ABSTRACT
Most of the hydrogen in the intergalactic medium (IGM) was rapidly ionized at high redshifts. While observations have established that reionization occurred, observational constraints on the ...high-redshift ionizing emissivity remain elusive. Here, we present a new analysis of the Low-redshift Lyman Continuum Survey (LzLCS) and literature observations, a combined sample of 89 star-forming galaxies at redshifts near 0.3 with Hubble Space Telescope observations of their ionizing continua (or Lyman Continuum, LyC). We find a strong (6σ significant) inverse correlation between the continuum slope at 1550 Å (defined as F$_\lambda \propto \lambda ^{\beta ^{1550}_{\rm obs}}$) and both the LyC escape fraction (fesc, LyC) and fesc, LyC times the ionizing photon production efficiency (ξion). On average, galaxies with redder continuum slopes have smaller fesc, LyC than galaxies with bluer slopes mainly due to higher dust attenuation. More than 5 per cent (20 per cent) of the LyC emission escapes galaxies with $\beta _{\rm obs}^{1550}$ <−2.1 (−2.6). We find strong correlations between $\beta _{\rm obs}^{1550}$ and the O iii/O ii flux ratio (at 7.5σ significance), galaxy stellar mass (at 5.9σ), the gas-phase metallicity (at 4.6σ), and the observed far-ultraviolet absolute magnitude (at 3.4σ). Using previous observations of $\beta _{\rm obs}^{1550}$ at high redshift, we estimate the evolution of fesc, LyC with both redshift and galaxy magnitude. The LzLCS observations suggest that fainter and lower mass galaxies dominate the ionizing photon budget at higher redshift, possibly due to their rapidly evolving metal and dust content. Finally, we use our correlation between $\beta _{\rm obs}^{1550}$ and fesc, LyC × ξion to predict the ionizing emissivity of galaxies during the epoch of reionization. Our estimated emissivities match IGM observations, and suggest that star-forming galaxies emit sufficient LyC photons into the IGM to exceed recombinations near redshifts of 7–8.
ABSTRACT
We present the Hubble imaging Probe of Extreme Environments and Clusters (HiPEEC) survey. We fit HST NUV to NIR broad-band and H α fluxes to derive star cluster ages, masses, and extinctions ...and determine the star formation rate (SFR) of six merging galaxies. These systems are excellent laboratories to trace cluster formation under extreme gas physical conditions, rare in the local Universe, but typical for star-forming galaxies at cosmic noon. We detect clusters with ages of 1–500 Myr and masses that exceed 107 M⊙. The recent cluster formation history and their distribution within the host galaxies suggest that systems such as NGC 34, NGC 1614, and NGC 4194 are close to their final coalescing phase, while NGC 3256, NGC 3690, and NGC 6052 are at an earlier/intermediate stage. A Bayesian analysis of the cluster mass function in the age interval 1–100 Myr provides strong evidence in four of the six galaxies that an exponentially truncated power law better describes the observed mass distributions. For two galaxies, the fits are inconclusive due to low number statistics. We determine power-law slopes β ∼ −1.5 to −2.0 and truncation masses, Mc, between 106 and a few times 107 M⊙, among the highest values reported in the literature. Advanced mergers have higher Mc than early/intermediate merger stage galaxies, suggesting rapid changes in the dense gas conditions during the merger. We compare the total stellar mass in clusters to the SFR of the galaxy, finding that these systems are among the most efficient environments to form star clusters in the local Universe.
Context. Stellar feedback strongly affects the interstellar medium (ISM) of galaxies. Stellar feedback in the first galaxies likely plays a major role in enabling the escape of LyC photons, which ...contribute to the re-ionization of the Universe. Nearby starburst galaxies serve as local analogues allowing for a spatially resolved assessment of the feedback processes in these galaxies. Aims.We aim to characterize the feedback effects from the star clusters in the local high-redshift analogue ESO 338-IG04 on the ISM and compare the results with the properties of the most massive clusters. Methods. We used high quality VLT/MUSE optical integral field data to derive the physical properties of the ISM such as ionization, density, shocks, and performed new fitting of the spectral energy distributions of the brightest clusters in ESO 338-IG04 from HST imaging. Results.We find that ESO 338-IG04 has a large ionized halo which we detect to a distance of 9 kpc. We identify four Wolf-Rayet (WR) clusters based on the blue and red WR bump. We follow previously identified ionization cones and find that the ionization of the halo increases with distance. Analysis of the galaxy kinematics shows two complex outflows driven by the numerous young clusters in the galaxy. We find a ring of shocked emission traced by an enhanced O I/Hα ratio surrounding the starburst and at the end of the outflow. Finally we detect nitrogen enriched gas associated with the outflow, likely caused by the WR stars in the massive star clusters. Conclusions. Photoionization dominates the central starburst and sets the ionization structure of the entire halo, resulting in a density bounded halo, facilitating the escape of LyC photons. Outside the central starburst, shocks triggered by an expanding super bubble become important. The shocks at the end of the outflow suggest interaction between the hot outflowing material and the more quiescent halo gas.
ABSTRACT
We have used the capability of the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument to explore the impact of stellar feedback at large scales in Haro 11, a galaxy under extreme starburst ...condition and one of the first galaxies where Lyman continuum (LyC) has been detected. Using H α, O iii λ5007, and O i λ6300 emission lines from deep MUSE observations, we have constructed a sequence of velocity-dependent maps of the H α emission, the state of the ionized gas, and a tracer of fast shocks. These allowed us to investigate the ionization structure of the galaxy in 50 km s−1 bins over a velocity range of −400 to 350 km s−1. The ionized gas in Haro 11 is assembled by a rich arrangement of structures, such as superbubbles, filaments, arcs, and galactic ionized channels, whose appearances change drastically with velocity. The central star-forming knots and the star-forming dusty arm are the main engines that power the strong mechanical feedback in this galaxy, although with different impact on the ionization structure. Haro 11 appears to leak LyC radiation in many directions. We found evidence of a kpc-scale fragmented superbubble that may have cleared galactic-scale channels in the ISM. Additionally, the Southwestern hemisphere is highly ionized in all velocities, hinting at a density bound scenario. A compact kpc-scale structure of lowly ionized gas coincides with the diffuse Lyα emission and the presence of fast shocks. Finally, we find evidence that a significant fraction of the ionized gas mass may escape the gravitational potential of the galaxy.
Abstract
Low- and intermediate-mass galaxies are widely discussed as cause of reionization at redshift z ∼ 10–6. However, observational proof of galaxies that are leaking ionizing radiation (Lyman ...continuum; LyC) is a currently ongoing challenge and the list of LyC emitting candidates is still short. Tololo 1247−232 is among those very few galaxies with recently reported leakage. We performed intermediate resolution ultraviolet spectroscopy with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph onboard the Hubble Space Telescope and confirm ionizing radiation emerging from Tololo 1247−232. Adopting an improved data reduction procedure, we find that LyC escapes from the central stellar clusters, with an escape fraction of 1.5 ± 0.5 per cent only, i.e. the lowest value reported for the galaxy so far. We further make use of far-ultraviolet absorption lines of Si ii and Si iv as a probe of the neutral and ionized interstellar medium (ISM). We find that most of the ISM gas is ionized, likely facilitating LyC escape from density bounded regions. Neutral gas covering as a function of line-of-sight velocity is derived using the apparent optical depth method. The ISM is found to be sufficiently clumpy, supporting the direct escape of LyC photons. We further report on broad-band UV and optical continuum imaging as well as narrow-band imaging of Lyα, Hα and Hβ. Using stellar population synthesis, an Lyα escape fraction of 8 per cent was derived. We also performed Very Large Array 21cm imaging. The hydrogen hyperfine transition was not detected, but a deep upper limit atomic gas mass of ≲109 M⊙ could be derived. The upper limit gas fraction defined as
${M_{\rm H\,\small {I}}}/{M_*}$
is only 20 per cent. Evidence is found that the H i gas halo is relatively small compared to the Lyman Alpha Reference Sample (Hayes et al. 2013, 2014; Östlin et al. 2014).
Abstract
It has recently been established that the properties of young star clusters (YSCs) can vary as a function of the galactic environment in which they are found. We use the cluster catalogue ...produced by the Legacy Extragalactic UV Survey (LEGUS) collaboration to investigate cluster properties in the spiral galaxy M51. We analyse the cluster population as a function of galactocentric distance and in arm and inter-arm regions. The cluster mass function exhibits a similar shape at all radial bins, described by a power law with a slope close to −2 and an exponential truncation around 105 M⊙. While the mass functions of the YSCs in the spiral arm and inter-arm regions have similar truncation masses, the inter-arm region mass function has a significantly steeper slope than the one in the arm region, a trend that is also observed in the giant molecular cloud mass function and predicted by simulations. The age distribution of clusters is dependent on the region considered, and is consistent with rapid disruption only in dense regions, while little disruption is observed at large galactocentric distances and in the inter-arm region. The fraction of stars forming in clusters does not show radial variations, despite the drop in the H2 surface density measured as a function of galactocentric distance. We suggest that the higher disruption rate observed in the inner part of the galaxy is likely at the origin of the observed flat cluster formation efficiency radial profile.
We have used multiband imaging to investigate the nature of an extreme starburst environment in the nearby Lyman break galaxy analogue Haro 11 (ESO 350−IG038) by means of its stellar cluster ...population. The central starburst region has been observed in eight different high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope (HST) wavebands, sampling the stellar and gas components from UV to near-infrared. Photometric imaging of the galaxy was also carried out at 2.16 μm by NaCo AO instrument at the ESO Very Large Telescope. We constructed integrated spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for about 200 star clusters located in the active star-forming regions and compared them with single stellar population models (suitable for physical properties of very young cluster population) in order to derive ages, masses and extinctions of the star clusters. The cluster age distribution we recover confirms that the present starburst has lasted for 40 Myr, and shows a peak of cluster formation only 3.5 Myr old. With such an extremely young cluster population, Haro 11 represents a unique opportunity to investigate the youngest phase of the cluster formation process and evolution in starburst systems. We looked for possible relations between cluster ages, extinctions and masses. Extinction tends to diminish as a function of the cluster age, but the spread is large and reaches the highest dispersion for clusters in partial embedded phases (<5 Myr). A fraction of low-mass (below 104 M⊙), very young (1–3 Myr) clusters is missing, either because they are embedded in the parental molecular cloud and heavily extinguished, or because of blending with neighbouring clusters. The range of the cluster masses is wide; we observe that more than 30 per cent of the clusters have masses above 105 M⊙, qualifying them as super star clusters. Almost half of the cluster sample is affected by flux excesses at wavelengths >8000 Å which cannot be explained by simple stellar evolutionary models. Fitting SED models over all wavebands leads to systematic overestimates of cluster ages and incorrect masses for the stellar population supplying the light in these clusters. We show that the red excess affects also the HST F814W filter, which is typically used to constrain cluster physical properties. The clusters which show the red excess are younger than 40 Myr; we discuss possible physical explanations for the phenomenon. Finally, we estimate that Haro 11 has produced bound clusters at a rate almost a factor of 10 higher than the massive and regular spirals, like the Milky Way. The present cluster formation efficiency is ∼38 per cent of the galactic star formation rate.
ABSTRACT
Star formation is a clustered process that regulates the structure and evolution of galaxies. We investigate this process in the dwarf galaxy Haro 11, forming stars in three knots (A, B, and ...C). The exquisite resolution of HST imaging allows us to resolve the starburst into tens of bright star clusters. We derive masses between 105 and $10^7\, \rm M_{\odot }$ and ages younger than 20 Myr, using photometric modelling. We observe that the clustered star formation has propagated from knot C (the oldest) through knot A (in between) towards knot B (the youngest). We use aperture-matched ultraviolet and optical spectroscopy (HST + MUSE) to independently study the stellar populations of Haro 11 and determine the physical properties of the stellar populations and their feedback in 1-kpc diameter regions. We discuss these results in light of the properties of the ionized gas within the knots. We interpret the broad blue-shifted components of the optical emission lines as outflowing gas (vmax ∼ 400 km/s). The strongest outflow is detected in knot A with a mass rate of $\dot{M}_{\mathrm{ out}}\sim 10\, \rm M_{\odot }/yr$, 10 times higher than the star formation in the same region. Knot B hosts a young and not fully developed outflow, whereas knot C has likely been already evacuated. Because Haro 11 has properties similar to high-redshift unresolved galaxies, our work can additionally aid the understanding of star formation at high redshift, a window that will be opened by upcoming facilities.
Context.I Zw 18, ever since regarded as the prototypical blue compact dwarf (BCD) galaxy, is, quite ironically, the most atypical BCD known. This is because its large low-surface brightness (LSB) ...envelope is not due to an old underlying stellar host, as invariably is the case for typical BCDs, but is entirely due to extended nebular emission. Aims. Our goal is to explore I Zw 18 and its detached C component I Zw 18 C down to an unprecedently faint surface brightness μ (mag/◻″) level in order to gain further insight into the structural properties and evolutionary history of this enigmatic galaxy pair. Methods. We present a photometric analysis of the entire set of archival HST ACS V, R and I band data for I Zw 18. Results. Radial color profiles for I Zw 18 C reveal blue and practically constant colors (0 ± 0.05) down to μ ~ 27.6, and a previously undisclosed, slightly redder (V − I ≈ 0.2), stellar population in its extreme periphery (μ ~ 29). We argue that stellar diffusion over τ ~ 108 yr and the associated stellar mass filtering effect can consistently account for the observed properties of the stellar component in the outskirts of I Zw 18 C. This process, in combination with propagating star formation with a mean velocity of ~20 km s-1 can reproduce all essential characteristics of I Zw 18 C within ~τ. An extremely faint substrate of older stars cannot be ruled out but does not need to be postulated. As for I Zw 18, we find that nebular emission (ne) extends out to ~16 stellar scale lengths, shows a nearly exponential outer profile, and provides at least one third of the total optical emission. Nebular emission dominates already at μ ~ 23.5, as evident from e.g. the uniform and extremely blue (V − I ≈ –1, R − I ≈ –1.4) colors of the LSB envelope of I Zw 18. Conclusions. The case of I Zw 18 suggests caution in studies of distant galaxies in dominant stages of their evolution, rapidly assembling their stellar mass at high specific star formation rates (SSFRs). It calls attention to the fact of ne not necessarily being cospatial with the underlying ionizing and non-ionizing stellar background. It also does not have to scale with the background surface density. The prodigious energetic output during dominant phases of galaxy evolution may result in large exponential ne envelopes, extending much beyond the still compact stellar component, just like in I Zw 18. Therefore, the morphological paradigm of I Zw 18, while probably unique in the nearby Universe, may be ubiquitous among high-SSFR galaxies at high redshift. Using I Zw 18 as reference, we show that extended ne may introduce substantial observational biases and affect several of the commonly studied fundamental galaxy relations. Among others, we show that the surface brightness profiles of distant morphological analogs to I Zw 18 may be barely distinguishable from Sérsic profiles with an exponent 2 ≲ η ≲ 5, thus mimicking the profiles of massive galaxy spheroids.
Abstract
We make use of JWST medium-band and broadband NIRCam imaging, along with ultradeep MIRI 5.6
μ
m imaging, in the Hubble eXtreme Deep Field to identify prominent line emitters at
z
≃ 7–8. Out ...of a total of 58 galaxies at
z
≃ 7–8, we find 18 robust candidates (≃31%) for (H
β
+ O
iii
) emitters, based on their enhanced fluxes in the F430M and F444W filters, with EW
0
(H
β
+O
iii
) ≃87–2100 Å. Among these emitters, 16 lie in the MIRI coverage area and 12 exhibit a clear flux excess at 5.6
μ
m, indicating the simultaneous presence of a prominent H
α
emission line with EW
0
(H
α
) ≃200–3000 Å. This is the first time that H
α
emission can be detected in individual galaxies at
z
> 7. The H
α
line, when present, allows us to separate the contributions of H
β
and O
iii
to the (H
β
+O
iii
) complex and derive H
α
-based star formation rates (SFRs). We find that in most cases O
iii
/H
β
> 1. Instead, two galaxies have O
iii
/H
β
< 1, indicating that the NIRCam flux excess is mainly driven by H
β
. Most prominent line emitters are very young starbursts or galaxies on their way to/from the starburst cloud. They make for a cosmic SFR density
log
10
(
ρ
SFR
H
α
/
(
M
⊙
yr
−
1
Mpc
−
3
)
)
≃
−
2.35
, which is about a quarter of the total value (
log
10
(
ρ
SFR
tot
/
(
M
⊙
yr
−
1
Mpc
−
3
)
)
≃
−
1.76
) at
z
≃ 7–8. Therefore, the strong H
α
emitters likely had a significant role in reionization.
PDF
![MIDIS: Strong (Hβ+[O iii]) ...](http://api.summon.serialssolutions.com/2.0.0/image/issn/XR4PS5YY4K/0004-637X/small "MIDIS: Strong (Hβ+[O iii]) and Hα Emitters at Redshift z ≃ 7–8 Unveiled with JWST NIRCam and MIRI Imaging in the Hubble eXtreme Deep Field")