors of $\nabla\rho$ and $\nabla B^{2}$ are preferentially anti-parallel to each other in subsonic flows. This is indicative of magnetic pressure opposing compression. This anti-parallel alignment persists in transonic and supersonic flows at dynamo saturation. However, compressive motions also lead to the emergence of a parallel alignment in these flows. Finally, we consider the work done against the components of the Lorentz force and the different sources of magnetic energy growth and dissipation. We show that while in subsonic flows, suppression of field line stretching is dominant in saturating the dynamo, the picture is different in supersonic flows. Both field line stretching and compression amplifies the field initially. But the growing magnetic pressure opposes further compression of magnetic flux which then dominates the saturation of the dynamo.

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S. Sur and K. Subramanian
Thu, 18 May 23
46/67

Comments: Submitted to MNRAS

The signature of galaxy formation models in the power spectrum of the hydrogen 21cm line during reionization [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09721


Observations of the 21cm line of neutral hydrogen are poised to revolutionize our knowledge of cosmic reionization and the high-redshift population of galaxies. However, harnessing such information requires robust and comprehensive theoretical modeling. We study the non-linear effects of hydrodynamics and astrophysical feedback processes, including stellar and AGN feedback, on the 21cm signal by post-processing three existing cosmological hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy formation: Illustris, IllustrisTNG, and Eagle. Overall and despite their different underlying galaxy-formation models, the three simulations return similar predictions for the global 21cm rightness temperature and its power spectrum. At fixed redshift, most differences are attributable to differences in the history of reionization, in turn driven by differences in the build-up of stellar sources of radiation. However, the impact of astrophysics is imprinted in the 21cm power spectrum through several unique signatures. First, we find significant small scale ($k \geq 10\, \rm {Mpc}^{-1}$) differences between Illustris and IllustrisTNG, where higher velocity winds generated by supernova feedback soften density peaks and lead to lower 21cm power in TNG. Second, we find more 21cm power at intermediate scales ($k \approx 0.8\, \rm {Mpc}^{-1}$) in Eagle, due to differences in ionization driven by highly effective stellar feedback, leading to lower star formation, older and redder stellar populations, and thus lower ionizing luminosities. Though subtle, these features could allow future observations of the 21cm signal, in conjunction with other reionization observables, to constrain theoretical models for galactic feedback at high redshift.

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J. Lewis, A. Pillepich, D. Nelson, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
47/67

Comments: submitted to MNRAS (12/05/23)

Magnetic Fields and Fragmentation of Filaments in the Hub of California-X [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09949


We present 850 $\mu$m polarization and $\rm C^{18}O (3-2)$ molecular line observations toward the X-shaped nebula in the California molecular cloud using the JCMT SCUBA-2/POL-2 and HARP instruments. The 850 $\mu$m emission shows that the observed region includes two elongated filamentary structures (Fil1 and Fil2) having chains of regularly spaced cores. We measured the mass per unit length of the filament and found that Fil1 and Fil2 are thermally super- and subcritical, respectively, but both are subcritical if nonthermal turbulence is considered. The mean projected spacings ($\Delta\bar S$) of cores in Fil1 and Fil2 are 0.13 and 0.16 pc, respectively. $\Delta\bar S$ are smaller than $4\times$filament width expected in the classical cylinder fragmentation model. The large-scale magnetic field orientations shown by Planck are perpendicular to the long axes of Fil1 and Fil2, while those in the filaments obtained from the high-resolution polarization data of JCMT are disturbed, but those in Fil1 tend to have longitudinal orientations. Using the modified Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi (DCF) method, we estimated the magnetic field strengths ($B_{\rm pos}$) of filaments which are 110$\pm$80 and 90$\pm$60 $\mu$G. We calculated the gravitational, kinematic, and magnetic energies of the filaments, and found that the fraction of magnetic energy is larger than 60 % in both filaments. We propose that a dominant magnetic energy may lead the filament to be fragmented into aligned cores as suggested by Tang et al., and a shorter core spacing can be due to a projection effect via the inclined geometry of filaments or due to a non-negligible, longitudinal magnetic fields in case of Fil1.

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E. Chung, C. Lee, W. Kwon, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
51/67

Comments: Accepted for publication in the ApJ. 18 pages, 11 figures, 2 tables

The Tiered Radio Extragalactic Continuum (T-RECS) simulation II: HI emission and continuum-HI cross-correlation [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10175


In this paper we extend the Tiered Radio Extragalactic Continuum Simulation (T-RECS) to include HI emission. The HI T-RECS model is based on the most recent HI mass function estimates, combined with prescriptions to convert HI mass to total integrated HI flux. It further models source size, morphology and kinematics, including rotational velocity and HI line width. The continuum T-RECS model is updated to improve the agreement with deeper number counts available at 150\,MHz. The model for star-forming galaxies (SFGs) is also modified according to the most recent indications of a star formation rate (SFR)–radio luminosity relation, which depends primarily on stellar mass rather than redshift. We further introduce prescriptions to associate an HI mass to the T-RECS radio continuum SFG and Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) populations. This gives us a way to meaningfully associate counterparts between HI and continuum catalogues, thus building HI $\times$ continuum simulated observations. Clustering properties of the sources in both HI and continuum are reproduced by associating the galaxies to dark matter haloes of a cosmological simulation. We deliver a set of mock catalogues, as well as the code to produce them, which can be used for simulating observations and predicting results from radio surveys with existing and forthcoming radio facilities, such as the Square Kilometre Array (SKA)

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A. Bonaldi, P. Hartley, T. Ronconi, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
57/67

Comments: 18 pages, 10 figures

A deep study of open cluster NGC 5288 using photometric and astrometric data from Gaia DR3 and 2MASS [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.10099


This paper investigates a poorly studied open cluster, NGC 5288, using 2MASS JHKS and the recently released Gaia DR3 astrometric and photometric data. The mean proper motions in Right Ascension and Declination are estimated as (-3.840 +/- 0.230) and (-1.934 +/- 0.162) mas/yr, respectively. We also derive the age and distance of the cluster as 510 +/- 190 Myr and 2.64 +/- 0.11 kpc, using colour-magnitude diagrams (CMDs). We have also obtained distance as 2.77 +/- 0.42 kpc using the parallax method. Interstellar reddening E(B-V) in the direction of the cluster is determined as 0.45 mag using the ((J – H), (J – K)) colour-colour diagram. We have found the mass function slope for main-sequence stars as 1.39 +/- 0.29 within the mass range 1.0 – 2.7 solar mass, which agrees with Salpeter’s value within uncertainty. Galactic orbits are derived using the Galactic potential model, indicating that NGC 5288 follows a circular path around the Galactic center.

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R. Sethi, D. Bisht, G. Rangwal, et. al.
Thu, 18 May 23
60/67

Comments: This article has been accepted for the publication in Revista Mexicana de Astronom\’ia y Astrof\’isica and contain total 23 pages, 14 figures and 4 tables

Dynamical modelling of ATLAS$^{\rm 3D}$ galaxies [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09344


Triaxial dynamical models of massive galaxies observed in the ATLAS3D project can provide new insights into the complex evolutionary processes that shape galaxies. The ATLAS3D survey is ideal as the sample comprises a good mix of fast and slow rotators with vastly different mass assembly histories. We present a detailed dynamical study with our triaxial modelling code DYNAMITE, which models galaxies as a superposition of their stellar orbits. The models allow us to constrain the intrinsic shape of the stellar component, the distributions of the visible and invisible matter and the orbit distribution in these nearby early-type galaxies and to relate it with different evolutionary scenarios. Triaxial modelling is essential for these galaxies to understand their complex kinematical features.

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S. Thater, P. Jethwa, E. Lilley, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
12/67

Comments: 4 pages, 3 figures, Proceeding of IAU Symposium 379: Dynamical Masses of Local Group galaxies, ed. P. Bonifacio, M.-R. Cioni, F. Hammer, M. Pawlowski, and S. Taibi

The Three Hundred Project: the evolution of physical baryon profiles [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09629


The distribution of baryons provides a significant way to understand the formation of galaxy clusters by revealing the details of its internal structure and changes over time. In this paper, we present theoretical studies on the scaled profiles of physical properties associated with the baryonic components, including gas density, temperature, metallicity, pressure and entropy as well as stellar mass, metallicity and satellite galaxy number density in galaxy clusters from $z=4$ to $z=0$ by tracking their progenitors. These mass-complete simulated galaxy clusters are coming from THE THREE HUNDRED with two runs: GIZMO-SIMBA and Gadget-X. Through comparisons between the two simulations, and with observed profiles which are generally available at low redshift, we find that (1) the agreements between the two runs and observations are mostly at outer radii $r \gtrsim 0.3r_{500}$, in line with the self-similarity assumption. While Gadget-X shows better agreements with the observed gas profiles in the central regions compared to GIZMO-SIMBA; (2) the evolution trends are generally consistent between the two simulations with slightly better consistency at outer radii. In detail, the gas density profile shows less discrepancy than the temperature and entropy profiles at high redshift. The differences in the cluster centre and gas properties imply different behaviours of the AGN models between Gadget-X and GIZMO-SIMBA, with the latter, maybe too strong for this cluster simulation. The high-redshift difference may be caused by the star formation and feedback models or hydrodynamics treatment, which requires observation constraints and understanding.

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Q. Li, W. Cui, X. Yang, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
19/67

Comments: 20 pages, 20 figures, accepted in MNRAS

A Geometric Calibration of the Tip of the Red Giant Branch in the Milky Way using Gaia DR3 [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09215


We use the latest parallaxes measurements from Gaia DR3 to obtain a geometric calibration of the tip of the red giant branch (TRGB) in Cousins $I$ magnitudes as a standard candle for cosmology. We utilise the following surveys: SkyMapper DR3, APASS DR9, ATLAS Refcat2, and Gaia DR3 synthetic photometry to obtain multiple zero-point calibrations of the TRGB magnitude, $M_{I}^{TRGB}$. Our sample contains Milky Way halo stars at high galactic latitudes ($|b| > 36$) where the impact of metallicity, dust, and crowding are minimised. The magnitude of the TRGB is identified using Sobel edge detection, but this approach introduced a systematic offset. To address this issue, we utilised simulations with PARSEC isochrones and showed how to calibrate and remove this bias. Applying our method within the colour range where the slope of the TRGB is relatively flat for metal-poor halo stars (1.55 $<$ $(BP-RP)$ $<$ 2.25), we find a weighted average $M_{I}^{TRGB} = -4.042 \pm 0.041$ (stat) $\pm0.031$ (sys) mag. A geometric calibration of the Milky Way TRGB has the benefit of being independent of other distance indicators and will help probe systematics in the local distance ladder, leading to improved measurements of the Hubble constant.

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M. Dixon, J. Mould, C. Flynn, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
33/67

Comments: 14 pages, 13 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRAS

Strömgren photometric metallicity of the Small Magellanic Cloud stars using Gaia DR3-XP spectra [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09392


Observational studies have identified several sub-structures in different regions of the Magellanic Clouds, the nearest pair of interacting dwarf satellites of the Milky Way. By studying the metallicity of the sources in these sub-structures, we aim to shed light on the possible origin of these sub-structures. Spectroscopic metallicities exist only for a few thousand sources, mostly giant stars located in specific regions of the galaxies. These metallicities come from different instruments at various spectral resolutions, and systematic uncertainties hamper comparisons and draw firm conclusions about their origin. The third data release of \textit{Gaia} has provided us with $\sim$ 0.17 million XP spectra of the different stellar populations in the SMC alone as faint as $\sim$ 18 mags in the G band, which are spread across $\sim$ 10$^\circ$ from the SMC centre. We aim to determine the metallicities of these sources based on synthetic Str\”{o}mgren photometry derived from XP spectra and produce a high-resolution metallicity map of the SMC. Our metallicity gradient estimate of the SMC turns out to be –0.062 $\pm$ 0.009 dex/deg. This is comparable with the previous estimates, which also validate our method of metallicity estimation. We aim to apply this method to other stellar populations and to the LMC to create a high-resolution metallicity map of the Magellanic Clouds.

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A. Omkumar, S. Subramanian, M. Cioni, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
35/67

Comments: 4 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in proceedings of IAU Symposium 379: Dynamical Masses of Local Group Galaxies

Fraction of Clumpy Star-Forming Galaxies at $0.5\leq z\leq 3$ in UVCANDELS: Dependence on Stellar Mass and Environment [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09021


High-resolution imaging of galaxies in rest-frame UV has revealed the existence of giant star-forming clumps prevalent in high redshift galaxies. Studying these sub-structures provides important information about their formation and evolution and informs theoretical galaxy evolution models. We present a new method to identify clumps in galaxies’ high-resolution rest-frame UV images. Using imaging data from CANDELS and UVCANDELS, we identify star-forming clumps in an HST/F160W$\leq 25$ AB mag sample of 6767 galaxies at $0.5\leq z\leq 3$ in four fields, GOODS-N, GOODS-S, EGS, and COSMOS. We use a low-pass band filter in Fourier space to reconstruct the background image of a galaxy and detect small-scale features (clumps) on the background-subtracted image. Clumpy galaxies are defined as those having at least one off-center clump that contributes a minimum of 10$\%$ of the galaxy’s total rest-frame UV flux. We measure the fraction of clumpy galaxies ($\rm f_{clumpy}$) as a function of stellar mass, redshift, and galaxy environment. Our results indicate that $\rm f_{clumpy}$ increases with redshift, reaching $\sim 65\%$ at $z\sim 1.5$. We also find that $\rm f_{clumpy}$ in low-mass galaxies ($\rm 9.5\leq log(M_/M_\odot)\leq 10$) is 10$\%$ higher compared to that of their high-mass counterparts ($\rm log(M_/M_\odot)>10.5$). Moreover, we find no evidence of significant environmental dependence of $\rm f_{clumpy}$ for galaxies at the redshift range of this study. Our results suggest that the fragmentation of gas clouds under violent disk instability remains the primary driving mechanism for clump formation, and incidents common in dense environments, such as mergers, are not the dominant processes.

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Z. Sattari, B. Mobasher, N. Chartab, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
40/67

Comments: 16 pages, 11 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in ApJ

SILVERRUSH. XIII. A Catalog of 20,567 Ly$α$ Emitters at $z=2-7$ Identified in the Full-Depth Data of the Subaru/HSC-SSP and CHORUS Surveys [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.08921


We present 20,567 Ly$\alpha$ emitters (LAEs) at $z=2.2-7.3$ that are photometrically identified by the SILVERRUSH program in a large survey area up to 25 deg$^2$ with deep images of five broadband filters (grizy) and seven narrowband filters targeting Ly$\alpha$ lines at $z=2.2$, $3.3$, $4.9$, $5.7$, $6.6$, $7.0$, and $7.3$ taken by the Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Program (HSC-SSP) and the Cosmic HydrOgen Reionization Unveiled with Subaru (CHORUS) survey. We select secure $>5\sigma$ sources showing narrowband color excesses via Ly$\alpha$ break screening, taking into account the spatial inhomogeneity of limiting magnitudes. After removing spurious sources by careful masking and visual inspection of coadded and multi-epoch images obtained over the seven years of the surveys, we construct LAE samples consisting of 6,995, 4,642, 726, 6,124, 2,058, 18, and 5 LAEs at $z=2.2$, 3.3, 4.9, 5.7, 6.6, 7.0, and 7.3, respectively, although the $z=7.3$ candidates are tentative. Our LAE catalogs contain 241 spectroscopically confirmed LAEs at the expected redshifts from previous work. We demonstrate that the number counts of our LAEs are consistent with previous studies with similar LAE selection criteria. The LAE catalogs will be made public on our project webpage with detailed descriptions of the content and ancillary information about the masks and limiting magnitudes.

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S. Kikuta, M. Ouchi, T. Shibuya, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
53/67

Comments: 37 pages, 19 Figures, 5 Tables. Submitted to AAS Journals

Probing $z \gtrsim 6$ massive black holes with gravitational waves [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09362


We investigate the coalescence of massive black hole ($M_{\rm BH}\gtrsim 10^{6}~\rm M_{\odot}$) binaries (MBHBs) at $6<z<10$ by adopting a suite of cosmological hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy formation, zoomed-in on biased ($ >3 \sigma$) overdense regions ($M_h\sim 10^{12}~\rm M_{\odot}$ dark matter halos at $z = 6$) of the Universe. We first analyse the impact of different resolutions and AGN feedback prescriptions on the merger rate, assuming instantaneous mergers. Then, we compute the halo bias correction factor due to the overdense simulated region. Our simulations predict merger rates that range between 3 – 15 $\rm yr^{-1}$ at $z\sim 6$, depending on the run considered, and after correcting for a bias factor of $\sim 20-30$.
For our fiducial model, we further consider the effect of delay in the MBHB coalescence due to dynamical friction. We find that 83 per cent of MBHBs will merge within the Hubble time, and 21 per cent within 1 Gyr, namely the age of the Universe at $z > 6$. We finally compute the expected properties of the gravitational wave (GW) signals and find the fraction of LISA detectable events with high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR $>$ 5) to range between 66-69 per cent. However, identifying the electro-magnetic counterpart of these events remains challenging due to the poor LISA sky localization that, for the loudest signals ($\mathcal M_c\sim 10^6~\rm M_{\odot}$ at $z=6$), is around 10 $\rm deg^2$.

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S. Chakraborty, S. Gallerani, T. Zana, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
56/67

Comments: 17 pages, 11 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRAS

Ionized gas metallicity of the strong [OIII]λ emission-line compact galaxies in the LAMOST survey [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09191


This article reports a sample of 1830 strong [O III] {\lambda}5007 emission-line compact galaxies discovered with the LAMOST spectroscopic survey and the photometric catalog of SDSS. We newly identify 402 spectra of 346 strong [O III]{\lambda}5007 emission-line compact galaxies by finding compact isolated point sources. Combined with the samples in our previous work (Liu et al. 2022), this returns a sample of 1830 unique strong [O III]{\lambda}5007 emission-line compact galaxies with 2033 spectra of z <= 0.53. For the sources with 2{\sigma} [OIII]{\lambda}4363 detections, we calculate the gas-phase metallicity with the direct-Te method, and verify that the strong-line metallicity diagnostics calibrated with the direct-Te method also applies to this sample. The strong [O III]{\lambda}5007 emission-line compact galaxies fall below several Te-calibrated mass-metallicity relations. The N/O measurements of the strong [O iii]{\lambda}5007 emission-line compact galaxies mainly locate at a plateau at low metallicity, indicating the product of primary nucleosynthesis. The Ne3O2 and O32 relation follows a tight linear relation with no redshift evolution. The Ne3O2 anti-correlates with the stellar mass, and at fixed stellar mass the Ne3O2 increase with the redshift. Eight sources with asymmetric [O III]{\lambda}5007 emission-line profiles have been identified, however with no [O III]{\lambda}4363 detection, which proves the rich metal content and complex ionized gas kinematics within the galaxies. Higher-resolution spectroscopy will be necessary to identify the ionized gas components in detail.

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S. Liu, A. Luo, W. Zhang, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
59/67

Comments: 20 pages, 13 pictures, accepted by ApJS

A twisted and precessing Cepheid warp in the outer Milky Way disc [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09343


We examine the Galactic warp in a sample of all classical Cepheids with Gaia DR3 radial velocity. In each radial bin, we determine (1) the inclined plane normal to the mean orbital angular momentum of the stars and (2) that best fitting their positions. We find no warping inside $R\approx 11$ kpc; for larger $R$ the disc is increasingly inclined, reaching $i\sim 3^{\circ}$ at $R \ge 14$ kpc. With larger $R$ the azimuth of the warp’s ascending node shifts from $\varphi_{\mathrm{lon}}\approx-15^\circ$ at 11 kpc by about $14^{\circ}$/kpc in the direction of Galactic rotation, implying a leading spiral of nodes, the general behaviour of warped galaxies. From the method of fitting planes to the positions we also obtain $\dot{\varphi}{\mathrm{lon}}$ and find prograde precession of $\dot{\varphi}{\mathrm{lon}} \sim 12$ km/s/kpc at 12 kpc decreasing to $\sim 6$ km/s/kpc at 14 kpc and beyond. This would unwind the leading spiral of nodes in $\sim 100$ Myr, suggesting that our instantaneous measurements of $\dot{\varphi}{\mathrm{lon}}$ reflect transient behaviour. This is consistent with existing simulations, which show oscillations in $\dot{\varphi}{\mathrm{lon}}$ overlaying a long-term retrograde differential precession which generates the leading spiral of nodes.

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W. Dehnen, M. Semczuk and R. Schönrich
Wed, 17 May 23
60/67

Comments: 9 pages, accepted for publication in MNRAS

Characterising abundance-age relations of GALAH stars using oxygen-enhanced stellar models [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.09138


Main Sequence Turn-off stars (MSTO) and subgiant stars are good tracers of galactic populations. We present a study of 41,034 MSTO and subgiant stars from the GALAH survey. Using a grid of stellar models that accounts for the variation of O abundances, we determine their ages with a median age uncertainty of $\sim$9.4 per cent. Our analysis reveals that the ages of high-O stars based on O-enhanced models (OEM models) are smaller than those determined with $\alpha$-enhanced models, resulting in a mean fractional age difference of -5.3 per cent at [O/$\alpha$] = 0.2 and -11.0 per cent at [O/$\alpha$] = 0.4. This age difference significantly impacts the age distribution of thick disc and halo stars, leading to a steeper downward trend in the [Fe/H]-age plane from 8 Gyr to 14 Gyr, indicating a shorter formation time-scale and a faster chemical-enhanced history for these populations. We confirm the V-shape of the normalized age-metallicity distribution $p$($\tau$$\mid$[Fe/H]) of thin disc stars, which is presumably a consequence of the second gas infall. Additionally, we find that the halo stars in our sample can be divided into two sequences, a metal-rich sequence (Splash stars) and a metal-poor sequence (accreted stars), with the Splash stars predominantly older than 9 Gyr and the accreted halo stars older than 10 Gyr. Finally, we observe two distinct sequences in the relations between various chemical abundances and age for disc stars, namely a young sequence with ages $<$ $\sim$8 Gyr and an old sequence with ages $>$ $\sim$8 Gyr.

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T. Sun, X. Chen, S. Bi, et. al.
Wed, 17 May 23
62/67

Comments: 11 pages, 12 figures

Environmental dependence of the mass-metallicity relation in cosmological hydrodynamical simulations [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.08161


We investigate the environmental dependence of the gas-phase metallicity for galaxies at $z=0$ to $z\gtrsim 2$ and the underlying physical mechanisms driving this dependence using state-of-the-art cosmological hydrodynamical simulations. We find that, at fixed stellar mass, central galaxies in massive halos have lower gas-phase metallicity than those in low-mass halos. On the contrary, satellite galaxies residing in more massive halos are more metal-rich. The combined effect is that massive galaxies are more metal-poor in massive halos, and low-mass galaxies are more metal-rich in massive halos. By inspecting the environmental dependence of other galaxy properties, we identify that the accretion of low-metallicity gas is responsible for the environmental dependence of central galaxies at high $z$, whereas the AGN feedback processes play a crucial role at low $z$. For satellite galaxies, we find that both the suppression of gas accretion and the stripping of existing gas are responsible for their environmental dependence, with negligible effect from the AGN feedback. Finally, we show that the difference of gas-phase metallicity as a function of stellar mass between protocluster and field galaxies agrees with recent observational results, for example from the MAMMOTH-Grism survey.

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K. Wang, X. Wang and Y. Chen
Tue, 16 May 23
4/83

Comments: 17 pages, 11 figures, 1 table, ApJ accepted

Unveiling the formation of the massive DR21 ridge [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07785


We present new $^{13}$CO(1-0), C$^{18}$O(1-0), HCO$^{+}$(1-0) and H$^{13}$CO$^{+}$(1-0) maps from the IRAM 30m telescope, and a spectrally-resolved [CII] 158 $\mu$m map observed with the SOFIA telescope towards the massive DR21 cloud. This traces the kinematics from low- to high-density gas in the cloud which allows to constrain the formation scenario of the high-mass star forming DR21 ridge. The molecular line data reveals that the sub-filaments are systematically redshifted relative to the dense ridge. We demonstrate that [CII] unveils the surrounding CO-poor gas of the dense filaments in the DR21 cloud. We also show that this surrounding gas is organized in a flattened cloud with curved redshifted dynamics perpendicular to the ridge. The sub-filaments thus form in this curved and flattened mass reservoir. A virial analysis of the different lines indicates that self-gravity should drive the evolution of the ridge and surrounding cloud. Combining all results we propose that bending of the magnetic field, due to the interaction with a mostly atomic colliding cloud, explains the velocity field and resulting mass accretion on the ridge. This is remarkably similar to what was found for at least two nearby low-mass filaments. We tentatively propose that this scenario might be a widespread mechanism to initiate star formation in the Milky Way. However, in contrast to low-mass clouds, gravitational collapse plays a role on the pc scale of the DR21 ridge because of the higher density. This allows more effective mass collection at the centers of collapse and should facilitate massive cluster formation.

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L. Bonne, S. Bontemps, N. Schneider, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
5/83

Comments: 32 pages, 28 figures, accepted in ApJ

Ultra-deep Keck/MOSFIRE spectroscopic observations of $z\sim 2$ galaxies: direct oxygen abundances and nebular excitation properties [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07781


Using deep near-infrared Keck/MOSFIRE observations, we analyze the rest-optical spectra of eight star-forming galaxies in the COSMOS and GOODS-N fields. We reach integration times of $\sim$10 hours in the deepest bands, pushing the limits on current ground-based observational capabilities. The targets fall into two redshift bins — 5 galaxies at $z \sim 1.7$ and 3 at $z \sim 2.5$ — and were selected as likely to yield significant auroral-line detections. Even with long integration times, detection of the auroral lines remains challenging. We stack the spectra together into subsets based on redshift, improving the signal-to-noise ratio on the [O III] $\lambda 4364$ auroral emission line and, in turn, enabling a direct measurement of the oxygen abundance for each stack. We compare these measurements to commonly-employed strong-line ratios alongside measurements from the literature. We find that the stacks fall within the distribution of $z>1$ literature measurements, but a larger sample size is needed to robustly constrain the relationships between strong-line ratios and oxygen abundance at high redshift. We additionally report detections of [O I] $\lambda6302$ for eight individual galaxies and composite spectra of 21 targets in the MOSFIRE pointings. We plot their line ratios on the [O III] $\lambda 5008$/H$\beta$ vs. [O I] $\lambda 6302$/H$\alpha$ diagnostic BPT diagram, comparing our targets to local galaxies and H II regions. We find that the [O I]/H$\alpha$ ratios in our sample of galaxies are consistent with being produced in gas ionized by $\alpha$-enhanced massive stars, as has been previously inferred for rapidly-forming galaxies at early cosmic times.

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L. Clarke, A. Shapley, R. Sanders, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
10/83

Comments: 17 pages, 5 figures, submitted to ApJ

Unraveling Joint Evolution of Bars, Star Formation, and Active Galactic Nuclei of Disk Galaxies [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07906


We aim to unravel the interplay between bars, star formation (SF), and active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in barred galaxies. To this end, we utilize the SDSS DR12 to select a sample of nearby (0.02 < z < 0.06) disk galaxies that are suitable for bar examination ($M_r < -20.12$ and inclination $\lesssim$ 53$^{\circ}$). We identify 3662 barred galaxies and measure the length and axis ratio of each bar. We invent new bar parameters that mitigate the stellar and bulge mass biases and show, for the first time, that the evolution of non-AGN and AGN-hosting barred galaxies should be tracked using different bar parameters; the bar length for non-AGN galaxies and the bar axis ratio for AGN-hosting galaxies. Our analysis confirms that barred galaxies have a higher specific SF rate than unbarred control galaxies. Moreover, we find a positive correlation of bar length with both the SF enhancement and the centrally star-forming galaxy fraction, indicating the interconnectivity of bars and SF through the bar-driven gas inflow. We also find that while the AGN fraction of barred galaxies is the same as that of the unbarred control sample, galaxies hosting more massive black holes (BHs) have rounder (i.e., higher axis ratio) bars, implying that the bar is not a cause of AGN activity; rather, AGNs appear to regulate bars. Our findings corroborate theoretical predictions that bars in non-AGN galaxies grow in length, and bars in AGN-hosting galaxies become rounder as BHs grow and eventually get destroyed.

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W. Zee, S. Paudel, J. Moon, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
13/83

Comments: N/A

CO Multi-line Imaging of Nearby Galaxies (COMING). XII. CO-to-H$_{2}$ Conversion Factor and Dust-to-Gas Ratio [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07827


We simultaneously measured the spatially-resolved CO-to-H${2}$ conversion factor ($\alpha\mathrm{CO}$) and dust-to-gas ratio (DGR) in nearby galaxies on a kiloparsec scale. In this study, we used $^{12}$CO($J=1-0$) data obtained by the Nobeyama 45-m radio telescope with HI and dust mass surface densities. We obtained the values of global $\alpha_\mathrm{CO}$ and DGR in 22 nearby spiral galaxies, with averages of $2.66 \pm 1.36\ M_\odot\ \mathrm{pc}^{-2}\ (\mathrm{K\ km\ s^{-1}})^{-1}$ and $0.0052 \pm 0.0026$, respectively. Furthermore, the radial variations of $\alpha_\mathrm{CO}$ and DGR in four barred spiral galaxies (IC 342, NGC 3627, NGC 5236, and NGC 6946) were obtained by dividing them into the inner and outer regions with a boundary of $0.2R_{25}$, where $R_{25}$ is the isophotal radius at 25 mag arcsec$^{-2}$ in the $B$ band. The averages of $\alpha_\mathrm{CO}$ and DGR in the inner region ($\leq 0.2R_{25}$) are $0.36 \pm 0.08\ M_\odot\ \mathrm{pc}^{-2}\ (\mathrm{K\ km\ s^{-1}})^{-1}$ and $0.0199 \pm 0.0058$, while those in the outer region ($> 0.2R_{25}$) are $1.49 \pm 0.76\ M_\odot\ \mathrm{pc}^{-2}\ (\mathrm{K\ km\ s^{-1}})^{-1}$ and $0.0084 \pm 0.0037$, respectively. The value of $\alpha_\mathrm{CO}$ in the outer region is 2.3 to 5.3 times larger than that of the inner region. When separated into the inner and outer regions, we find that $\alpha_\mathrm{CO}$ and DGR correlate with the metallicity and the star formation rate surface density. The value of $\alpha_\mathrm{CO}$ derived in this study tends to be smaller than those obtained in previous studies for the Milky Way and nearby star-forming galaxies. This fact can be attributed to our measurements being biased toward the inner region; we measured $\alpha_\mathrm{CO}$ at 0.85 and 0.76 times smaller in radius than the previous works for nearby star-forming galaxies and the Milky Way, respectively.

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A. Yasuda, N. Kuno, K. Sorai, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
18/83

Comments: 64 pages, 32 figures, accepted to PASJ

Extinction biases quasar luminosity distances determined from quasar UV and X-ray flux measurements [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.08179


A sample of X-ray detected reverberation-mapped quasars provides a unique opportunity to compare cosmological constraints inferred using two well-established relations – the X-ray/UV luminosity ($L_{X}-L_{UV}$) relation and the broad-line region radius-UV monochromatic luminosity ($R-L$) relation. $L_{X}-L_{UV}$ and $R-L$ luminosity distances to the same quasars exhibit a distribution of their differences that is generally positively skewed for the six cosmological models we consider. This behaviour can be interpreted qualitatively to arise as a result of the dust extinction of UV/X-ray quasar emission. We show that the extinction always contributes to the non-zero difference between $L_{X}-L_{UV}$-based and $R-L$-based luminosity distances and we derive a linear relationship between the X-ray/UV colour index $E_{X-UV}$ and the median/mean value of the luminosity-distance difference, which also depends on the value of the $L_{X}-L_{UV}$ relation slope. Taking into account the prevailing positive values of the luminosity-distance difference median, we estimate an average X-ray/UV colour index of $\overline{E}{X-UV}=0.089 \pm 0.019$ mag, while the value based on the positive mean values of the difference is $\overline{E}{X-UV}=0.050\pm 0.013$ mag. We demonstrate that this amount of extinction is typical for the majority of quasars since it originates in the circumnuclear and interstellar media of host galaxies. It can only be slightly alleviated by the standard hard X-ray and far-UV extinction cuts used by Lusso et al. (2020). Consequently, the $L_{X}-L_{UV}$ relation QSO data compilation of Lusso et al. (2020) cannot be used for cosmological purposes.

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M. Zajaček, B. Czerny, N. Khadka, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
19/83

Comments: 12 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables; submitted to the MNRAS Main Journal, comments welcome

Modelling the escape of Lyman Continuum photons from galaxies in the Epoch of Reionization [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.08199


We couple the DELPHI framework for galaxy formation with a model for the escape of ionizing photons to study both its variability with galaxy assembly and the resulting key reionization sources. In this model, leakage either occurs through a fully ionized gas distribution (ionization bounded) or additionally through channels cleared of gas by supernova explosions (ionization bounded + holes). The escape fraction is therefore governed by a combination of the density and star formation rate. Having calibrated our star formation efficiencies to match high-$z$ observables, we find the central gas density to regulate the boundary between high ($>0.70$) and low ($<0.06$) escape fractions. As galaxies become denser at higher redshifts, this boundary shifts from $M_{h}\simeq 10^{9.5}\mathrm{M_{\odot}}$ at $z\sim 5$ to $M_{h}\simeq 10^{7.8}\mathrm{M_{\odot}}$ at $z\sim 15$. While leakage is entirely governed through holes above this mass range, it is not affecting general trends for lower masses. We find the co-evolution of galaxy assembly and the degree of leakage to be mass and redshift dependent, driven by an increasing fraction of $f_{\mathrm{esc}}<0.06$ galaxies at increasing mass and redshift. The variability in the escape of ionizing photons is driven by the underlying variations in our dark matter assembly histories. Galaxies with $M_h < 10^{7.9} ~ (10^{8.9})M_{\odot}$ provide half of the escaping ionizing emissivity by $z \sim 10 ~ (5)$ in the ionization bounded model. On the other hand, galaxies that purely leak through holes contribute $6$ $(13)\%$ at $z\sim 5$ $(15)$. We end by exploring the impact of two reionization feedback scenarios, in which we suppress the gas content of galaxies with $T_{\mathrm{vir}}<20000\mathrm{K}$ and $v_{c}<30\mathrm{kms^{-1}}$ residing in ionized regions.

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J. Bremer and P. Dayal
Tue, 16 May 23
24/83

Comments: 16 pages, 10 figures

Examining transitional galaxies to understand the role of clusters and their dynamical status in galaxy quenching [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.08788


In this work, we consider four different galaxy populations and two distinct global environments in the local Universe (z $\leq 0.11$) to investigate the evolution of transitional galaxies (such as star-forming spheroids and passive discs) across different environments. Our sample is composed of 3,899 galaxies within the R${200}$ radius of 231 clusters and 11,460 field galaxies. We also investigate the impact of the cluster’s dynamic state, as well as the galaxy’s location in the projected phase space diagram (PPS). We found that although the cluster environment as a whole influences galaxy evolution, the cluster dynamical state does not. Furthermore, star-forming galaxies represent recent cluster arrivals in comparison to passive galaxies (especially in the case of early-types). Among the ETGs, we find that the D$_n(4000)$ and H$\delta$ parameters indicate a smooth transition between the subpopulations. In particular, for the SF-ETGs, we detect a significant difference between field and cluster galaxies, as a function of stellar mass, for objects with Log $M_*$/M$_{\odot} > 10.5$. Analyzing the color gradient, the results point toward a picture where field galaxies are more likely to follow the monolithic scenario, while the cluster galaxies the hierarchical scenario. In particular, if we split the ETGs into lenticulars and ellipticals, we find that the steeper color gradients are more common for the lenticulars. Finally, our results indicate the need for galaxy pre-processing in smaller groups, before entering clusters.

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D. Brambila, P. Lopes, A. Ribeiro, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
30/83

Comments: 17 pages, 11 figures, accept for publication at MNRAS in 2023 April 21

First stars signatures in high-z absorbers [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07706


The first stars were likely more massive than those forming today and thus rapidly evolved, exploding as supernovae and enriching the surrounding gas with their chemical products. In the Local Group, the chemical signature of the first stars has been identified in the so-called Carbon-Enhanced Metal-Poor stars (CEMP-no). On the contrary, a similar C-excess was not found in dense neutral gas traced by high-redshift absorption systems. Here we discuss the recent discovery of three C-enhanced very metal-poor ([Fe/H]< -2) optically thick absorbers at redshift z ~ 3-4, reported by (Saccardi et al. 2023). We show that these absorbers are extra-galactic tracers of the chemical signatures of the first stars, analogous to the CEMP-no stars observed in the Galactic halo and ultra-faint dwarf galaxies. Furthermore, by comparing observations with model predictions we demonstrate that these systems have most likely been imprinted by first stars exploding as low-energy supernovae, which provided > 50% of the metals in these absorbers

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S. Salvadori, V. D’Odorico, A. Saccardi, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
35/83

Comments: Mem. S.A.It. in press

QUIJOTE Scientific Results — XVII. Studying the Anomalous Microwave Emission in the Andromeda Galaxy with QUIJOTE-MFI [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.08547


The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is the Local Group galaxy that is most similar to the Milky Way (MW). The similarities between the two galaxies make M31 useful for studying integrated properties common to spiral galaxies. We use the data from the recent QUIJOTE-MFI Wide Survey, together with new raster observations focused on M31, to study its integrated emission. The addition of raster data improves the sensitivity of QUIJOTE-MFI maps by a factor greater than 3. Our main interest is to confirm if anomalous microwave emission (AME) is present in M31, as previous studies have suggested. To do so, we built the integrated spectral energy distribution of M31 between 0.408 and 3000 GHz. We then performed a component separation analysis taking into account synchrotron, free-free, AME and thermal dust components. AME in M31 is modelled as a log-normal distribution with maximum amplitude, $A_{\rm AME}$, equal to $1.06\pm0.30$ Jy. It peaks at $\nu_{\rm AME}=17.28\pm3.08$ GHz with a width of $W_{\rm AME}=0.57\pm0.15$. Both the Akaike and Bayesian Information Criteria find the model without AME to be less than 1 % as probable as the one taking AME into consideration, thus strongly favouring the presence of AME in M31. We find that the AME emissivity in M31 is $\epsilon_{\rm AME}^{\rm 28.4\,GHz}=9.1\pm2.9$ $\mu$K/(MJy/sr), similar to that computed for the MW. We also provide the first upper limits for the AME polarization fraction in an extragalactic object. M31 remains the only galaxy where an AME measurement has been made of its integrated spectrum.

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M. Fernández-Torreiro, R. Génova-Santos, J. Rubiño-Martín, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
40/83

Comments: 16 pages, 10 figures. Submitted to MNRAS. QUIJOTE data maps available at this https URL

Compton-thick AGN in the NuSTAR Era X: Analysing seven local CT-AGN candidates [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07705


We present the broad-band X-ray spectral analysis (0.6-50 keV) of seven Compton-Thick active galactic nuclei (CT-AGN; line-of-sight, l.o.s., column density $>10^{24}$ cm$^{-2}$) candidates selected from the Swift-BAT 100-month catalog, using archival NuSTAR data. This work is in continuation of the on-going research of the Clemson-INAF group to classify CT-AGN candidates at redshift $z<0.05$, using physically-motivated torus models. Our results confirm that three out of seven targets are \textit{bona-fide} CT-AGN. Adding our results to the previously analysed sources using NuSTAR data, we increase the population of bona-fide CT-AGN by $\sim9\%$, bringing the total number to 35 out of 414 AGN. We also performed a comparative study using MyTorus and borus02 on the spectra in our sample, finding that both physical models are strongly consistent in the parameter space of l.o.s. column density and photon index. Furthermore, the clumpiness of the torus clouds is also investigated by separately computing the line-of-sight and average torus column densities, in each of the seven sources. Adding our results to all the previous 48 CT-AGN candidates analysed by the Clemson-INAF research team having NuSTAR observations: we find $78\%$ of the sources are likely to have a clumpy distribution of the obscuring material surrounding the accreting supermassive black hole.

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D. Sengupta, S. Marchesi, C. Vignali, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
43/83

Comments: Accepted for publication in the Section 4. Extragalactic astronomy of Astronomy and Astrophysics, 20 pages, 10 figures

The Scatter Matters: Circumgalactic Metal Content in the Context of the $M-σ$ Relation [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07672


The interaction between supermassive black hole (SMBH) feedback and the circumgalactic medium (CGM) continues to be an open question in galaxy evolution. In our study, we use SPH simulations to explore the impact of SMBH feedback on galactic metal retention and the motion of metals and gas into and through the CGM of L${*}$ galaxies. We examine 140 galaxies from the 25 Mpc cosmological volume, Romulus25, with stellar masses between 3 $\times$ 10$^{9}$ – 3 $\times$ 10$^{11}$ M${\odot}$. We measure the fraction of metals remaining in the ISM and CGM of each galaxy, and calculate the expected mass of its SMBH based on the $M-\sigma$ relation. The deviation of each SMBH from its expected mass, $\Delta M_{BH}$ is compared to the potential of its host via $\sigma$. We find that SMBHs with accreted mass above the empirical $M-\sigma$ relation are about 15\% more effective at removing metals from the ISM than under-massive SMBHs in star forming galaxies. Over-massive SMBHs suppress the overall star formation of their host galaxies and more effectively move metals from the ISM into the CGM. However, we see little evidence for the evacuation of gas from their halos, in contrast with other simulations. Finally, we predict that C IV column densities in the CGM of L$_{*}$ galaxies may depend on host galaxy SMBH mass. Our results show that the scatter in the low mass end of $M-\sigma$ relation may indicate how effective a SMBH is at the local redistribution of mass in its host galaxy.

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N. Sanchez, J. Werk, C. Christensen, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
52/83

Comments: 16 pages, 14 figures, Submitted to ApJ

Probing bursty star formation by cross-correlating extragalactic background light and galaxy surveys [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.08847


Understanding the star formation rate (SFR) variability and how it depends on physical properties of galaxies is important for developing and testing the theory of galaxy formation. We investigate how statistical measurements of the extragalactic background light (EBL) can shed light on this topic and complement traditional methods based on observations of individual galaxies. Using semi-empirical models of galaxy evolution and SFR indicators sensitive to different star formation timescales (e.g., H$\alpha$ and UV continuum luminosities), we show that the SFR variability, quantified by the joint probability distribution of the SFR indicators (i.e., the bivariate conditional luminosity function), can be characterized as a function of galaxy mass and redshift through the cross-correlation between deep, near-infrared maps of the EBL and galaxy distributions. As an example, we consider combining upcoming SPHEREx maps of the EBL with galaxy samples from Rubin/LSST. We demonstrate that their cross-correlation over a sky fraction of $f_\mathrm{sky}\sim0.5$ can constrain the joint SFR indicator distribution at high significance up to $z\sim2.5$ for mass-complete samples of galaxies down to $M_{*}\sim10^9\,M_{\odot}$. These constraints not only allow models of different SFR variability to be distinguished, but also provide unique opportunities to investigate physical mechanisms that require large number statistics such as environmental effects. The cross-correlations investigated illustrate the power of combining cosmological surveys to extract information inaccessible from each data set alone, while the large galaxy populations probed capture ensemble-averaged properties beyond the reach of targeted observations towards individual galaxies.

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G. Sun, A. Lidz, A. Faisst, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
62/83

Comments: 12 pages, 7 figures, submitted to MNRAS; comments welcome

Identification of molecular clouds in emission maps: a comparison between methods in the \ce{^{13}CO}/\ce{C^{18}O} ($J=3-2$) Heterodyne Inner Milky Way Plane Survey [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07874


The growing range of automated algorithms for the identification of molecular clouds and clumps in large observational datasets has prompted the need for the direct comparison of these procedures. However, these methods are complex and testing for biases is often problematic: only a few of them have been applied to the same data set or calibrated against a common standard. We compare the Fellwalker method, a widely used watershed algorithm, to the more recent Spectral Clustering for Interstellar Molecular Emission Segmentation (SCIMES). SCIMES overcomes sensitivity and resolution biases that plague many friends-of-friends algorithms by recasting cloud segmentation as a clustering problem. Considering the \ce{^{13}CO}/\ce{C^{18}O} ($J = 3 – 2$) Heterodyne Inner Milky Way Plane Survey (CHIMPS) and the CO High-Resolution Survey (COHRS), we investigate how these two different approaches influence the final cloud decomposition. Although the two methods produce largely similar statistical results over the CHIMPS dataset, FW appears prone to over-segmentation, especially in crowded fields where gas envelopes around dense cores are identified as adjacent, distinct objects. FW catalogue also includes a number of fragmented clouds that appear as different objects in a line-of-sight projection. In addition, cross-correlating the physical properties of individual sources between catalogues is complicated by different definitions, numerical implementations, and design choices within each method, which make it very difficult to establish a one-to-one correspondence between the sources.

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R. Rani, T. Moore, D. Eden, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
64/83

Comments: accepted MNRAS

The most luminous blue quasars at 3.0<z<3.3 – III. LBT spectra and accretion parameters [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07699


We present the analysis of the rest frame ultraviolet and optical spectra of 30 bright blue quasars at $z\sim3$, selected to examine the suitability of AGN as cosmological probes. In our previous works, we found an unexpectedly high fraction ($\approx 25 \%$) of X-ray weak quasars in the sample. The latter sources also display a flatter UV continuum and a broader and fainter CIV profile in the archival UV data with respect to their X-ray normal counterparts. Here we present new observations with the LBT in both the $zJ$ (rest-frame $\simeq$2300-3100 $\rm \mathring{A}$) and the $K_S$ ($\simeq$4750-5350 $\rm \mathring{A}$) bands. We estimated black hole masses ($M_{\rm BH}$) and Eddington ratios ($\lambda_{\rm Edd}$) from the from the H$\beta$ and MgII emission lines, finding that our $z\sim3$ quasars are on average highly accreting ($\langle \lambda_{\rm Edd} \rangle\simeq 1.2$ and $\langle M_{\rm BH} \rangle\simeq 10^{9.7}M_\odot$), with no difference in $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ or $M_{\rm BH}$ between X-ray weak and X-ray normal quasars. From the $zJ$ spectra, we derive flux and equivalent width of MgII and FeII, finding that X-ray weak quasars display higher FeII/MgII ratios with respect to typical quasars. FeII/MgII ratios of X-ray normal quasars are instead consistent with other estimates up to $z\simeq6.5$, corroborating the idea of already chemically mature BLRs at early cosmic time. From the $K_S$ spectra, we find that all the X-ray weak quasars present generally weaker [OIII] emission (EW<10 $\rm \mathring{A}$) than the normal ones. The sample as a whole, however, abides by the known X-ray/[OIII] luminosity correlation, hence the different [OIII] properties are likely due to an intrinsically weaker [OIII] emission in X-ray weak objects, associated to the shape of the spectral energy distribution. We interpret these results in the framework of accretion-disc winds.

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B. Trefoloni, E. Lusso, E. Nardini, et. al.
Tue, 16 May 23
69/83

Comments: 25 pages, 17 figures, Accepted for publication on Astronomy & Astrophysics

Observed Dust Surface Density Across Cosmic Times [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07743


Our ability to interpret observations of galaxies and trace their stellar, gas, and dust content over cosmic time critically relies on our understanding of how the dust abundance and properties vary with environment. Here, we compute the dust surface density across cosmic times to put novel constraints on simulations of the build-up of dust. We provide observational estimates of the dust surface density consistently measured through depletion methods across a wide range of environments, going from the Milky Way up to $z=5.5$ galaxies. These conservative measurements provide complementary estimates to extinction-based observations. In addition, we introduce the dust surface density distribution function — in analogy with the cold gas column density distribution functions. We fit a power law of the form: $\log f( \Sigma_{\rm Dust})=-1.92 \times \log \Sigma_{\rm Dust} – 3.65$ which proves slightly steeper than for neutral gas and metal absorbers. This observed relation, which can be computed by simulations predicting resolved dust mass functions through 2D projection, provides new constraints on modern dust models.

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C. Péroux, A. Cia and J. Howk
Tue, 16 May 23
70/83

Comments: 11 pages. Accepted for publication in MNRAS

GMP-selected dual and lensed AGNs: selection function and classification based on near-IR colors and resolved spectra from VLT/ERIS, KECK/OSIRIS, and LBT/LUCI [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07396


The Gaia-Multi-Peak (GMP) technique can identify large numbers of dual or lensed active galactic nuclei (AGN) candidates at sub-arcsec separation, allowing us to study both multiple super-massive black holes (SMBH) in the same galaxy and rare, compact lensed systems. The observed samples can be used to test the predictions of the models of SMBH merging once 1) the selection function of the GMP technique is known, and 2) each system has been classified as dual AGN, lensed AGN, or AGN/star alignment. Here we show that the GMP selection is very efficient for separations above 0.15″ when the secondary (fainter) object has magnitude G<20.5. We present the spectroscopic classification of five GMP candidates using VLT/ERIS and Keck/OSIRIS, and compare them with the classifications obtained from: a) the near-IR colors of 7 systems obtained with LBT/LUCI, and b) the analysis of the total, spatially-unresolved spectra. We conclude that colors and integrated spectra can already provide reliable classifications of many systems. Finally, we summarize the 14 confirmed dual AGNs at z>0.5 selected by the GMP technique, and compare this sample with other such systems from the literature, concluding that GMP can provide a large number of confirmed dual AGNs at separations below 7 kpc.

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F. Mannucci, M. Scialpi, A. Ciurlo, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
1/53

Comments: 14 pages, submitted. Comments welcome

Large-scale Velocity-coherent Filaments in the SEDIGISM Survey: Association with Spiral Arms and Fraction of Dense Gas [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07353


Context. Filamentary structures in the interstellar medium are closely related to star formation. Dense gas mass fraction (DGMF) or clump formation efficiency in large-scale filaments possibly determine their hosting star formation activities. Aims. We aim to automatically identify large-scale filaments, characterize them, investigate their association with Galactic structures, and study their DGMFs. Methods. We use a modified minimum spanning tree (MST) algorithm to chain parsec-scale 13CO clumps previously extracted from the SEDIGISM (Structure, Excitation, and Dynamics of the Inner Galactic InterStellar Medium) survey. The MST connects nodes in a graph such that the sum of edge lengths is minimum. Modified MST also ensures velocity coherence between nodes, so the identified filaments are coherent in position-position-velocity (PPV) space. Results. We generate a catalog of 88 large-scale ($>10pc$) filaments in the inner Galactic plane (with $-60^\circ < l < 18^\circ and $|b| < 0.5^\circ$). These SEDIGISM filaments are larger and less dense than MST filaments previously identified from the BGPS and ATLASGAL surveys. We find that eight of the filaments run along spiral arms and can be regarded as “bones” of the Milky Way. We also find three bones associated with the Local Spur in PPV space. By compiling 168 large-scale filaments with available DGMF across the Galaxy, an order of magnitude more than previously investigated, we find that DGMFs do not correlate with Galactic location, but bones have higher DGMFs than other filaments.

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Y. Ge, K. Wang, A. Duarte-Cabral, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
8/53

Comments: Accepted for publication in A&A. 30 pages, 8 figures, 3 tables

Spectral age distribution for radio-loud active galaxies in the XMM-LSS field [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07561


Jets of energetic particles, as seen in FR type-I and FR type-II sources, ejected from the center of Radio-Loud AGN affect the sources surrounding intracluster medium/intergalactic medium. Placing constraints on the age of such sources is important in order to measure the jet powers and determine the effects on feedback. To evaluate the age of these sources using spectral age models, we require high-resolution multi-wavelength data. The new sensitive and high-resolution MIGHTEE survey of the XMM-LSS field along with data from the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) and the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) provide data taken at different frequencies with similar resolution, which enables us to determine the spectral age distribution for radio loud AGN in the survey field. In this study we present a sample of 28 radio galaxies with their best fitting spectral age distribution analyzed using the Jaffe-Perola (JP) model on a pixel-by-pixel basis. Fits are generally good and objects in our sample show maximum ages within the range of 2.8 Myr to 115 Myr with a median of 8.71 Myr. High-resolution maps over a range of frequencies are required to observe detailed age distributions for small sources and high-sensitivity maps will be needed in order to observe fainter extended emission. We do not observe any correlation between the total physical size of the sources and their age and we speculate both dynamical models and the approach to spectral age analysis may need some modification to account for our observations.

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S. Pinjarkar, M. Hardcastle, J. Harwood, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
10/53

Comments: 20 pages, 9 figures

First detection of deuterated methylidyne (CD) in the interstellar medium [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07143


While the abundance of elemental deuterium is relatively low (D/H ~ a few 1E-5), orders of magnitude higher D/H abundance ratios have been found for many interstellar molecules, enhanced by deuterium fractionation. In cold molecular clouds (T < 20K) deuterium fractionation is driven by the H2D+ ion, whereas at higher temperatures (T > 20-30K) gas-phase deuteration is controlled by reactions with CH2D+ and C2HD+. While the role of H2D+ in driving cold interstellar deuterium chemistry is well understood, thanks to observational constraints from direct measurements of H2D+, deuteration stemming from CH2D+ is far less understood, caused by the absence of direct observational constraints of its key ions. Therefore, making use of chemical surrogates is imperative for exploring deuterium chemistry at intermediate temperatures. Formed at an early stage of ion-molecule chemistry, directly from the dissociative recombination of CH3+ (CH2D+), CH (CD) is an ideal tracer for investigating deuterium substitution initiated by reactions with CH2D+. This paper reports the first detection of CD in the interstellar medium, carried out using the APEX 12m telescope toward the widely studied low-mass protostellar system IRAS 16293-2422. Gas-phase chemical models reproducing the observed CD/CH abundance ratio of 0.016 suggests that it reflects `warm deuterium chemistry’ (which ensues in moderately warm conditions of the interstellar medium) and illustrates the potential use of the CD/CH ratio in constraining the gas temperatures of the envelope gas clouds it probes.

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A. Jacob, K. Menten, F. Wyrowski, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
14/53

Comments: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics (14 pages, 11 figures and 7 tables including Appendix)

NIKA2 Cosmological Legacy Survey: Survey Description and Galaxy Number Counts [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07054


Aims. Deep millimeter surveys are necessary to probe the dust-obscured galaxies at high redshift. We conducted a large observing program at 1.2 and 2 mm with the NIKA2 camera installed on the IRAM 30-meter telescope. This NIKA2 Cosmological Legacy Survey (N2CLS) covers two emblematic fields: GOODS-N and COSMOS. We introduce the N2CLS survey and present new 1.2 and 2 mm number count measurements based on the tiered N2CLS observations from October 2017 to May 2021.
Methods. We develop an end-to-end simulation that combines an input sky model with the instrument noise and data reduction pipeline artifacts. This simulation is used to compute the sample purity, flux boosting, pipeline transfer function, completeness, and effective area of the survey. We used the 117 deg$^2$ SIDES simulations as the sky model, which include the galaxy clustering. Our formalism allows us to correct the source number counts to obtain galaxy number counts, the difference between the two being due to resolution effects caused by the blending of several galaxies inside the large beam of single-dish instruments.
Results. The N2CLS-May2021 survey reaches an average 1-$\sigma$ noise level of 0.17 and 0.048 mJy on GOODS-N over 159 arcmin$^2$, and 0.46 and 0.14 mJy on COSMOS over 1010 arcmin$^2$, at 1.2 and 2 mm, respectively. For a purity threshold of 80%, we detect 120 and 67 sources in GOODS-N and 195 and 76 sources in COSMOS, at 1.2 and 2 mm, respectively. Our measurement connects the bright single-dish to the deep interferometric number counts. After correcting for resolution effects, our results reconcile the single-dish and interferometric number counts and are further accurately compared with model predictions.

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L. Bing, M. Béthermin, G. Lagache, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
15/53

Comments: Accepted by A&A. 23 pages, 12 figures

Post-Starburst Properties of Post-Merger Galaxies [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07474


Post-starburst galaxies (PSBs) are transition galaxies showing evidence of recent rapid star formation quenching. To understand the role of galaxy mergers in triggering quenching, we investigate the incidence of PSBs and resolved PSB properties in post-merger galaxies using both SDSS single-fiber spectra and MaNGA resolved IFU spectra. We find post-mergers have a PSB excess of 10 – 20 times that relative to their control galaxies using single-fiber PSB diagnostics. A similar excess of ~ 19 times is also found in the fraction of central (C)PSBs and ring-like (R)PSBs in post-mergers using the resolved PSB diagnostic. However, 60% of the CPSBs + RPSBs in both post-mergers and control galaxies are missed by the single-fiber data. By visually inspecting the resolved PSB distribution, we find that the fraction of outside-in quenching is 7 times higher than inside-out quenching in PSBs in post-mergers while PSBs in control galaxies do not show large differences in these quenching directions. In addition, we find a marginal deficit of HI gas in PSBs relative to non-PSBs in post-mergers using the MaNGA-HI data. The excesses of PSBs in post-mergers suggest that mergers play an important role in triggering quenching. Resolved IFU spectra are important to recover the PSBs missed by single-fiber spectra. The excess of outside-in quenching relative to inside-out quenching in post-mergers suggests that AGN are not the dominant quenching mechanism in these galaxies, but that processes from the disk (gas inflows/consumption and stellar feedback) play a more important role.

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W. Li, P. Nair, K. Rowlands, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
17/53

Comments: Accepted in MNRAS on May 12 2023, 19 pages, 15 figures, 4 tables

Multi log-normal density structure in Cygnus-X molecular clouds: A fitting for N-PDF without power-law [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07094


We studied the H$_2$ column density probability distribution function (N-PDF) based on molecular emission lines using the Nobeyama 45-m Cygnus X CO survey data. Using the DENDROGRAM and SCIMES algorithms, we identified 124 molecular clouds in the $^{13}$CO data. From these identified molecular clouds, an N-PDF was constructed for 11 molecular clouds with an extent of more than 0.4 deg$^2$. From the fitting of the N-PDF, we found that the N-PDF could be well-fitted with one or two log-normal distributions. These fitting results provided an alternative density structure for molecular clouds from a conventional picture. We investigated the column density, dense molecular cloud cores, and radio continuum source distributions in each cloud and found that the N-PDF shape was less correlated with the star-forming activity over a whole cloud. Furthermore, we found that the log-normal N-PDF parameters obtained from the fitting showed two impressive features. First, the log-normal distribution at the low-density part had the same mean column density ($\sim$ 10$^{21.5}$ cm$^{-2}$) for almost all the molecular clouds. Second, the width of the log-normal distribution tended to decrease with an increasing mean density of the structures. These correlations suggest that the shape of the N-PDF reflects the relationship between the density and turbulent structure of the whole molecular cloud but is less affected by star-forming activities.

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T. Murase, T. Handa, R. Matsusaka, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
20/53

Comments: 14 pages, 7 Figures, Accepted in MNRAS

Efficient radial migration by giant molecular clouds in the first several hundred Myr after the stellar birth [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07050


Stars in the Galactic disc, including the Solar system, have deviated from their birth orbits and have experienced radial mixing and vertical heating. By performing hydrodynamical simulations of a galactic disc, we investigate how much tracer particles, which are initially located in the disc to mimic newborn stars and the thin and thick disc stars, are displaced from initial near-circular orbits by gravitational interactions with giant molecular clouds (GMCs). To exclude the influence of other perturbers that can change the stellar orbits, such as spiral arms and the bar, we use an axisymmetric form for the entire galactic potential. First, we investigate the time evolution of the radial and vertical velocity dispersion $\sigma_R$ and $\sigma_z$ by comparing them with a power law relation of $\sigma \propto t^{\beta}$. Although the exponents $\beta$ decrease with time, they keep large values of 0.3 $\sim$ 0.6 for 1 Gyr, indicating fast and efficient disc heating. Next, we find that the efficient stellar scattering by GMCs also causes a change in angular momentum for each star and, therefore, radial migration. This effect is more pronounced in newborn stars than old disc stars; nearly 30 per cent of stars initially located on the galactic mid-plane move more than 1 kpc in the radial direction for 1 Gyr. The dynamical heating and radial migration drastically occur in the first several hundred Myr. As the amplitude of the vertical oscillation increases, the time spent in the galactic plane, where most GMCs are distributed, decreases, and the rate of an increase in the heating and migration slows down.

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Y. Fujimoto, S. Inutsuka and J. Baba
Mon, 15 May 23
29/53

Comments: 17 pages, 12 figures. Submitted to MNRAS. The simulation movie can be found at this https URL

Linking UV spectral properties of MUSE Ly-alpha emitters at z>3 to Lyman continuum escape [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07044


The physical conditions giving rise to high escape fractions of ionising radiation (LyC $f_{\rm{esc}}$) in star-forming galaxies – most likely protagonists of cosmic reionisation – are not yet fully understood. Using the properties of the Lyman-$\alpha$ line profile associated with LyC escape, we select potential LyC leakers and non-leakers from a compiled sample of 1422 MUSE-Wide and MUSE HUDF Lyman-$\alpha$ emitters (LAEs) in the redshift range 2.9<z<6.7. We perform spectral stacking to obtain high signal-to-noise detections of rest-frame UV absorption and emission lines, and find that the stacks with LyC-leaker candidates show (i) strong nebular OIII]1666, [SiIII]1883 and [CIII]1907+CIII]1909 emission, suggesting high ionisation parameters due to an elevated production rate of ionising photons coming from young, metal-poor stars; (ii) high equivalent widths of HeII1640 (~1-3 A), possibly indicating a hard ionising spectrum alongside with a high ionising photon production efficiency; (iii) SiII*1533 emission, revealing the presence of neutral hydrogen off the line of sight, thus implying a highly anisotropic interstellar medium (ISM); (iv) high CIV1548,1550 to [CIII]1907+CIII]1909 ratios (CIV/CIII] > 0.75), partly associated with the increased ISM transparency. In contrast, the stacks with non-leakers show weaker nebular emission lines, low HeII1640 equivalent widths (<1 A), and low CIV/CIII] (<0.25), suggesting a low ionisation state of the ISM and a high neutral hydrogen content. Consequently, our results substantiate that the CIV/CIII] ratio can be used as an indirect tracer of $f_{\rm{esc}}$, providing a promising tool for identification of ionising sources among star-forming galaxies in the epoch of reionisation.

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I. Kramarenko, J. Kerutt, A. Verhamme, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
40/53

Comments: 19 pages, 11 figures, submitted to MNRAS

Mini-Quenching of High-Redshift Galaxies by Bursty Star Formation [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07066


The recent observation of a low-mass $z=5.2$ and an intermediate-mass $z=7.3$ (JADES-GS-z7-01-QU) quenched galaxy with JWST / NIRSpec is the first evidence of halted star formation above $z\sim 5$. Here we show how bursty star formation at high redshift gives rise to temporarily quenched, or miniquenched galaxies in the mass range $M_{\star} = 10^7-10^9 \ M_{\odot}$ using three models of galaxy formation: the periodic box simulation IllustrisTNG, the zoom-in simulation VELA and an empirical halo model. The main causes for mini-quenching are stellar feedback, lack of gas accretion onto galaxies and galaxy-galaxy interactions. The abundance of mini-quenching events agrees across the three models: the population first appears below $z\sim 8$, after which the fraction of miniquenched galaxies increases with cosmic time, from $\sim 0.5$% at $z=7$ to $\sim 1-2$% at $z=4$, corresponding to comoving number densities of $8.0\times 10^{-6}$ Mpc$^{-3}$ and $5.4\times 10^{-4}$ Mpc$^{-3}$, respectively. The star formation rate duty cycle ($f_{\mathrm{duty}}\sim 99.56^{+0.4}_{-4.5}$% at $z=7$) inferred for VELA galaxies is consistent therewith. Star formation histories (SFHs) in VELA suggest that mini-quenching at $z=4-8$ is short-lived with a duration of $\sim 20-40$ Myr, which is close to the free-fall timescale of the inner halo. However, mock spectral energy distributions of miniquenched galaxies in IllustrisTNG and VELA do not match JADES-GS-z7-01-QU photometry, unless their SFHs are artificially altered to be more bursty on timescales of $\sim 40$ Myr. Studying miniquenched galaxies might aid in calibrating the sub-grid models governing galaxy formation, as these may not generate sufficient burstiness at high redshift to explain the SFH inferred for JADES-GS-z7-01-QU.

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T. Dome, S. Tacchella, A. Fialkov, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
49/53

Comments: Submitted to MNRAS, 10 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, comments welcome

The outer low-$α$ disc of the Milky Way — I: evidence for the first pericentric passage of Sagittarius? [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.07426


Phase-space data, chemistry, and ages together reveal a complex structure in the outer low-${\alpha}$ disc of the Milky Way. The age-vertical velocity dispersion profiles beyond the Solar Neighbourhood show a significant jump at 6 Gyr for stars beyond the Galactic plane. Stars older than 6 Gyr are significantly hotter than younger stars. The chemistry and age histograms reveal a bump at [Fe/H] = -0.5, [${\alpha}$/Fe] = 0.1, and an age of 7.2 Gyr in the outer disc. Finally, viewing the stars beyond 13.5 kpc in the age-metallicity plane reveals a faint streak just below this bump, towards lower metallicities at the same age. Given the uncertainty in age, we believe these features are linked and suggest a pericentric passage of a massive satellite 6 Gyr ago that heated pre-existing stars, led to a starburst in existing gas. New stars also formed from the metal-poorer infalling gas. The impulse approximation was used to characterise the interaction with a satellite, finding a mass of ~1e11 M$_{\odot}$, and a pericentric position between 12 and 16 kpc. The evidence points to an interaction with the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy, likely its first pericentric passage.

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P. Das, Y. Huang, I. Ciuca, et. al.
Mon, 15 May 23
51/53

Comments: 10 pages, 6 figures, submitted to MNRAS

Dust Properties of 870 Micron Selected Galaxies in the GOODS-S [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06388


We analyze the dust properties of 57 870 $\mu$m selected dusty star-forming galaxies in the GOODS-S using new deep ALMA 1.2 mm, 2 mm, and 3 mm continuum imaging together with other far-infrared through millimeter data. We fit the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) with optically thin modified blackbodies to constrain the emissivity indices and effective dust temperatures, finding a median emissivity index of $\beta = 1.78^{+0.43}{-0.25}$ and a median temperature of $T_d = 33.6^{+12.1}{-5.4}$ K. We observe a negative correlation between $\beta$ and $T_d$. By testing several SED models, we determine that the derived emissivity indices can be influenced by opacity assumptions. Our temperature measurements are consistent with no evolution in dust temperature with redshift.

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S. McKay, A. Barger, L. Cowie, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
10/53

Comments: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 21 pages, 12 figures, 2 tables

The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). XXXV. First Kinematical Clues of Overly-Massive Dark Matter Halos in Several Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies in the Virgo Cluster [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06369


We present Keck/DEIMOS spectroscopy of the first complete sample of ultra-diffuse galaxies (UDGs) in the Virgo cluster. We select all UDGs in Virgo that contain at least 10 globular cluster (GC) candidates and are more than $2.5\sigma$ outliers in scaling relations of size, surface brightness, and luminosity (a total of 10 UDGs). We use the radial velocity of their GC satellites to measure the velocity dispersion of each UDG. We find a mixed bag of galaxies: from one UDG that shows no signs of dark matter, to UDGs that follow the luminosity-dispersion relation of early-type galaxies, to the most extreme examples of heavily dark matter dominated galaxies that break well-known scaling relations such as the luminosity-dispersion or the U-shaped total mass-to-light ratio relations. This is indicative of a number of mechanisms at play forming these peculiar galaxies. Some of them may be the most extended version of dwarf galaxies, while others are so extreme that they seem to populate dark matter halos consistent with that of the Milky-Way or even larger. Even though Milky-Way stars and other GC interlopers contaminating our sample of GCs cannot be fully ruled-out, our assessment of this potential problem and simulations indicate that the probability is low and, if present, unlikely to be enough to explain the extreme dispersions measured. Further confirmation from stellar kinematics studies in these UDGs would be desirable. The lack of such extreme objects in any of the state-of-the-art simulations, opens an exciting avenue of new physics shaping these galaxies.

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E. Toloba, L. Sales, S. Lim, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
12/53

Comments: 27 pages, 12 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ

Detection of multiple phase space overdensities of GSE stars by orbit integration [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06759


In N-body simulations, nearly radial mergers can form shell-like overdensities in the sky position and phase space ($r-v_r$) due to the combination of dynamical friction and tidal stripping. The merger event of Gaia-Sausage-Enceladus has provided a unique opportunity to study the shells in the phase space. To search for them, we integrate the orbits of 5949 GSE-related halo K giants from the LAMOST survey and record their positions at all time intervals in $r-v_r$ diagram. After the subtraction of a smoothed background, we find six significant and complete thin chevron-like overdensities. The apocenters $r_\mathrm{apo}$ of stars in the six chevrons are around 6.75, 12.75, 18.75, 25.25, 27.25, and 30.25 kpc. These chevrons reveal the multiple pile-ups of GSE stars at different apocenters. The application of a different Milky Way mass $M_\mathrm{vir}$ will change the opening angles of these chevrons, while leave their apocenters almost unchanged. By comparing with a recent study of the phase space overdensities of local halo stars from Gaia RVS survey, our results are more inclined to a medium $M_\mathrm{vir}$ of $10^{12}\,M_\odot$. The application of a non-axisymmetric Galactic potential with a steadily rotating bar has a blurring effect on the appearance of these chevron-like overdensities, especially for the chevrons with $r_\mathrm{apo} > 20$ kpc.

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W. WenboWu, G. GangZhao, J. JiangChang, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
20/53

Comments: Accepted by ApJ, 8 figures

QUIJOTE scientific results — X. Spatial variations of Anomalous Microwave Emission along the Galactic plane [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06762


Anomalous Microwave Emission (AME) is an important emission component between 10 and 60 GHz that is not yet fully understood. It seems to be ubiquituous in our Galaxy and is observed at a broad range of angular scales. Here we use the new QUIJOTE-MFI wide survey data at 11, 13, 17 and 19 GHz to constrain the AME in the Galactic plane ($|b|<10^\circ$) on degree scales. We built the spectral energy distribution between 0.408 and 3000 GHz for each of the 5309 0.9$^\circ$, pixels in the Galactic plane, and fitted a parametric model by considering five emission components: synchrotron, free-free, AME, thermal dust and CMB anisotropies. We show that not including QUIJOTE-MFI data points leads to the underestimation (up to 50 %) of the AME signal in favour of free-free emission. The parameters describing these components are then intercompared, looking for relations that help to understand AME physical processes. We find median values for the AME width, $W_{\rm AME}$, and for its peak frequency, $\nu_{\rm AME}$, respectively of $0.560^{+0.059}{-0.050}$ and $20.7^{+2.0}{-1.9}$ GHz, slightly in tension with current theoretical models. We find spatial variations throughout the Galactic plane for $\nu_{\rm AME}$, but only with reduced statistical significance. We report correlations of AME parameters with certain ISM properties, such as that between the AME emissivity (which shows variations with the Galactic longitude) and the interstellar radiation field, and that between the AME peak frequency and dust temperature. Finally, we discuss the implications of our results on the possible molecules responsible for AME.

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M. Fernández-Torreiro, J. Rubiño-Martín, C. López-Caraballo, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
24/53

Comments: 32 pages, 31 figures. Submitted to MNRAS. Derived data products available at this https URL

How to Flip a Bar [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06383


Galactic bars, made up of elongated and aligned stellar orbits, can lose angular momentum via resonant torques with dark matter particles in the halo and slow down. Here we show that if a stellar bar is decelerated to zero rotation speed, it can flip the sign of its angular momentum and reverse rotation direction. We demonstrate this in a collisionless N-body simulation of a galaxy in a live counter-rotating halo. Reversal begins at small radii and propagates outward. The flip generates a kinematically-decoupled core both in the visible galaxy and in the dark matter halo, and counter-rotation generates a large-scale warp of the outer disk with respect to the bar.

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A. Collier and A. Madigan
Fri, 12 May 23
28/53

Comments: 9 pages, 8 figures, MNRAS in review

Time evolution of Ce as traced by APOGEE using giant stars observed with the Kepler, TESS and K2 missions [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06396


Abundances of s-capture process elements in stars with exquisite asteroseismic, spectroscopic, and astrometric constraints offer a novel opportunity to study stellar evolution, nucleosynthesis, and Galactic chemical evolution. We aim to investigate one of the least studied s-process elements in the literature, Ce, using stars with asteroseismic constraints from the Kepler, K2 and TESS missions. We combine the global asteroseismic parameters derived from precise light curves obtained by the Kepler, K2 and TESS missions with chemical abundances from the APOGEE DR17 survey and astrometric data from the Gaia mission. Finally, we compute stellar ages using the code PARAM. We investigate the different trends of [Ce/Fe] as a function of [Fe/H], [alpha/Fe] and age considering the dependence on the radial position, specially in the case of K2 targets which cover a large Galactocentric range. We, finally, explore the [Ce/alpha] ratios as a function of age in different Galactocentric intervals. The studied trends display a strong dependence of the Ce abundances on [Fe/H] and star formation history. Indeed, the [Ce/Fe] ratio shows a non-monotonic dependence on [Fe/H] with a peak around -0.2 dex. Moreover, younger stars have higher [Ce/Fe] and [Ce/alpha] ratios than older stars, confirming the latest contribution of low- and intermediate-mass asymptotic giant branch stars to the Galactic chemical enrichment. In addition, the trends of [Ce/Fe] and [Ce/alpha] with age become steeper moving towards the outer regions of the Galactic disc, demonstrating a more intense star formation in the inner regions than in the outer regions. Ce is thus a potentially interesting element to help constraining stellar yields and the inside-out formation of the Milky Way disc. However, the large scatter in all the relations studied here, suggests that spectroscopic uncertainties for this element are still too large.

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G. Casali, V. Grisoni, A. Miglio, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
31/53

Comments: Accepted for publication in A&A, 18 pages, 18 figures

Halo mass-observable proxy scaling relations and their dependencies on galaxy and group properties [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06803


Based on the DECaLS shear catalog, we study the scaling relations between halo mass($M_{\rm h}$) and various proxies for SDSS central galaxies, including stellar mass($M_$), stellar velocity dispersion($\sigma_$), abundance matching halo mass($M_{\rm AM}$) and satellite velocity dispersion($\sigma_{\rm s}$), and their dependencies on galaxy and group properties. In general, they are all good proxies of $M_{\rm h}$, and their scaling relations are consistent with previous studies. We find that the $M_{\rm h}$-$M_$ and $M_{\rm h}$-$\sigma_$ relations depend strongly on group richness($N_{\rm sat}$), while the $M_{\rm h}$-$M_{\rm AM}$ and $M_{\rm h}$-$\sigma_{\rm s}$ relations are independent of it. Moreover, the dependence on star formation rate(SFR) is rather weak in the $M_{\rm h}$-$\sigma_$ and $M_{\rm h}$-$\sigma_{\rm s}$ relations, but very prominent in the other two. $\sigma_{\rm s}$ is thus the best proxy among them, and its scaling relation is in good agreement with hydro-dynamical simulations. However, estimating $\sigma_{\rm s}$ accurately for individual groups/clusters is challenging because of interlopers and the requirement for sufficient satellites. We construct new proxies by combining $M_$, $\sigma_$, and $M_{\rm AM}$, and find the proxy with 30\% contribution from $M_{\rm AM}$ and 70\% from $\sigma_$ can minimize the dependence on $N_{\rm sat}$ and SFR. We obtain the $M_{\rm h}$-supermassive black hole(SMBH) mass relation via the SMBH scaling relation and find indications for rapid and linear growth phases for SMBH. We also find that correlations among $M_{\rm h}$, $M_$ and $\sigma_$ change with $M_*$, indicating that different processes drive the growth of galaxies and SMBH at different stages.

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Z. Zhang, H. Wang, W. Luo, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
37/53

Comments: 24 pages, 12 figures and 3 tables

Intracluster light in the core of z~2 galaxy proto-clusters [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06385


Intracluster light is thought to originate from stars that were ripped away from their parent galaxies by gravitational tides and galaxy interactions during the build up of the cluster. The stars from such interactions will accumulate over time, so semi-analytic models suggest that the abundance of intracluster stars is negligible in young proto-clusters at z~2 and grows to around a quarter of the stellar mass in the oldest, most mature clusters. In contrast to these theoretical expectations, we report on the detection of intracluster light within two proto-clusters at z=2 using deep HST images. We use the colour of the intracluster light to estimate its mass-to-light ratio in annuli around the brightest cluster galaxies (BCG), up to a radius of 100 kpc. We find that $54\pm5$\% and $71\pm3$\% of the stellar mass in these regions is located more than 10 kpc away from the BCGs in the two proto-clusters. This low concentration is similar to BCGs in lower redshift clusters, and distinct from other massive proto-cluster galaxies. This suggests that intracluster stars are already present within the core 100 kpc of proto-clusters. We compare these observations to the Hydrangea hydrodynamical galaxy cluster simulations and find that intracluster stars are predicted to be a generic feature of group-sized halos at z=2. These intracluster stars will gradually move further away from the BCG as the proto-cluster assembles into a cluster.

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S. Werner, N. Hatch, J. Matharu, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
39/53

Comments: 14 pages, 9 figures, paper accepted for publication by MNRAS

A radio-jet driven outflow in the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 2110? [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06366


We present a spatially-resolved study of the ionised gas in the central 2 kpc of the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 2110 and investigate the role of its moderate luminosity radio jet (kinetic radio power of $P_\mathrm{jet} = 2.3 \times 10^{43}\mathrm{erg\ s^{-1}}$). We use new optical integral-field observations taken with the MEGARA spectrograph at GTC. We fit the emission lines with a maximum of two Gaussian components, except at the AGN position where we used three. Aided by existing stellar kinematics, we use the observed velocity and velocity dispersion of the emission lines to classify the different kinematic components. The disc component is characterised by lines with $\sigma \sim 60-200\ \mathrm{km\ s^{-1}}$. The outflow component has typical values of $\sigma \sim 700\ \mathrm{km\ s^{-1}}$ and is confined to the central 400 pc, which is coincident with linear part of the radio jet detected in NGC 2110. At the AGN position, the [O III]$\lambda$5007 line shows high velocity components reaching at least $1000\ \mathrm{km\ s^{-1}}$. This and the high velocity dispersions indicate the presence of outflowing gas outside the galaxy plane. Spatially-resolved diagnostic diagrams reveal mostly LI(N)ER-like excitation in the outflow and some regions in the disc, which could be due to the presence of shocks. However, there is also Seyfert-like excitation beyond the bending of the radio jet, probably tracing the edge of the ionisation cone that intercepts with the disc of the galaxy. NGC 2110 follows well the observational trends between the outflow properties and the jet radio power found for a few nearby Seyfert galaxies. All these pieces of information suggest that part of observed ionised outflow in NGC 2110 might be driven by the radio jet. However, the radio jet was bent at radial distances of 200 pc (in projection) from the AGN, and beyond there, most of the gas in the galaxy disc is rotating.

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L. Arriba, A. Alonso-Herrero, S. García-Burillo, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
44/53

Comments: 25 pages, 22 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in A&A

Exploring connections between the VLBI and optical morphology of AGNs and their host galaxies [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06713


We analyse VLBI and optical images of AGNs and their host galaxies and look for statistical correlations between the shape and orientation of the galaxy and the direction of the jet. We utilise the Astrogeo catalogue, which has over 9000 VLBI sources, many of those with a clear core-jet like structure that allows for the jet position angle to be reliably determined. We then use the VLBI source positions to search for optical counterparts within various optical surveys. In order to parameterise the orientation and shape of the host galaxy, we fitted a Gaussian elliptical model to the optical image, taking the PSF into account. We check our own shape parameters from this fit against the ones provided by the optical surveys. As of yet, no clear correlation between the galaxy morphology and the jet direction is seen.

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D. Gil, J. Hodgson and B. L’Huillier
Fri, 12 May 23
47/53

Comments: IAU Symposium No. 375 Proceedings, 4 pages, 4 figures, 1 table

A Wide View of the Galactic Globular Cluster NGC 2808: Red Giant and Horizontal Branch Star Spatial Distributions [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06419


Wide-field and deep DECam multi-band photometry, combined with HST data for the core of the Galactic globular cluster NGC 2808, allowed us to study the distribution of various stellar sub-populations and stars in different evolutionary phases out to the cluster tidal radius. We used the C_ugi = (u-g)-(g-i) index to identify three chemically distinct sub-populations along the red giant branch and compared their spatial distributions. The most light-element enriched sub-population (P3) is more centrally concentrated; however, it shows a more extended distribution in the external regions of the cluster compared to the primordial (P1) and intermediate (P2) composition populations. Furthermore, the P3 sub-population centroid is off-center relative to those of the P1 and P2 groups. We also analyzed the spatial distribution of horizontal branch stars and found that the relative fraction of red horizontal branch stars increases for radial distances larger than ~ 1.5′ while that of the blue and hotter stars decreases. These new observations, combined with literature spectroscopic measurements, suggest that the red horizontal branch stars are the progeny of all the stellar sub-populations in NGC 2808, i.e. primordial and light-element enhanced, while the blue stars are possibly the result of a combination of the “hot-flasher” and the “helium-enhanced” scenarios. A similar distribution of different red giant branch sub-populations and horizontal branch stars was also found for the most massive Galactic globular cluster, omega Cen, based on combined DECam and HST data, which suggests the two may share a similar origin.

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C. Johnson, A. Calamida, J. Kader, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
49/53

Comments: Accepted for publication in AJ; 22 pages; 16 figures; the full version of table 2 will be available in electronic form with the published version

Revisiting the Properties of X-ray AGN in the SSA22 Protocluster: Normal SMBH and Host-Galaxy Growth for AGN in a $z=3.09$ Overdensity [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06400


We analyze the physical properties of 8 X-ray selected active galactic nuclei (AGN) and one candidate protoquasar system (ADF22A1) in the $z = 3.09$ SSA22 protocluster by fitting their X-ray-to-IR spectral energy distributions (SEDs) using our SED fitting code, Lightning. We recover star formation histories (SFH) for 7 of these systems which are well-fit by composite stellar population plus AGN models. We find indications that 4/9 of the SSA22 AGN systems we study have host galaxies below the main sequence, with $\rm SFR/SFR_{MS} \leq -0.4$. The remaining SSA22 systems, including ADF22A1, are consistent with obscured supermassive black hole (SMBH) growth in star forming galaxies. We estimate the SMBH accretion rates and masses, and compare the properties and SFH of the 9 protocluster AGN systems with X-ray detected AGN candidates in the Chandra Deep Fields (CDF), finding that the distributions of SMBH growth rates, star formation rates, SMBH masses, and stellar masses for the protocluster AGN are consistent with field AGN. We constrain the ratio between the sample-averaged SSA22 SMBH mass and CDF SMBH mass to $<1.41$. While the AGN are located near the density peaks of the protocluster, we find no statistically significant trends between the AGN or host galaxy properties and their location in the protocluster. We interpret the similarity of the protocluster and field AGN populations together with existing results as suggesting that the protocluster and field AGN co-evolve with their hosts in the same ways, while AGN-triggering events are more likely in the protocluster.

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E. Monson, K. Doore, R. Eufrasio, et. al.
Fri, 12 May 23
52/53

Comments: 27 pages, 14 figures, 8 tables. Accepted in ApJ

ALMA 1.1mm Observations of a Conservative Sample of High Redshift Massive Quiescent Galaxies in SHELA [GA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/2305.06309


We present a sample of 30 massive (log$(M_{\ast}/M_\odot) >11$) $z=3-5$ quiescent galaxies selected from the \textit{Spitzer-}HETDEX Exploratory Large Area (SHELA) Survey and observed at 1.1mm with Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) Band 6 observations. These ALMA observations would detect even modest levels of dust-obscured star-formation, on order of $\sim 20 \ M_\odot \textrm{yr}^{-1}$ at $z\sim4$ at a $1\sigma$ level, allowing us to quantify the amount of contamination from dusty star-forming sources in our quiescent sample. Starting with a parent sample of candidate massive quiescent galaxies from the Stevans et al. 2021 v1 SHELA catalog, we use the Bayesian \textsc{Bagpipes} spectral energy distribution fitting code to derive robust stellar masses ($M_$) and star-formation rates (SFRs) for these sources, and select a conservative sample of 36 candidate massive ($M_ > 10^{11}M_\odot$) quiescent galaxies, with specific SFRs at $>2\sigma$ below the star-forming main sequence at $z\sim4$. Based on ALMA imaging, six of these candidate quiescent galaxies have the presence of significant dust-obscured star-formation, thus were removed from our final sample. This implies a $\sim 17\%$ contamination rate from dusty star-forming galaxies with our selection criteria using the v1 SHELA catalog. This conservatively-selected quiescent galaxy sample at $z=3-5$ will provide excellent targets for future observations to better constrain how massive galaxies can both grow and shut-down their star-formation in a relatively short time period.

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K. Chworowsky, S. Finkelstein, J. Spilker, et. al.
Thu, 11 May 23
1/55

Comments: 16 pages, 13 figures