K. Kreckel

The CO-to-H2 Conversion Factor and Dust-to-gas Ratio on Kiloparsec Scales in Nearby Galaxies

We present ~kiloparsec spatial resolution maps of the CO-to-H_2 conversion factor (α_(CO)) and dust-to-gas ratio (DGR) in 26 nearby, star-forming galaxies. We have simultaneously solved for α_(CO) and the DGR by assuming that the DGR is approximately constant on kiloparsec scales. With this assumption, we can combine maps of dust mass surface density, CO-integrated intensity, and H I column density to solve for both αCO and the DGR with no assumptions about their value or dependence on metallicity or other parameters. Such a study has just become possible with the availability of high-resolution far-IR maps from the Herschel key program KINGFISH, ^(12)CO J = (2-1) maps from the IRAM 30 m large program HERACLES, and H I 21 cm line maps from THINGS. We use a fixed ratio between the (2-1) and (1-0) lines to present our α_(CO) results on the more typically used ^(12)CO J = (1-0) scale and show using literature measurements that variations in the line ratio do not affect our results. In total, we derive 782 individual solutions for α_(CO) and the DGR. On average, α_(CO) = 3.1 M_☉ pc^(–2) (K km s^(–1))^(–1) for our sample with a standard deviation of 0.3 dex. Within galaxies, we observe a generally flat profile of α_(CO) as a function of galactocentric radius. However, most galaxies exhibit a lower α_(CO) value in the central kiloparsec—a factor of ~2 below the galaxy mean, on average. In some cases, the central α_(CO) value can be factors of 5-10 below the standard Milky Way (MW) value of α_(CO,MW) = 4.4 M_☉ pc^(–2) (K km s^(–1))^(–1). While for α_(CO) we find only weak correlations with metallicity, the DGR is well-correlated with metallicity, with an approximately linear slope. Finally, we present several recommendations for choosing an appropriate α_(CO) for studies of nearby galaxies.

The Void Galaxy Survey: Optical Properties and H I Morphology and Kinematics

We have carefully selected a sample of 60 galaxies that reside in the deepest underdensities of geometrically identified voids within the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. HI imaging of 55 galaxies with the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope reveals morphological and kinematic signatures of ongoing interactions and gas accretion. We probe a total volume of 485 Mpc(3) within the voids, with an angular resolution of 8 kpc at an average distance of 85 Mpc. We reach column density sensitivities of 5 x 10(19) cm(-2), corresponding to an HI mass limit of 3 x 10(8) M-circle dot. We detect HI in 41 galaxies, with total masses ranging from 1.7 x 10(8) to 5.5 x 10(9) M-circle dot. The upper limits on the 14 non-detections are not inconsistent with their luminosities, given their expected HI mass-to-light ratios. We find that the void galaxies are generally gas-rich, low-luminosity, blue disk galaxies, with optical and HI properties that are not unusual for their luminosity and morphology. The sample spans a range of absolute magnitudes (-16.1 > M-r > -20.4) and colors (0.06 <g - r <0.87), and includes disk and irregular galaxies. We also identify three as early-type galaxies, all of which are not detected in HI. All galaxies have stellar masses less than 3 x 10(10) M-circle dot, and many have kinematic and morphological signs of ongoing gas accretion, suggesting that the void galaxy population is still in the process of assembling. The small-scale clustering in the void, within 600 kpc and 200 km s(-1), is similar to that in higher density regions, and we identify 18 HI-rich neighboring galaxies in the voids. Most are within 100 kpc and 100 km s(-1) of the targeted galaxy, and we find no significant population of HI-rich low-luminosity galaxies filling the voids, contrary to what is predicted by simulations.

Only the Lonely: H I Imaging of Void Galaxies

Void galaxies, residing within the deepest underdensities of the Cosmic Web, present an ideal population for the study of galaxy formation and evolution in an environment undisturbed by the complex processes modifying galaxies in clusters and groups, as well as provide an observational test for theories of cosmological structure formation. We have completed a pilot survey for the H I imaging aspects of a new Void Galaxy Survey (VGS), imaging 15 void galaxies in H I in local (d <100 Mpc) voids. H I masses range from 3.5 x 10(8) to 3.8 x 10(9) M-circle dot, with one nondetection with an upper limit of 2.1 x 10(8) M-circle dot. Our galaxies were selected using a structural and geometric technique to produce a sample that is purely environmentally selected and uniformly represents the void galaxy population. In addition, we use a powerful new backend of the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope that allows us to probe a large volume around each targeted galaxy, simultaneously providing an environmentally constrained sample of fore-and background control samples of galaxies while still resolving individual galaxy kinematics and detecting faint companions in H I. This small sample makes up a surprisingly interesting collection of perturbed and interacting galaxies, all with small stellar disks. Four galaxies have significantly perturbed H I disks, five have previously unidentified companions at distances ranging from 50 to 200 kpc, two are in interacting systems, and one was found to have a polar H I disk. Our initial findings suggest void galaxies are a gas-rich, dynamic population which present evidence of ongoing gas accretion, major and minor interactions, and filamentary alignment despite the surrounding underdense environment.

An Interacting Galaxy System along a Filament in a Void

Cosmological voids provide a unique environment for the study of galaxy formation and evolution. The galaxy population in their interiors has properties significantly different from average field galaxies. As part of our Void Galaxy Survey (VGS), we have found a system of three interacting galaxies (VGS_31) inside a large void. VGS_31 is a small elongated group whose members are embedded in a common H I envelope. The H I picture suggests a filamentary structure with accretion of intergalactic cold gas from the filament onto the galaxies. We present deep optical and narrowband Hα data, optical spectroscopy, near-UV, and far-UV Galaxy Evolution Explorer and CO(1-0) data. We find that one of the galaxies, a Markarian object, has a ring-like structure and a tail evident both in optical and H I. While all three galaxies form stars in their central parts, the tail and the ring of the Markarian object are devoid of star formation. We discuss these findings in terms of a gravitational interaction and ongoing growth of galaxies out of a filament. VGS_31 is one of the first observed examples of a filamentary structure in a void. It is an important prototype for understanding the formation of substructure in a void. This system also shows that the galaxy evolution in voids can be as dynamic as in high-density environments.

Mapping Dust through Emission and Absorption in Nearby Galaxies

Dust has long been identified as a barrier to measuring inherent galaxy properties. However, the link between dust and attenuation is not straightforward and depends on both the amount of dust and its distribution. Herschel imaging of nearby galaxies undertaken as part of the KINGFISH project allows us to map the dust as seen in emission with unprecedented sensitivity and ~1 kpc resolution. We present here new optical integral field unit spectroscopy for eight of these galaxies that provides complementary 100-200 pc scale maps of the dust attenuation through observation of the reddening in both the Balmer decrement and the stellar continuum. The stellar continuum reddening, which is systematically less than that observed in the Balmer decrement, shows no clear correlation with the dust, suggesting that the distribution of stellar reddening acts as a poor tracer of the overall dust content. The brightest H II regions are observed to be preferentially located in dusty regions, and we do find a correlation between the Balmer line reddening and the dust mass surface density for which we provide an empirical relation. Some of the high-inclination systems in our sample exhibit high extinction, but we also find evidence that unresolved variations in the dust distribution on scales smaller than 500 pc may contribute to the scatter in this relation. We caution against the use of integrated AV measures to infer global dust properties.

A Pilot for a Very Large Array H I Deep Field

High-resolution 21-cm HI deep fields provide spatially and kinematically resolved images of neutral hydrogen at different redshifts, which are key to understanding galaxy evolution across cosmic time and testing predictions of cosmological simulations. Here we present results from a pilot for an HI deep field done with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA). We take advantage of the newly expanded capabilities of the telescope to probe the redshift interval 0 < z < 0.193 in one observation. We observe the COSMOS field for 50 hours, which contains 413 galaxies with optical spectroscopic redshifts in the imaged field of 34′ × 34′ and the observed redshift interval. We have detected neutral hydrogen gas in 33 galaxies in different environments spanning the probed redshift range, including three without a previously known spectroscopic redshift. The detections have a range of HI and stellar masses, indicating the diversity of galaxies we are probing. We discuss the observations, data reduction, results and highlight interesting detections. We find that the VLA’s B-array is the ideal configuration for HI deep fields since its long spacings mitigate RFI. This pilot shows that the VLA is ready to carry out such a survey, and serves as a test for future HI deep fields planned with other SKA pathfinders.

A detailed study of the radio-FIR correlation in NGC 6946 with Herschel-PACS/SPIRE from KINGFISH

We derive the distribution of the synchrotron spectral index across NGC 6946 and investigate the correlation between the radio continuum (synchrotron) and far-infrared (FIR) emission using the KINGFISH Herschel-PACS and SPIRE data. The radio-FIR correlation is studied as a function of star formation rate, magnetic field strength, radiation field strength, and the total gas surface density. The synchrotron emission follows both star-forming regions and the so-called magnetic arms present in the inter-arm regions. The synchrotron spectral index is steepest along the magnetic arms (α_n ~ 1), while it is flat in places of giant Hii regions and in the center of the galaxy (α_n ~ 0.6−0.7). The map of α_n provides observational evidence for aging and energy loss of cosmic ray electrons (CREs) propagating in the disk of the galaxy. Variations in the synchrotron-FIR correlation across the galaxy are shown to be a function of both star formation and magnetic field strength. We find that the synchrotron emission correlates better with cold rather than with warm dust emission, when the diffuse interstellar radiation field is the main heating source of dust. The synchrotron-FIR correlation suggests a coupling between the magnetic field and the gas density. NGC 6946 shows a power-law behavior between the total (turbulent) magnetic field strength B and the star formation rate surface density Σ_(SFR) with an index of 0.14 (0.16) ± 0.01. This indicates an efficient production of the turbulent magnetic field with the increasing gas turbulence expected in actively star forming regions. Moreover, it is suggested that the B-Σ_(SFR) power law index is similar for the turbulent and the total fields in normal galaxies. On the other hand, for galaxies interacting with the cluster environment this index is steeper for turbulent magnetic fields than it is for the total magnetic fields. The scale-by-scale analysis of the synchrotron-FIR correlation indicates that the ISM affects the propagation of old/diffused CREs, resulting in a diffusion coefficient of D_0 = 4.6 × 10^(28) cm^2 s^(-1) for 2.2 GeV CREs.

SIMULATED VOID GALAXIES IN THE STANDARD COLD DARK MATTER MODEL

We analyze a (120 h –1 Mpc)3 adaptive mesh refinement hydrodynamic simulation that contains a higher resolution 31 × 31 × 35 h –3 Mpc subvolume centered on a ~30 Mpc diameter void. Our detailed ~1 kpc resolution allows us to identify 1300 galaxies within this void to a limiting halo mass of ~1010 M ☉. Nearly 1000 galaxies are found to be in underdense regions, with 300 galaxies residing in regions less than half the mean density of the simulation volume. We construct mock observations of the stellar and gas properties of these systems and reproduce the range of colors and luminosities observed in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey for nearby (z –16), though they are less reliably resolved, typically appear bluer, with higher rates of star formation and specific star formation and lower mean stellar ages than galaxies in average density environments. We find a significant population of low-luminosity (M r ~ –14) dwarf galaxies that is preferentially located in low-density regions and specifically in the void center. This population may help to reduce, but not remove, the discrepancy between the predicted and observed number of void galaxies.

Shock Excited Molecules in NGC 1266: ULIRG Conditions at the Center of a Bulge-dominated Galaxy

We investigate the far infrared (IR) spectrum of NGC 1266, a S0 galaxy that contains a massive reservoir of highly excited molecular gas. Using the Herschel Fourier Transform Spectrometer, we detect the ^(12)CO ladder up to J = (13-12), [C I] and [N II] lines, and also strong water lines more characteristic of UltraLuminous IR Galaxies (ULIRGs). The ^(12)CO line emission is modeled with a combination of a low-velocity C-shock and a photodissociation region. Shocks are required to produce the H_2O and most of the high-J CO emission. Despite having an IR luminosity 30 times less than a typical ULIRG, the spectral characteristics and physical conditions of the interstellar medium of NGC 1266 closely resemble those of ULIRGs, which often harbor strong shocks and large-scale outflows.

HIGHEST REDSHIFT IMAGE of NEUTRAL HYDROGEN in EMISSION: A CHILES DETECTION of A STARBURSTING GALAXY at z = 0.376

Our current understanding of galaxy evolution still has many uncertainties associated with the details of accretion, processing, and removal of gas across cosmic time. The next generation of radio telescopes will image the neutral hydrogen (HI) in galaxies over large volumes at high redshifts, which will provide key insights into these processes. We are conducting the COSMOS HI Large Extragalactic Survey (CHILES) with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, which is the first survey to simultaneously observe HI from z=0 to z~0.5. Here, we report the highest redshift HI 21-cm detection in emission to date of the luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG) COSMOS J100054.83+023126.2 at z=0.376 with the first 178 hours of CHILES data. The total HI mass is