astrophysics-of-galaxies
The slitless spectroscopy mode of the NISP onboard Euclid has enabled efficient spectroscopy of objects within a large FoV. We present a large and homogeneous sample of bright quasars identified from the Euclid Quick Data Release (Q1) by combining high-purity candidate selections from Gaia and WISE with the NISP spectra. Through visual inspection of the Euclid spectra of these quasar candidates, we identify approximately 3500 quasars with reliable redshifts at $0
We present new deep imaging and high-resolution spectroscopy of the extreme-abundance-discrepancy planetary nebula Ou 5, together with photoionization modelling aimed at probing its unusual thermal and chemical structure. The nebula exhibits a nested bipolar morphology, including inner and outer shells, faint outer lobes, and polar knots. Remarkably, all these components share a dynamical age of order 10,000 yr. Thermal broadening of the H alpha line relative to heavier ions implies a hydrogen temperature 3000 K to 6000 K, in contrast to the ~ 10,000 K derived from collisionally excited line diagnostics. This provides independent support for the presence of at least two distinct temperature/metallicity phases, as previously proposed to explain extreme abundance discrepancies. Photoionization models with sinusoidally varying metallicity successfully reproduce the observed nebular spectrum and morphology. A mixture of fluctuations with both extreme and moderate metallicity contrasts is required to simultaneously fit the O II and the [O III] observations. The nebular He II emission demands a hotter and more luminous central star than previously inferred, consistent with a ~ 0.58 solar mass post-AGB progenitor evolving toward a CO white dwarf. Ou 5 thus reinforces the link between close-binary nuclei and extreme abundance discrepancies, and provides a valuable benchmark for understanding how common-envelope ejections give rise to the thermal and abundance inhomogeneities observed in planetary nebulae.
This research quantifies the accuracy of observationally inferred mass-to-magnetic flux ratios in molecular clouds using detailed 3D nonideal magnetohydrodynamic simulations. It reveals that Zeeman-based measurements tend to be upper limits of the true ratio, while polarization-based estimates are fundamentally flawed and offer no reliable physical insight.
Researchers compiled the most extensive catalog of 274 planets and candidates within 280 stellar clusters, finding that moving groups host a higher fraction of planets than open clusters. The study also revealed that young sub-Jupiters rapidly contract into Neptune-sized planets within 100 million years, primarily due to photoevaporation, leading to the early emergence of the hot Neptune desert.
Stellar and AGN-driven feedback processes affect the distribution of gas on a wide range of scales, from within galaxies well into the intergalactic medium. Yet, it remains unclear how feedback, through its connection to key galaxy properties, shapes the radial gas density profile in the host halo. We tackle this question using suites of the EAGLE, IllustrisTNG, and Simba cosmological hydrodynamical simulations, which span a variety of feedback models. We develop a random forest algorithm that predicts the radial gas density profile within haloes from the total halo mass and five global properties of the central galaxy: gas and stellar mass; star formation rate; mass and accretion rate of the central black hole (BH). The algorithm reproduces the simulated gas density profiles with an average accuracy of \sim80-90% over the halo mass range 10^{9.5} \, \mathrm{M}_{\odot} < M_{\rm 200c} < 10^{15} \, \mathrm{M}_{\odot} and redshift interval $0
Numerical simulations provide a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of the role of magnetic fields in the interstellar medium of galaxies and in star formation. However, many existing galaxy-scale numerical simulations impose a Kennicutt-Schmidt (KS) star formation law by construction. In this paper, we present two Arepo simulations of an isolated star-forming galaxy with and without magnetic fields, using sink particles to model star formation without imposing a KS relation. We examine global differences between the models, and investigate the impacts on star formation. We include a time-dependent, non-equilibrium chemical network coupled to a thermal evolution scheme and supernova feedback. Our magnetic field amplifies via dynamo action from a small initial seed field. We find a more compact magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) disc (radius ~ 5.1kpc, compared to ~ 7.4kpc), with a diffuse atomic envelope above and below the plane that is not seen in the hydrodynamic (HD) case. The HD disc displays a smoother, more even radial distribution of gas and star formation, and more bubbly substructure. Our MHD simulation has a higher proportion of dense, gravitationally unbound gas than the HD case, but a lower star formation rate, an average between 125-150Myr of ~ 4.8 solar masses per year, compared to ~ 8.4 solar masses per year. We see a clear shift in the KS relation to higher gas surface densities in the MHD case, more consistent with observations. The additional magnetic support against gravitational collapse seems to raise the threshold gas surface density required for star formation.
Magnetic fields pervade astrophysical systems and strongly influence their dynamics. Because magnetic diffusion is usually much faster than system evolution, ancient fields cannot explain the present magnetization of planets, stars, and galaxies. Instead, self-sustaining dynamos, which convert fluid motion into magnetic energy, offer the most robust explanation. Numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations are essential to understanding this phenomenon. This thesis uses numerical models of self-excited dynamos in two contexts: the interstellar medium (ISM) and the interiors of gas giant planets. First, I use 3D MHD simulations with the Pencil Code to study magnetic growth from irrotational, subsonic expansion flows, a simplified representation of supernova-driven motions in the ISM. These curl-free flows mimic stellar explosions and winds, drive turbulence, and seed magnetic amplification. The second part examines planetary dynamos. I outline the properties of planetary magnetic fields and their modeling through convection in spherical shells. Although many exoplanets are known, their magnetic fields remain difficult to detect, but may be observable through coherent radio emission with new low-frequency instruments. Using 3D dynamo simulations with the MagIC code, coupled to thermodynamic profiles from MESA-based evolution models, I study the magnetic evolution of cold gas giants. The models show a slow decline in field strength, a shift from multipolar to dipolar states, and clear evolutionary trends in dynamo behavior. I also investigate hot Jupiters, where strong irradiation alters convection and rotation. Most remain fast rotators, but massive, distant planets may enter different regimes. When heating is concentrated in outer layers, convection in the dynamo region weakens, reducing expected field strengths and helping explain the absence of confirmed detections in past radio surveys.
We present a comprehensive analysis of the nitrogen-to-oxygen (N/O) abundance ratio in star-forming galaxies at redshift z~1-6, with a median redshift of z=2.7, using deep JWST/NIRSpec spectroscopy. Leveraging detections of faint auroral emission lines in 76 galaxies at z>1 from both the MARTA survey and a large compilation of high-redshift literature objects, we derive direct electron temperature-based abundances for nitrogen and oxygen using rest-frame optical lines. We establish the first high-redshift calibrations of strong-line N/O diagnostics based on direct abundance measurements, finding no significant evolution for either N2O2 = [NII]6585/[OII]3727,3729 and N2S2 = [NII]6585/[SII]6717,6731 diagnostics compared to local realisations. We then investigate the N/O-O/H relation across cosmic time using both direct abundances and strong-line based measurements (additional 430 galaxies). We find evidence for mild but systematic nitrogen enhancement at high redshift: galaxies at z>1 exhibit N/O ratios elevated by ~0.18 dex (median offset) at fixed O/H compared to the local relation, with a more pronounced enhancement at low metallicity (12+log(O/H) < 8.1) where the offset reaches up to ~0.3-0.4 dex. Our results provide the most extensive confirmation of elevated N/O ratios at high-redshift to date based on rest-optical diagnostics. The chemical signatures of N/O-enhanced galaxies in our sample resembles that of first-generation globular cluster stars, suggesting that the moderate nitrogen enhancement may reflect the late stages of a cluster-driven enrichment mode that dominated at earlier cosmic epochs. However, the relevance and relative contribution of different mechanisms (e.g. burstiness of the star-formation history, contribution from older stellar populations, differential metal-loaded outflows, inflows of pristine gas) remains to be fully disentangled.
We present the first data release (DR1) of the Milky Way Imaging Scroll Painting (MWISP) survey, a mapping in the J=(1-0) transition lines of 12CO, 13CO, and C18O toward the northern Galactic plane during 2011-2022. The MWISP survey was conducted using the PMO 13.7 m telescope at a spatial resolution of approximately 50" and a velocity resolution of 0.16 km/s at 115 GHz. DR1 fully covered 2310 square degrees within the Galactic longitude (l) and latitude (b) range of 9.75 deg =< l=< 229.75 deg and |b| =< 5.25 deg. The surveyed area was divided into cell units of 30'x30' for practical purposes and On-The-Fly (OTF) mapping was performed toward each target cell unit. The data were regridded into a regular 3D datacube in l-b-V_LSR with a pixel size of 30" in l-b axes and 0.16 km/s in theV_LSR axis. The median rms noise is 0.47 K, 0.25 K, and 0.25 K for 12CO, 13CO, and C18O, respectively. The equivalent 3 sigma sensitivity in 12CO luminosity is approximately 0.23 K km/s, making MWISP the most sensitive survey of its kind. In this paper, we describe the survey data, including the calibration, data cleaning, data mosaic processes, and the data products. The final mosaicked data cubes contain about 3.33x10^7 spectra (pixels) for each CO isotopologue line. Color composite images, made from the intensities of the isotopologue lines, and some concise descriptions are provided. We constructed a molecular cloud catalog based on the mosaicked 12CO data cube using the clustering algorithm DBSCAN, detecting 103,517 molecular clouds, 10,790 of which exhibit 13CO emission and 304 of which show C18O emission. Based on the histogram of voxel brightness temperature, we estimated a total 12CO flux of 7.69+/-0.38x10^7 K km/s arcmin^2, 82% of which is captured by the DBSCAN algorithm. The data, together with the cloud sample, provide unique information on molecular gas in the northern Milky Way.
The X-ray--to--UV relation of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), commonly parametrized via the monochromatic luminosities at 2500A˚2500\,\mathring{A} and 2keV2\,keV, reflects the energetic interplay between the accretion disc and the X-ray-emitting corona, and is key for understanding accretion physics. Previous studies suggest that disc-dominated emission becomes more prominent with increasing optical luminosity. However, the redshift evolution of this relation remains debated, and a dependence on Eddington ratio, predicted by accretion flow models, is still observationally unconstrained. We revisit this relation using a large, nearly all-sky sample by combining the SDSS DR16Q QSO catalogue with X-ray data from XMM-Newton and the SRG/eROSITA All-Sky Survey DR1, yielding 136,745 QSOs at redshifts 0.5 \leq z &lt; 3.0. We introduce a hierarchical Bayesian framework that treats X-ray detections and upper limits uniformly, enabling robust inference from both parametric and non-parametric models. We confirm a tight, sublinear logLX(2keV)\log L_X({\rm 2\,keV})-logLν(2500A˚)\log L_{\nu}({\rm 2500\,\mathring{A}}) correlation, but with a normalization at the lower end of previous estimates. Contrary to most literature results, we detect a mild but systematic redshift evolution: the relation flattens and its intrinsic scatter decreases at higher redshift. This trend is consistent with disc emission increasingly dominated by scattering and enhanced energy transfer to the X-ray corona, potentially indicating redshift evolution in the X-ray bolometric correction. We find no significant dependence on Eddington ratio, in tension with recent accretion flow models.
Direct-collapse black holes (DCBHs) are an important component of the massive black hole population of the early universe, and their formation and early mergers will be prominent in the data stream of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). However, the population and binary properties of these early black holes are poorly understood, with masses, mass ratios, spins, and orbital eccentricities strongly dependent on the details of their formation, and the properties of the remaining exterior material (baryonic and non-baryonic), which may be substantial to the point of merger. We report on initial work to simulate the formation, collapse, and/or merger of such DCBH regions in order to extract the resulting gravitational-wave signals.
XRISM/Resolve observations of NGC 3516 provided the first intra-observation variability detection in highly ionized X-ray absorbers, constraining gas density to >10^6 cm^-3 and distance to <11.6 light days for one outflow. The study identified eight distinct photoionized gas components, including a transient ultra-fast inflow at ~14,800 km/s, and found a 40 ks oscillatory "rocking" motion in the Fe Kα emission correlated with continuum flux.
Interstellar objects are the ejected building blocks of other solar systems. As such, they enable the acquisition of otherwise inaccessible information about nascent extrasolar systems. The discovery of the third interstellar object, 3I/ATLAS, provides an opportunity to explore the properties of a small body from another solar system and to compare it to the small bodies in our own. To that end, we present spectrophotometric observations of 3I/ATLAS taken using the SuperNova Integral Field Spectrograph on the University of Hawaii 2.2-m telescope. Our data includes the earliest λ3800\lambda\leq3800 A spectrum of 3I/ATLAS, obtained \sim12.5 hours after the discovery announcement. Later spectra confirm previously reported cometary activity, including Ni and CN emission. The data show wavelength-varying spectral slopes (S(S\approx(0\%-29\%)/1000 A, depending on wavelength range) throughout the pre-perihelion (rh=4.4r_h=4.4-2.52.5 au) approach of 3I/ATLAS. We perform synthetic photometry on our spectra and find 3I/ATLAS shows mostly stable color evolution over the period of our observations, with grg-r colors ranging from \sim0.69-0.75 mag, rir-i colors ranging from \sim0.26-0.30 mag, and coc-o colors ranging from \sim0.50-0.55 mag. Ongoing post-perihelion observations of 3I/ATLAS will provide further insight into its potentially extreme composition.
The Infrared Surface Brightness (IRSB) technique is a specific application of the Baade-Wesselink method. Given a proper calibration, well covered optical and near-infrared photometry, as well as radial velocity curves, it allows for estimation of distances to individual pulsating stars and determination of their mean radii. The technique is fully empirical and does not depend on stellar atmosphere models. The goal of the work is to test the precision of distance determinations to individual RR Lyrae stars and to their host system as a whole using the IRSB technique for a relatively distant globular cluster M 3 (NGC 5272). We also aim to determine mean radii and period-radius relations for these stars in order to compare them with the existing theoretical prediction and empirical estimations for the field stars from the solar neighborhood. We use data available in the literature and the calibration of the IRSB technique based on the RR Lyrae stars from the solar neighborhood we published previously in order to determine distances to 14 RR Lyrae stars in the globular cluster M 3. We study the impact of the selection of the fitting procedure (bisector v.s. the LS fit) on the results. We apply five different empirical surface brightness-color relations from the literature in the analysis. We obtained a mean distance to M 3 of rM3=(10.07±0.19±0.29)kpcr_{M3} = (10.07 \pm 0.19 \pm 0.29) \,kpc that corresponds to a distance modulus μM3=(15.015±0.041±0.063)mag{\mu}_{M3} = (15.015 \pm 0.041 \pm 0.063) \,mag and a 7%7\% scatter of individual stellar distances for 14 RR Lyrae stars in M 3. We received a very good agreement between the two fitting techniques. We also determined mean stellar radii for pulsators from the sample with a precision of 0.5%0.5\% and obtained excellent agreement with a theoretical prediction of the period-radius relation for RRab stars available in the literature.
We present a systematic investigation of 1,481 Galactic open clusters (OCs) through the application of the Limepy dynamical model, from which we derive the fundamental structural parameters of OCs. We conduct the statistical analyses on the structural parameters with clusters' ages and locations within the Milky Way. Our results reveal the higher concentration in the cluster centeris associated with the sharper truncation at the periphery of cluster, which is consistent with previous findings for globular clusters(GCs). We further find the systematic increase of the lower limit of clusters' half-mass radius (Rh) with age. Our results also show that OCs located at larger vertical distances from the Galactic plane systematically display higher central concentrations. Our findings collectively suggest that the structural characteristics of OCs are shaped by both intrinsic evolutionary processes and interactions with the Galactic environment. During the evolution of star clusters, the combined effects of mass segregation and tidal stripping lead to the systematic pattern between central concentration and outer truncation. Clusters of different ages and locations within the Milky Way undergo different evolutionary histories, resulting in correlations between the Rh and age, as well as between central concentration and galactic location.
The FIRESTORM project--Feedback-Induced Regions and Emission from Star-forming Tracers of ObseRvable Molecular Gas--has targeted four star-forming regions to quantify the impact of stellar feedback on star formation. In this paper, we present multiwavelength results for one of the targets, the nearby high-mass star-forming region W40. Using dense-gas tracers C18^{18}O(1--0) and H13^{13}CO+^+(1--0), we identified six velocity-coherent filaments: five at \vlsr \sim\,7.5\kms\! and one at \vlsr \sim\,5\kms. Four of these converge towards an infrared-bright cluster hosting the most massive star of the region (IRS 1A South, O9.5V), forming a hub-filament system (HFS). Key physical parameters, including filament lengths, widths, masses, velocity dispersions, and line masses, are derived. Five dense clumps traced by N2_2H+^+(1--0) exhibit subsonic to transonic turbulence, contrasting with the supersonic motions of their parental filaments, indicating turbulence dissipation. A deficit of emission at \vlsr \sim\,7\kms\! in several molecular lines, along with a blueshifted absorption dip in the HCN(1--0) profile, suggests that emission from OB-heated gas is being absorbed by a cold foreground cloud. A bridge-like feature in position-velocity space connects the \vlsr \sim\,5 and \sim\,7.5\kms\! filaments, and spatially coinciding with dense condensations and radio continuum peaks. These findings suggest that a past interaction--likely a cloud-cloud collision--triggered the formation of HFS and ultimately the central massive cluster.
The XRISM/Resolve microcalorimeter directly measured the gas velocities in the core of the Virgo Cluster, the closest example of AGN feedback in a cluster. This proximity allows us to resolve the kinematic impact of feedback on scales down to 5 kpc. Our spectral analysis reveals a high velocity dispersion of σv\sigma_v=262 (+45 / -38) km/s near the AGN, which steeply declines to ~60 km/s between 5 and 25 kpc in the northwest direction. The observed line-of-sight bulk velocity in all regions is broadly consistent with the central galaxy, M87, with a mild trend toward blueshifted motions at larger radii. Systematic uncertainties have been carefully assessed and do not affect the measurements. The central velocities, if attributed entirely to isotropic turbulence, correspond to a transonic ICM at sub-6 kpc scales with three-dimensional Mach number 0.69 (+0.14 / -0.11) and a non-thermal pressure fraction of 21 (+7 / -5)%. Simple models of weak shocks and sound waves and calculations assuming isotropic turbulence both support the hypothesis that the velocity field reflects a mix of shock-driven expansion and turbulence. Compared to other clusters observed by XRISM to date, M87's central region stands out as the most kinematically disturbed, exhibiting both the highest velocity dispersion and the largest 3D Mach number, concentrated at the smallest physical scales.
We study the effects of escaping cosmic rays (CRs) on the interstellar medium (ISM) around their source with spherically symmetric CR-hydrodynamical simulations taking into account the evolution of the CR energy spectrum, radiative cooling, and thermal conduction. We show how the escaping CRs accelerate and heat the ISM fluid depending on the CR diffusion coefficient. The CR heating effects are potentially responsible for the recent observations of the unexpected Hα\alpha and [OIII]λ\lambda5007 lines in old supernova remnants. The implied gas outflow by CRs can be comparable to the Galactic star formation rate, compatible with the Galactic wind required for the metal-polluted halo gas and the production of eROSITA bubbles. Assuming a locally suppressed CR diffusion and a few nearby CR sources in the Local Bubble, we also propose alternative interpretations for the Galactic CR proton spectrum around the Earth measured with CALET, AMS02, and Voyager I.
Understanding the physical conditions and feedback mechanisms in early massive galaxies is essential to uncover how they formed and evolved during the first billion years of the Universe. In this context, the galaxy EGSY8p7/CEERS-1019 at z=8.6 provides an excellent benchmark, given its stellar mass of 109.3M10^{9.3}M_\odot and elevated N/O abundance despite its sub-solar metallicity. In this study, we present new JWST/NIRSpec observations offering the first spatially resolved spectroscopy of this galaxy, with higher sensitivity and spectral resolution than previous studies. We identify broad (FWHM=650km/s) Hβ\beta and [OIII] emission components whose emission is located between the two rest-frame UV clumps of the galaxy and extended over a distance of 1kpc\sim1kpc. The morphology and kinematics of these components indicate that the broad emission arises from outflowing gas rather than from an AGN broad-line region. The kinetic energy injection rate from stellar feedback is an order of magnitude higher than that of the outflow, while the radiation pressure rate is comparable to the outflow momentum rate. These results suggest that stellar feedback alone can drive the outflow, with radiation pressure potentially providing the required momentum transfer. We derive a low mass-loading factor (η=0.16\eta=0.16) and ionizing photon escape fraction (fesc=0.021±0.014f_{esc}=0.021\pm0.014). Together with the high electron density measured (ne=2200cm3n_e=2200cm^{-3}), these results support the interpretation that most of the gas remains confined within the galaxy. Comparisons of diagnostic emission-line ratios with photoionization and shock models support a star-formation-driven ionization scenario, ruling out any excitation by AGN radiation. Finally, the absence of detectable Wolf-Rayet features suggests that alternative mechanisms must be considered to explain the high N/O ratio in this galaxy.
For over a decade, both theoretical predictions and observational studies have suggested that ω\omega Centauri (ω\omega Cen), the most massive Milky Way globular cluster, might harbor an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH). Recently, identification of fast-moving stars in the core of ω\omega Cen provided the strongest evidence to date for the presence of such an IMBH. One of the key questions in the study of IMBHs is their accretion efficiency, which determines their radio and X-ray signatures. We investigate the accretion signature of the IMBH in ω\omega Cen with ultra-deep radio continuum observations of the central region of the cluster. Using approximately 170 hours of Australia Telescope Compact Array observations, we achieve a root mean square noise of 1.1 μ\muJy at 7.25 GHz, making this the most sensitive radio image of the cluster to date. We detect no radio emission at any of the proposed centers of the cluster, imposing stringent constraints on the presence of an accreting IMBH in ω\omega Cen. Considering the fundamental plane of black hole activity, our findings indicate that the accretion efficiency around the black hole is exceptionally low (with a conservative 3-σ\sigma upper limit of ϵ4×103\epsilon \lesssim 4\times10^{-3}).
There are no more papers matching your filters at the moment.