We present a summary of data obtained with the 350um polarimeter, Hertz, at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory. We give tabulated results and maps showing polarization vectors and intensity contours. The summary includes over 4300 individual measurements in 56 Galactic sources and two galaxies. Of these measurements, 2153 have P>=3{sigma}_p_ statistical significance. The median polarization of the entire data set is 1.46%.
500um risers with HerMES & SPIRE drop-outs with S2CLS
Short Name:
J/ApJS/249/1
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
We present the results of our systematic search for the reddest far-infrared (FIR) and submillimeter (sub-mm) galaxies using the data from the Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES) and the SCUBA2 Cosmological Legacy Survey (S2CLS). The red FIR galaxies are "500{mu}m risers," whose spectral energy distributions increase with wavelength across the three FIR passbands of the Spectral and Photometric Imaging REceiver (SPIRE) of Herschel. Within 106.5deg^2^ of the HerMES fields, we have selected 629 500{mu}m risers. The red sub-mm galaxies are "SPIRE drop-outs," which are prominent detections in the S2CLS 850{mu}m data but are extremely weak or invisible in the SPIRE bands. Within the 2.98deg^2^ common area of HerMES and S2CLS, we have selected 95 such objects. These very red sources could be dusty starbursts at high redshifts (z>~4-6) because the peak of their cold-dust emission heated by star formation is shifted to the reddest FIR/sub-mm bands. The surface density of 500{mu}m risers is ~8.2deg^-2^ at the >=20mJy level in 500{mu}m, while that of SPIRE drop-outs is ~19.3deg^-2^ at the >=5mJy level in 850{mu}m. Both types of objects could span a wide range of redshifts, however. Using deep radio data in these fields to further select the ones likely at the highest redshifts, we find that the surface density of z>6 candidates is 5.5deg^-2^ among 500{mu}m risers and is 0.8-13.6deg^-2^ among SPIRE drop-outs. If this is correct, the dust-embedded star formation processes in such objects could contribute comparably as Lyman-break galaxies to the global SFR density at z>6.
Stellar bars play an essential role in the secular evolution of disk galaxies because they are responsible for the redistribution of matter and angular momentum. Dynamical models predict that bars become stronger and longer in time, while their rotation speed slows down. We use the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S^4^G) 3.6um imaging to study the properties (length and strength) and fraction of bars at z=0 over a wide range of galaxy masses (M*~=10^8^-10^11^M_{sun}_) and Hubble types (-3<=T<=10). We calculated gravitational forces from the 3.6um images for galaxies with a disk inclination lower than 65{deg}. We used the maximum of the tangential-to-radial force ratio in the bar region (Qb) as a measure of the bar-induced perturbation strength for a sample of ~600 barred galaxies. We also used the maximum of the normalized m=2 Fourier density amplitude (A_2_^max^) and the bar isophotal ellipticity ({epsilon}) to characterize the bar. Bar sizes were estimated i) visually, ii) from ellipse fitting, iii) from the radii of the strongest torque, and iv) from the radii of the largest m=2 Fourier amplitude in the bar region. By combining our force calculations with the HI kinematics from the literature, we estimated the ratio of the halo-to-stellar mass (Mh/M*) within the optical disk and by further using the universal rotation curve models, we obtained a first-order model of the rotation curve decomposition of 1128 disk galaxies. We probe possible sources of uncertainty in our Qb measurements: the assumed scale height and its radial variation, the influence of the spiral arms torques, the effect of non-stellar emission in the bar region, and the dilution of the bar forces by the dark matter halo (our models imply that only ~10% of the disks in our sample are maximal). We find that for early- and intermediate-type disks (-3<=T<5), the relatively modest influence of the dark matter halo leads to a systematic reduction of the mean Qb by about 10-15%, which is of the same order as the uncertainty associated with estimating the vertical scale height. The halo correction on Qb becomes important for later types, implying a reduction of ~20-25% for T=7-10. Whether the halo correction is included or not, the mean Qb shows an increasing trend with T. However, the mean A_2_^max^ decreases for lower mass late-type systems. These opposing trends are most likely related to the reduced force dilution by bulges when moving towards later type galaxies. Nevertheless, when treated separately, both the early- and late-type disk galaxies show a strong positive correlation between Qb and A_2_^max^. For spirals the mean {epsilon}~0.5 is nearly independent of T, but it drops among S0s (~0.2). The Qb and {epsilon} show a relatively tight dependence, with only a slight difference between early and late disks. For spirals, all our bar strength indicators correlate with the bar length (scaled to isophotal size). Late-type bars are longer than previously found in the literature. The bar fraction shows a double-humped distribution in the Hubble sequence (~75% for Sab galaxies), with a local minimum at T=4 (~40%), and it drops for M*<~10^9.5-10^M_{sun}_. If we use bar identification methods based on Fourier decomposition or ellipse fitting instead of the morphological classification, the bar fraction decreases by ~30-50% for late-type systems with T>=5 and correlates with Mh/M*. Our Mh/M* ratios agree well with studies based on weak lensing analysis, abundance matching, and halo occupation distribution methods, under the assumption that the halo inside the optical disk contributes roughly a constant fraction of the total halo mass (~4%). We find possible evidence for the growth of bars within a Hubble time, as (1) bars in early-type galaxies show larger density amplitudes and disk-relative sizes than their intermediate-type counterparts, and (2) long bars are typically strong. We also observe two clearly distinct types of bars, between early- and intermediate-type galaxies (T<5) on one side, and the late-type systems on the other, based on the differences in the bar properties. Most likely this distinction is connected to the higher halo-to-stellar ratio that we observe in later types, which affects the disk stability properties.
We describe observations of 9.7um silicate features in 97 AGNs, exhibiting a wide range of AGN types and of X-ray extinction toward the central nuclei. We find that the strength of the silicate feature correlates with the HI column density estimated from fitting the X-ray data, such that low HI columns correspond to silicate emission, while high columns correspond to silicate absorption. The behavior is generally consistent with unification models in which the large diversity in AGN properties is caused by viewing-angle-dependent obscuration of the nucleus. Radio-loud AGNs and radio-quiet quasars follow roughly the correlation between HI columns and the strength of the silicate feature defined by Seyfert galaxies. The agreement among AGN types suggests a high-level unification with similar characteristics for the structure of the obscuring material. We demonstrate the implications for unification models qualitatively with a conceptual disk model. The model includes an inner accretion disk (<0.1pc in radius), a middle disk (0.110pc in radius) with a dense diffuse component and with embedded denser clouds, and an outer clumpy disk (10-300pc in radius).
The mass-loss mechanism in red giants and red supergiants is not yet understood well. The SiO fundamental lines near 8 m are potentially useful for probing the outer atmosphere, which is essential for clarifying the mass-loss mechanism. However, these lines have been little explored until now. We present high spectral resolution spectroscopic observations of the SiO fundamental lines near 8.1um in 16 bright red giants and red supergiants. Our sample consists of seven normal (i.e., non-Mira) K-M giants (from K1.5 to M6.5), three Mira stars, three optically bright red supergiants, two dusty red supergiants, and the enigmatic object GCIRS3 near the Galactic center.
Red quasars are very red in the optical through near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths, which is possibly due to dust extinction in their host galaxies as expected in a scenario in which red quasars are an intermediate population between merger-driven star-forming galaxies and unobscured type 1 quasars. However, alternative mechanisms also exist to explain their red colors: (i) an intrinsically red continuum; (ii) an unusual high covering factor of the hot dust component, that is, CF_HD_=L_HD_/L_bol_, where the L_HD_ is the luminosity from the hot dust component and the L_bol_ is the bolometric luminosity; and (iii) a moderate viewing angle. In order to investigate why red quasars are red, we studied optical and NIR spectra of 20 red quasars at z~0.3 and 0.7, where the usage of the NIR spectra allowed us to look into red quasar properties in ways that are little affected by dust extinction. The Paschen to Balmer line ratios were derived for 13 red quasars and the values were found to be ~10 times higher than unobscured type 1 quasars, suggesting a heavy dust extinction with A_V_>2.5mag. Furthermore, the Paschen to Balmer line ratios of red quasars are difficult to explain with plausible physical conditions without adopting the concept of the dust extinction. The CF_HD_ of red quasars are similar to, or marginally higher than, those of unobscured type 1 quasars. The Eddington ratios, computed for 19 out of 20 red quasars, are higher than those of unobscured type 1 quasars (by factors of 3-5), and hence the moderate viewing angle scenario is disfavored. Consequently, these results strongly suggest the dust extinction that is connected to an enhanced nuclear activity as the origin of the red color of red quasars, which is consistent with the merger-driven quasar evolution scenario.
Gravity modifies the spectral features of young brown dwarfs (BDs). A proper characterization of these objects is crucial for the identification of the least massive and latest-type objects in star-forming regions, and to explain the origin(s) of the peculiar spectrophotometric properties of young directly imaged extrasolar planets and BD companions. We obtained medium-resolution (R~1500-1700) near-infrared (1.1-2.5um) spectra of seven young M9.5-L3 dwarfs classified at optical wavelengths. We aim to empirically confirm the low surface gravity of the objects in the near-infrared. We also test whether self-consistent atmospheric models correctly represent the formation and the settling of dust clouds in the atmosphere of young late-M and L dwarfs. We used the Infrared Spectrometer And Array Camera (ISAAC) at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) to obtain the spectra of the targets. We compared the spectra to those of mature and young BDs, and to young late-type companions to nearby stars with known ages, to identify and study gravity-sensitive features. We computed spectral indices weakly sensitive to the surface gravity to derive near-infrared spectral types. Finally, we found the best fit between each spectrum and synthetic spectra from the BT-Settl 2010 and 2013 atmospheric models. Using the best fit, we derived the atmospheric parameters of the objects and identified which spectral characteristics the models do not reproduce.
We study the m=1 distortions (lopsidedness) in the stellar components of 167 nearby galaxies that span a wide range of morphologies and luminosities. We confirm the previous findings of (1) a high incidence of lopsidedness in the stellar distributions, (2) increasing lopsidedness as a function of radius out to at least 3.5 exponential scale lengths, and (3) greater lopsidedness, over these radii, for galaxies of later type and lower surface brightness. Additionally, the magnitude of the lopsidedness (1) correlates with the character of the spiral arms (stronger arm patterns occur in galaxies with less lopsidedness), (2) is not correlated with the presence or absence of a bar, or the strength of the bar when one is present, (3) is inversely correlated to the stellar mass fraction, f_*_, within one radial scale length, and (4) correlates directly with f_*_ measured within the radial range over which we measure lopsidedness. We interpret these findings to mean that lopsidedness is a generic feature of galaxies and does not, generally, depend on a rare event, such as a direct accretion of a satellite galaxy onto the disk of the parent galaxy. While lopsidedness may be caused by several phenomena, moderate lopsidedness (<A_1_>_i_+<A_1_>_o_)/2<0.3) is likely to reflect halo asymmetries to which the disk responds or a gravitationally self-generated mode. We hypothesize that the magnitude of the stellar response depends both on how centrally concentrated the stars are with respect to the dark matter and whether there are enough stars in the region of the lopsidedness that self-gravity is dynamically important.
We present the image and catalogue of the 14.3{mu}m hallow survey of 0.55 square degrees in the region of the Lockman Hole (10h 52m 03s, +57{deg} 21' 46", J2000). The data have been analyzed with the recent algorithm by Lari et al. (2001, Cat. <J/MNRAS/325/1173>) conceived to exploit ISO data in an optimal way, especially in the case of shallow surveys with low redundancy. Photometry has been accurately evaluated through extensive simulations and also the absolute calibration has been checked using a set of 21 stars detected at 14.3{mu}m, optical, and near-IR bands.
We present results from a 15 month campaign of high-cadence (~3 days) mid-infrared Spitzer and optical (B and V) monitoring of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 6418, with the objective of determining the characteristic size of the dusty torus in this active galactic nucleus (AGN). We find that the 3.6 and 4.5{mu}m flux variations lag behind those of the optical continuum by 37.2_-2.2_^+2.4^-days and 47.1_-3.1_^+3.1^-days, respectively. We report a cross-correlation time lag between the 4.5 and 3.6{mu}m flux of 13.9_-0.1_^+0.5^ days. The lags indicate that the dust emitting at 3.6 and 4.5{mu}m is located at a distance ~1-light-month (~0.03pc) from the source of the AGN UV-optical continuum. The reverberation radii are consistent with the inferred lower limit to the sublimation radius for pure graphite grains at 1800K, but smaller by a factor of ~2 than the corresponding lower limit for silicate grains; this is similar to what has been found for near-infrared (K-band) lags in other AGNs. The 3.6 and 4.5{mu}m reverberation radii fall above the K-band {tau}{propto}L^0.5^ size-luminosity relationship by factors <~2.8 and <~3.4, respectively, while the 4.5{mu}m reverberation radius is only 27% larger than the 3.6{mu}m radius. This is broadly consistent with clumpy torus models, in which individual optically thick clouds emit strongly over a broad wavelength range.
