We present the Large Area Radio Galaxy Evolution Spectroscopic Survey (LARGESS), a spectroscopic catalogue of radio sources designed to include the full range of radio AGN populations out to redshift z~0.8. The catalogue covers ~800deg^2^ of sky, and provides optical identifications for 19179 radio sources from the 1.4GHz Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-cm (FIRST) survey down to an optical magnitude limit of i_mod_<20.5 in Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) images. Both galaxies and point-like objects are included, and no colour cuts are applied. In collaboration with the WiggleZ and Galaxy And Mass Assembly (GAMA) spectroscopic survey teams, we have obtained new spectra for over 5000 objects in the LARGESS sample. Combining these new spectra with data from earlier surveys provides spectroscopic data for 12329 radio sources in the survey area, of which 10 856 have reliable redshifts. 85 per cent of the LARGESS spectroscopic sample are radio AGN (median redshift z=0.44), and 15 per cent are nearby star-forming galaxies (median z=0.08). Low-excitation radio galaxies (LERGs) comprise the majority (83 per cent) of LARGESS radio AGN at z<0.8, with 12 per cent being high-excitation radio galaxies (HERGs) and 5 per cent radio-loud QSOs. Unlike the more homogeneous LERG and QSO sub-populations, HERGs are a heterogeneous class of objects with relatively blue optical colours and a wide dispersion in mid-infrared colours. This is consistent with a picture in which most HERGs are hosted by galaxies with recent or ongoing star formation as well as a classical accretion disc.
We present a catalogue of accurate positions and correlated flux densities for 410 flat-spectrum, compact extragalactic radio sources previously detected in the AT20G survey. The catalogue spans the declination range [-90{deg}, -40{deg}] and was constructed from four 24-hour VLBI observing sessions with the Australian Long Baseline Array at 8.3GHz. The VLBI detection rate in these experiments is 97%, the median uncertainty of the source positions is 2.6mas, and the median correlated flux density on projected baselines longer than 1000km is 0.14Jy. The goals of this work are 1) to provide a pool of southern sources with positions accurate to a few milliarcsec, which can be used for phase referencing observations, geodetic VLBI and space navigation; 2) to extend the complete flux-limited sample of compact extragalactic sources to the southern hemisphere; and 3) to investigate the parsec-scale properties of high-frequency selected sources from the AT20G survey. As a result of this VLBI campaign, the number of compact radio sources south of declination -40 deg which have measured VLBI correlated flux densities and positions known to milliarcsec accuracy has increased by a factor of 3.5. The catalogue and supporting material is available at http://astrogeo.org/lcs1.
We have used the VLA at 1.4GHz to survey the inner 2{deg} of the Galactic center for radio pulsar candidates. Because of the large pulse broadening suffered by Galactic center radio pulsars, our strategy has been to identify compact radio sources, without regard to whether they are pulsed radio sources. We describe our survey and present the catalog of 170 sources. Comparison with other radio surveys of the area shows that just over half of these sources have not been detected previously; this same comparison reveals 29 sources that are not in higher frequency surveys, suggesting that the sources are either variable or steep spectrum, and a comparable number of sources in other surveys that should have been detected in this survey but were not. Comparison with infrared surveys shows that 59 (35%) sources have infrared counterparts and are likely to be HII regions.
Calibrated data for 143 flat-spectrum extragalactic radio sources are presented at a wavelength of 850um covering a 5-yr period from 2000 April. The data, obtained at the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope using the Submillimetre Common-User Bolometer Array (SCUBA) camera in pointing mode, were analysed using an automated pipeline process based on the Observatory Reduction and Acquisition Control - Data Reduction (ORAC-DR) system. This paper describes the techniques used to analyse and calibrate the data, and presents the data base of results along with a representative sample of the better-sampled light curves. A re-analysis of previously published data from 1997 to 2000 is also presented. The combined catalogue, comprising 10493 flux density measurements, provides a unique and valuable resource for studies of extragalactic radio sources.
We present first-epoch, milliarcsecond-scale linear polarization images at 15GHz of 133 jets associated with active galactic nuclei (AGNs) from the MOJAVE (Monitoring of Jets in Active Galactic Nuclei with VLBA Experiments) survey. MOJAVE is a long-term observational program to study the structure and evolution of relativistic outflows in AGNs. The sample consists of all known AGNs with Galactic latitude |b|>2.5{deg}, J2000.0 declination greater than -20{deg} and correlated 15GHz Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) flux density exceeding 1.5Jy (2Jy for sources below the celestial equator) at any epoch during the period 1994-2003.
This catalogue is a compilation of all the data of linear polarization of radio sources published prior to December 1978. The catalogue contained 7224 data for 1510 radio sources. Polarization parameters derived from the data are also tabulated with other physical parameters.
We present high-resolution millimeter continuum ALMA observations of the disks around the T Tauri stars LkCa 15 and 2MASS J16100501-2132318 (hereafter, J1610). These transition disks host dust-depleted inner regions, which have possibly been carved by massive planets, and they are of prime interest to the study of the imprints of planet-disk interactions. While at moderate angular resolution, they appear as a broad ring surrounding a cavity, the continuum emission resolves into multiple rings at a resolution of ~60x40,mas (~7.5au for LkCa 15, ~6au for J1610) and ~7uJy/beam rms at 1.3mm. In addition to a broad extended component, LkCa 15 and J1610 host three and two narrow rings, respectively, with two bright rings in LkCa 15 being radially resolved. LkCa 15 possibly hosts another faint ring close to the outer edge of the mm emission. The rings look marginally optically thick, with peak optical depths of ~0.5 (neglecting scattering), in agreement with high angular resolution observations of full disks. We performed hydrodynamical simulations with an embedded, sub-Jovian-mass planet and show that the observed multi-ringed substructure can be qualitatively explained as the outcome of the planet-disk interaction. We note, however, that the choice of the disk cooling timescale alone can significantly impact the resulting gas and dust distributions around the planet, leading to different numbers of rings and gaps and different spacings between them. We propose that the massive outer disk regions of transition disks are favorable places for planetesimals, and possibly second-generation planet formation of objects with a lower mass than the planets carving the inner cavity (typically few M_Jup_), and that the annular substructures observed in LkCa~15 and J1610 may be indicative of planetary core formation within dust-rich pressure traps. Current observations are compatible with other mechanisms contributing to the origin of the observed substructures, in particular with regard to narrow rings generated (or facilitated) at the edge of the CO and N_2_ snowlines.
We present a broadband polarization analysis of 36 discrete polarized radio sources over a very broad, densely sampled frequency band. Our sample was selected on the basis of polarization behavior apparent in narrowband archival data at 1.4GHz: half the sample shows complicated frequency-dependent polarization behavior (i.e., Faraday complexity) at these frequencies, while half shows comparatively simple behavior (i.e., they appear Faraday simple). We re-observed the sample using the Australia Telescope Compact Array in full polarization, with 6GHz of densely sampled frequency coverage spanning 1.3-10GHz. We have devised a general polarization modeling technique that allows us to identify multiple polarized emission components in a source, and to characterize their properties. We detect Faraday complex behavior in almost every source in our sample. Several sources exhibit particularly remarkable polarization behavior. By comparing our new and archival data, we have identified temporal variability in the broadband integrated polarization spectra of some sources. In a number of cases, the characteristics of the polarized emission components, including the range of Faraday depths over which they emit, their temporal variability, spectral index, and the linear extent of the source, allow us to argue that the spectropolarimetric data encode information about the magneto-ionic environment of active galactic nuclei themselves. Furthermore, the data place direct constraints on the geometry and magneto-ionic structure of this material. We discuss the consequences of restricted frequency bands on the detection and interpretation of polarization structures, and the implications for upcoming spectropolarimetric surveys.
Dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies are key objects in near-field cosmology, especially in connection to the study of galaxy formation and evolution at small scales. In addition, dSphs are optimal targets to investigate the nature of dark matter. However, while we begin to have deep optical photometric observations of the stellar population in these objects, little is known so far about their diffuse emission at any observing frequency, and hence on thermal and non-thermal plasma possibly residing within dSphs. In this paper, we present deep radio observations of six local dSphs performed with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) at 16cm wavelength. We mosaicked a region of radius of about 1{deg} around three 'classical' dSphs, Carina, Fornax, and Sculptor, and of about half of degree around three 'ultrafaint' dSphs, BootesII, Segue2, and Hercules. The rms noise level is below 0.05 mJy for all the maps. The restoring beams full width at half-maximum ranged from 4.2"x2.5" to 30.0"x2.1" in the most elongated case. A catalogue including the 1392 sources detected in the six dSph fields is reported. The main properties of the background sources are discussed, with positions and fluxes of brightest objects compared with the FIRST, NVSS, and SUMSS observations of the same fields. The observed population of radio emitters in these fields is dominated by synchrotron sources. We compute the associated source number counts at 2GHz down to fluxes of 0.25mJy, which prove to be in agreement with AGN count models.
Supermassive black holes at the centres of galaxies can cycle through periods of activity and quiescence. Characterising the duty cycle of active galactic nuclei (AGN) is crucial for understanding the impact of the energy they release on the host galaxy. For radio AGN, this can be done by identifying dying (remnant) and restarted radio galaxies from their radio spectral properties. Using the combination of the images at 1400MHz produced by Apertif, the new phased-array feed receiver installed on the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope, and images at 150MHz provided by LOFAR, we have derived resolved spectral index images (at a resolution of 15 arcsec) for all the sources within an approximately 6 deg^2^ area of the Lockman Hole region. In this way, we were able to select 15 extended radio sources with emission (partly or entirely) characterised by extremely steep spectral indices (steeper than 1.2). These objects represent cases of radio sources in the remnant or the restarted phases of their life cycle. Our findings confirm that these objects are not as rare as previously thought, suggesting a relatively fast cycle. They also show a variety of properties that can be relevant for modelling the evolution of radio galaxies. For example, the restarted activity can occur while the remnant structure from a previous phase of activity is still visible. This provides constraints on the duration of the 'off' (dying) phase. In extended remnants with ultra-steep spectra at low frequencies, the activity likely stopped a few hundred megayears ago, and they correspond to the older tail of the age distribution of radio galaxies, in agreement with the results of simulations of radio source evolution. We find remnant radio sources with a variety of structures (from double-lobed to amorphous), possibly suggesting different types of progenitors. The present work sets the stage for exploiting the powerful tool of low-frequency spectral index studies of extended sources by taking advantage of the large areas common to the LOFAR and the Apertif surveys.
