One of the great surprises of the late 1980s was the discovery that the O III
λ
5007 planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF) could be used as a precision extragalactic standard candle. Despite ...the lack of any robust theory for the phenomenon, the technique passed a myriad of internal and external tests, and became an extremely reliable tool for obtaining distances to large galaxies within
∼
20
Mpc. But in more recent years, the use of the technique has declined, due in part to the changing landscape of cosmology. Here we review the history of the PNLF, the experiments that confirmed its utility, and the reasons why interest in the method faded at the turn of the millennium. We also describe how and why the PNLF is making a comeback, and present some of the method’s recent results. Finally, we discuss how the PNLF must be analyzed in the era of precision cosmology, and detail the issues that must be overcome in order to address the current tension between local measures of the Hubble constant and values derived from the microwave background. If these issues can be understood, then the PNLF can provide a useful cross-check on distance measurements out to
∼
40
Mpc.
Abstract
Planetary nebula (PN) surveys in systems beyond ∼10 Mpc often find high-excitation, point-like sources with O
iii
λ
5007 fluxes greater than the apparent bright-end cutoff of the planetary ...nebula luminosity function (PNLF). Here we identify PN superpositions as one likely cause for the phenomenon and describe the proper procedures for deriving PNLF distances when object blends are a possibility. We apply our technique to two objects: a model Virgo-distance elliptical galaxy observed through a narrowband interference filter, and the Fornax lenticular galaxy NGC 1380 surveyed with the MUSE integral-field unit spectrograph. Our analyses show that even when the most likely distance to a galaxy is unaffected by the possible presence of PN superpositions, the resultant value will still be biased toward too small a distance due to the asymmetrical nature of the error bars. We discuss the future of the PNLF in an era where current ground-based instrumentation can push the technique to distances beyond ∼35 Mpc.
Abstract
Euclid and the Roman Space Telescope (Roman) will soon use grism spectroscopy to detect millions of galaxies via their H
α
and O
iii
λ
5007 emission. To better constrain the expected galaxy ...counts from these instruments, we use a vetted sample of 4239 emission-line galaxies from the 3D Hubble Space Telescope survey to measure the H
α
and O
iii
λ
5007 luminosity functions between 1.16 <
z
< 1.90; this sample is ∼4 times larger than previous studies at this redshift. We find very good agreement with previous measurements for H
α
, but for O
iii
, we predict a higher number of intermediate-luminosity galaxies than from previous works. We find that, for both lines, the characteristic luminosity,
*
, increases monotonically with redshift, and use the H
α
luminosity function to calculate the epoch’s cosmic star formation rate density. We find that H
α
-visible galaxies account for ∼81% of the epoch’s total star formation rate, and this value changes very little over the 1.16 <
z
< 1.56 redshift range. Finally, we derive the surface density of galaxies as a function of limiting flux and find that previous predictions for galaxy counts for the Euclid Wide Survey are unchanged, but there may be more O
iii
galaxies in the Roman High Latitude Survey than previously estimated.
ABSTRACT
We investigate the relation between active galactic nucleus (AGN) and star formation (SF) activity at 0.5 < z < 3 by analysing 898 galaxies with X-ray luminous AGNs (LX > 1044 erg s−1) and a ...large comparison sample of ∼320 000 galaxies without X-ray luminous AGNs. Our samples are selected from a large (11.8 deg2) area in Stripe 82 that has multiwavelength (X-ray to far-IR) data. The enormous comoving volume (∼0.3 Gpc3) at 0.5 < z < 3 minimizes the effects of cosmic variance and captures a large number of massive galaxies (∼30 000 galaxies with M* > 1011 M⊙) and X-ray luminous AGNs. While many galaxy studies discard AGN hosts, we fit the SED of galaxies with and without X-ray luminous AGNs with Code Investigating GALaxy Emission and include AGN emission templates. We find that without this inclusion, stellar masses and star formation rates (SFRs) in AGN host galaxies can be overestimated, on average, by factors of up to ∼5 and ∼10, respectively. The average SFR of galaxies with X-ray luminous AGNs is higher by a factor of ∼3–10 compared to galaxies without X-ray luminous AGNs at fixed stellar mass and redshift, suggesting that high SFRs and high AGN X-ray luminosities may be fuelled by common mechanisms. The vast majority ($\gt 95 {{\ \rm per\ cent}}$) of galaxies with X-ray luminous AGNs at z = 0.5−3 do not show quenched SF: this suggests that if AGN feedback quenches SF, the associated quenching process takes a significant time to act and the quenched phase sets in after the highly luminous phases of AGN activity.
ABSTRACT We use 317,000 emission-line galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey to investigate line-ratio selection of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). In particular, we demonstrate that "star ...formation (SF) dilution" by H ii regions causes a significant bias against AGN selection in low-mass, blue, star-forming, disk-dominated galaxies. This bias is responsible for the observed preference of AGNs among high-mass, green, moderately star-forming, bulge-dominated hosts. We account for the bias and simulate the intrinsic population of emission-line AGNs using a physically motivated Eddington ratio distribution, intrinsic AGN narrow line region line ratios, a luminosity-dependent bolometric correction, and the observed relation. These simulations indicate that, in massive ( ) galaxies, AGN accretion is correlated with specific star formation rate (SFR) but is otherwise uniform with stellar mass. There is some hint of lower black hole occupation in low-mass ( ) hosts, although our modeling is limited by uncertainties in measuring and interpreting the velocity dispersions of low-mass galaxies. The presence of SF dilution means that AGNs contribute little to the observed strong optical emission lines (e.g., and ) in low-mass and star-forming hosts. However the AGN population recovered by our modeling indicates that feedback by typical (low- to moderate-accretion) low-redshift AGNs has nearly uniform efficiency at all stellar masses, SFRs, and morphologies. Taken together, our characterization of the observational bias and resultant AGN occupation function suggest that AGNs are unlikely to be the dominant source of SF quenching in galaxies, but instead are fueled by the same gas which drives SF activity.
We study the evolution in the number density of galaxies at the highest stellar masses over the past 9 Gyr ( ) using the Spitzer/HETDEX Exploratory Large-Area Survey (SHELA). SHELA includes complete ...imaging in eight photometric bands spanning 0.3-4.5 m over 17.5 deg2 within the SDSS Stripe 82 field. The size of SHELA produces the lowest counting uncertainties and cosmic variance yet for massive galaxies at z ∼ 1.0. We study the evolution in the intrinsic stellar mass function (SMF) for galaxies with using a forward-modeling method that takes into full account the statistical and systematic uncertainties on stellar mass. From z = 0.4 to 1.5, the evolution in the massive end of the intrinsic SMF shows minimal change in its shape: the characteristic mass (M*) evolves by less than 0.1 dex ( 0.05 dex); furthermore, the number density of galaxies with 11 stays roughly constant at ( 0.05) from z = 1 to z = 0.4, consistent with no evolution, then declines to = −3.7 ( 0.05) at z = 1.5. We discuss the uncertainties in the derived SMF, which are dominated by assumptions in the star formation history and details of stellar population synthesis models for stellar mass estimations. We also study the evolution in the SMF for samples of star-forming and quiescent galaxies selected by their specific star formation rate. For quiescent galaxies, the data are consistent with no (or slight) evolution ( 0.1 dex) in either the characteristic mass or number density from z ∼ 1.5 to the present even after accounting for the systematic uncertainty and the random error in the stellar mass measurement. The lack of number density evolution in the quiescent massive galaxy population means that any mass growth (presumably through "dry" mergers) must balance the rate of stellar mass losses owing to processes of late-stage stellar evolution and the formation of newly quiescent galaxies from the star-forming population. We provide an upper limit on this mass growth from z = 1.0 to 0.4 of ΔM*/M* = 45% (i.e., 0.16 dex) for quiescent galaxies more massive than 1011 M .
Abstract Thanks to the MUSE integral field spectrograph on board the Very Large Telescope (VLT), extragalactic distance measurements with the O iii λ 5007 planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF) ...are now possible out to ∼40 Mpc. Here we analyze the VLT/MUSE data for 20 galaxies from the ESO public archive to identify the systems’ planetary nebulae (PNe) and determine their PNLF distances. Three of the galaxies do not contain enough PNe for a robust measure of the PNLF, and the results for one other system are compromised of the galaxy’s internal extinction. However, we obtain robust PNLF distances for the remaining 16 galaxies, two of which are isolated and beyond 30 Mpc in a relatively unperturbed Hubble flow. From these data, we derive a Hubble constant of 74.2 ± 7.2 (stat) ±3.7 (sys) km s −1 Mpc −1 , a value that is very similar to that found from other quality indicators (e.g., Cepheids, the tip of the red giant branch, and surface brightness fluctuations). At present, the uncertainty is dominated by the small number of suitable galaxies in the ESO archive and their less-than-ideal observing conditions and calibrations. Based on our experience with these systems, we identify the observational requirements necessary for the PNLF to yield a competitive value for H 0 that is independent of the Type Ia supernova distance scale.
MUSE crowded field 3D spectroscopy in NGC 300 Soemitro, Azlizan A.; Roth, Martin M.; Weilbacher, Peter M. ...
Astronomy and astrophysics (Berlin),
03/2023, Volume:
671
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Aims.
We perform a deep survey of planetary nebulae (PNe) in the spiral galaxy NGC 300 to construct its planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF). We aim to derive the distance using the PNLF and ...to probe the characteristics of the most luminous PNe.
Methods.
We analysed 44 fields observed with MUSE at the VLT, covering a total area of ∼11 kpc
2
. We find O
III
λ
5007 sources using the differential emission line filter (DELF) technique. We identified PNe through spectral classification with the aid of the BPT diagram. The PNLF distance was derived using the maximum likelihood estimation technique. For the more luminous PNe, we also measured their extinction using the Balmer decrement. We estimated the luminosity and effective temperature of the central stars of the luminous PNe based on estimates of the excitation class and the assumption of optically thick nebulae.
Results.
We identify 107 PNe and derive a most-likely distance modulus $ (m-M)_0 = 26.48^{+0.11}_{-0.26} $ ($ d = 1.98^{+0.10}_{-0.23} $ Mpc). We find that the PNe at the PNLF cutoff exhibit relatively low extinction, with some high-extinction cases caused by local dust lanes. We present the lower limit luminosities and effective temperatures of the central stars for some of the brighter PNe. We also identify a few Type I PNe that come from a young population with progenitor masses > 2.5
M
⊙
but do not populate the PNLF cutoff.
Conclusions.
The spatial resolution and spectral information of MUSE allow precise PN classification and photometry. These capabilities also enable us to resolve possible contamination by diffuse gas and dust, improving the accuracy of the PNLF distance to NGC 300.
Full text
Available for:
FMFMET, NUK, UL, UM, UPUK
We present the results of a deep Ks-band (2.1 μm) imaging survey of the Spitzer/HETDEX Exploratory Large-Area (SHELA) field using the NEWFIRM near-infrared camera on the KPNO Mayall 4 m telescope. ...This NEWFIRM HETDEX Survey reaches a 5σ depth of 22.4 AB mag (2″-diameter apertures corrected to total), is ∼50% and 90% complete at K ∼ 22.65 and K ∼ 22.15, respectively, and covers 22 deg2 of the 24 deg2 SHELA Spitzer/IRAC footprint (within “Stripe 82” of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey). We present a Ks-band-selected catalog that includes deep ugriz imaging from the Dark Energy Camera and 3.6 and 4.5 μm imaging from Spitzer/IRAC, with forced photometry of 1.7 million sources across 17.5 deg2. The large area and moderate depth of this catalog enable the study of the most massive galaxies at high redshift and minimize uncertainties associated with counting statistics and cosmic variance. As a demonstration, we derive stellar masses (M*) and star formation rates (SFRs) for candidate galaxies at 3 ≲ z ≲ 5 and select a conservative sample of nine candidate massive (M* > 1011 M⊙) quiescent galaxies, which have measured SFRs significantly below the main sequence at this redshift. Five are ultramassive with M* > 1012, though uncertainties in IRAC blending, gravitational lensing, or active galactic nucleus emission could result in true masses that are lower. Simulations predict that these galaxies should be extremely rare; thus, we conclude by discussing what physical processes in models could be altered to allow the formation of such massive quiescent galaxies at such early times.
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