Search

We present the molecular gas content and interstellar medium conditions of MACS J0717_Az9, a strong gravitationally lensed z = 4.273, M * ≃ 2 × 109 M ⊙ star-forming galaxy with an unusually high (∼80%) obscured star formation fraction. We detect CO (4–3) in two independent lensed images, as well as [N ii ] 205 μ m, with the Atacama Large Millimeter Array. We derive a molecular gas mass of log 10 [ M H 2 (M ⊙) ] = 9.77 , making it moderately deficient in molecular gas compared to the lower-redshift gas fraction scaling relation. Leveraging photodissociation region (PDR) models, we combine our CO (4–3) measurements with existing measurements of the [C ii ] 158 μ m line and total infrared luminosity to model the PDR conditions. We find PDR conditions similar to those in local star-forming galaxies, with a mean hydrogen density log10[ n H cm−3] = 4.80 ± 0.39 and a mean radiation field strength log10[ G 0 Habing] = 2.83 ± 0.26. Based on Band 3 continuum data, we derive an upper limit on the intrinsic dust mass of log10[ M dust(M ⊙)] < 7.73, consistent with existing estimates. We use the 3D tilted-ring model fitting code 3D-Barolo to determine the kinematic properties of the CO (4–3) emitting gas. We find that it is rotationally dominated, with a V / σ = 4.6 ± 1.7, consistent with the kinematics of the [C ii ]. With PDR conditions remarkably similar to those in normal dusty star-forming galaxies at z < 0.2 and a stable molecular disk, our observations of Az9 suggest that the dust-obscured phase for a low-mass galaxy at z ∼ 4 is relatively long. Thus, Az9 may be representative of a more widespread population that has been missed owing to insufficiently deep existing millimeter surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bow shocks are produced in the local interstellar medium by the passage of fast stars from the Galactic thin-disk and thick-disk populations with velocities V * = 40–80 km s−1. Stellar transits of local H i clouds occur every 3500–7000 yr on average and last between 104 and 105 yr. There could be 10–20 active bow shocks around low-mass stars inside clouds within 15 pc of the Sun. At local cloud distances of 3–10 pc, their turbulent wakes have transverse radial extents R wake ≈ 100–300 au, angular sizes 10″–100″, and Ly α surface brightnesses of 2–8 R in gas with total hydrogen density n H ≈ 0.1 cm−3 and V * = 40–80 km s−1. These transit wakes may cover an area fraction f A ≈ (R wake/ R cl) ≈ 10−3 of local H i clouds and be detectable in IR (dust), UV (Ly α, two-photon), or nonthermal radio emission. Turbulent heating in these wakes could produce the observed elevated rotational populations of H2 (J ≥ 2) and influence the endothermic formation of CH+ in diffuse interstellar gas at T > 103 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interstellar shocks, a key element of stellar feedback processes, shape the structure of the interstellar medium (ISM) and are essential for the chemistry, thermodynamics, and kinematics of interstellar gas. Powerful, high-velocity shocks are driven by stellar winds, young supernova explosions, more evolved supernova remnants, cloud–cloud collisions, and protostellar outflows, whereas the existence and origin of much-lower-velocity shocks (≲10 km s−1) are not understood. Direct observational evidence for interstellar shocks in diffuse and translucent ISM environments has been especially lacking. We present the most sensitive survey to date of SiO—often considered an unambiguous tracer of interstellar shocks—in absorption, obtained with the Northern Extended Millimeter Array interferometer. We detect SiO in five of eight directions probing diffuse and translucent environments without ongoing star formation. Our results demonstrate that SiO formation in the diffuse ISM (i.e., in the absence of significant star formation and stellar feedback) is more widespread and effective than previously reported. The observed SiO line widths are all ≲4 km s−1, excluding high-velocity shocks as a formation mechanism. Yet, the SiO abundances we detect are mostly 1–2 orders of magnitude higher than those typically assumed in quiescent environments and are often accompanied by other molecular transitions whose column densities cannot be explained with UV-dominated chemical models. Our results challenge the traditional view of SiO production via stellar feedback sources and emphasize the need for observational constraints on the distribution of Si in the gas phase and grain mantles, which are crucial for understanding the physics of grain processing and the diffuse interstellar chemistry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stellar cluster environment is expected to play a central role in the evolution of circumstellar disks. We use thermochemical modeling to constrain the dust and gas masses, disk sizes, UV and X-ray radiation fields, viewing geometries, and central stellar masses of 20 class II disks in the Orion Nebula Cluster (ONC). We fit a large grid of disk models to 350 GHz continuum, CO J = 3 − 2, and HCO+ J = 4 − 3 Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations of each target, and we introduce a procedure for modeling interferometric observations of gas disks detected in absorption against a bright molecular cloud background. We find that the ONC disks are massive and compact, with typical radii <100 au, gas masses ≥10−3 M ⊙, and gas-to-dust ratios ≥100. The interstellar‐medium‐like gas-to-dust ratios derived from our modeling suggest that compact, externally irradiated disks in the ONC are less prone to gas-phase CO depletion than the massive and extended gas disks that are commonly found in nearby low-mass star-forming regions. The presence of massive gas disks indicates that external photoevaporation may have only recently begun operating in the ONC; though it remains unclear whether other cluster members are older and more evaporated than the ones in our sample. Finally, we compare our dynamically derived stellar masses with the stellar masses predicted from evolutionary models and find excellent agreement. Our study has significantly increased the number of dynamical mass measurements in the mass range ≤0.5 M ⊙, demonstrating that the ONC is an ideal region for obtaining large samples of dynamical mass measurements toward low-mass M-dwarfs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations of the long-wavelength dust continuum are used to estimate the gas masses in a sample of 708 star-forming galaxies at z = 0.3−4.5. We determine the dependence of gas masses and star formation efficiencies (SFEs; SFR per unit gas mass) on redshift (z), M *, and star formation rate (SFR) relative to the main sequence (MS). We find that 70% of the increase in SFRs of the MS is due to the increased gas masses at earlier epochs, while 30% is due to increased efficiency of star formation (SF). For galaxies above the MS this is reversed—with 70% of the increased SFR relative to the MS being due to elevated SFEs. Thus, the major evolution of star formation activity at early epochs is driven by increased gas masses, while the starburst activity taking galaxies above the MS is due to enhanced triggering of star formation (likely due to galactic merging). The interstellar gas peaks at z = 2 and dominates the stellar mass down to z = 1.2. Accretion rates needed to maintain continuity of the MS evolution reach >100 M ⊙ yr−1 at z > 2. The galactic gas contents are likely the driving determinant for both the rise in SF and AGN activity from z = 5 to their peak at z = 2 and subsequent fall at lower z. We suggest that for self-gravitating clouds with supersonic turbulence, cloud collisions and the filamentary structure of the clouds regulate the star formation activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emission from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a commonly used indicator of star formation activity in galaxies, also has the potential to serve as an effective empirical tracer of molecular gas. We use a sample of 19 nearby galaxies with spatially resolved mid-infrared Spitzer spectroscopy, multiwavelength optical and mid-infrared imaging, and millimeter interferometric CO(1–0) maps to investigate the feasibility of using PAH emission as an empirical proxy to estimate molecular gas mass. PAH emission correlates strongly with CO emission on subkiloparsec scales over the diverse environments probed by our sample of star-forming galaxies and low-luminosity active galactic nuclei. The tight observed correlation, likely a consequence of photoelectronic heating of the diffuse interstellar gas by the PAHs, permits us to derive an empirical calibration to estimate molecular gas mass from the luminosity of PAH emission that has a total scatter of only ∼0.2–0.25 dex. Mid-infrared bands sensitive to PAH emission (e.g., the Spitzer/IRAC4 and WISE/W3 filters) can also be used as a highly effective substitute for this purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spatial range for feedback from star formation varies from molecular cloud disruption on parsec scales to supershells and disk blowout on kiloparsec scales. The relative amounts of energy and momentum given to these scales are important for understanding the termination of star formation in any one region and the origin of interstellar turbulence and disk stability in galaxies as a whole. Here, we measure, for 11 THINGS galaxies, the excess kinetic energy, velocity dispersion, and surface density of H i gas associated with regions of excess star formation, where the excess is determined from the difference between the observed local value and the azimuthal average. We find small decreases in the excess kinetic energy and velocity dispersion in regions of excess star formation rate density, suggesting that most of the feedback energy does not go into local H i motion. Most likely, it disrupts molecular clouds and dissipates rapidly at high gas density. Some could also be distributed over larger regions, filling in spaces between the peaks of star formation and contributing to other energy sources from self-gravity and spiral arm shocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observations of H i Lyman α, the brightest UV emission line of late-type stars, are critical for understanding stellar chromospheres and transition regions, modeling photochemistry in exoplanet atmospheres, and measuring the abundances of neutral hydrogen and deuterium in the interstellar medium. Yet Lyα observations are notoriously challenging owing to severe attenuation from interstellar gas, hindering our understanding of this important emission line's basic morphology. We present high-resolution far- and near-UV spectroscopy of five G, K, and M dwarfs with radial velocities large enough to Doppler-shift the stellar Lyα emission line away from much of the interstellar attenuation, allowing the line core to be directly observed. We detect self-reversal in the Lyα emission-line core for all targets, and we show that the self-reversal depth decreases with increasing surface gravity. Mg ii self-reversed emission-line profiles provide some useful information to constrain the Lyα line core, but the differences are significant enough that Mg ii cannot be used directly as an intrinsic Lyα template during reconstructions. We show that reconstructions that neglect self-reversal could overestimate intrinsic Lyα fluxes by as much as 60%–100% for G and K dwarfs and 40%–170% for M dwarfs. The five stars of our sample have low magnetic activity and subsolar metallicity; a larger sample size is needed to determine how sensitive these results are to these factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a generic mechanism for the thermal damping of compressive waves in the interstellar medium (ISM), occurring due to radiative cooling. We solve for the dispersion relation of magnetosonic waves in a two-fluid (ion-neutral) system in which density- and temperature-dependent heating and cooling mechanisms are present. We use this dispersion relation, in addition to an analytic approximation for the nonlinear turbulent cascade, to model dissipation of weak magnetosonic turbulence. We show that in some ISM conditions, the cutoff wavelength for magnetosonic turbulence becomes tens to hundreds of times larger when the thermal damping is added to the regular ion-neutral damping. We also run numerical simulations, which confirm that this effect has a dramatic impact on cascade of compressive wave modes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the results of ultraviolet (UV) and optical photometric and spectroscopic analysis of the tidal disruption event (TDE) AT 2019qiz. Our follow-up observations started <10 days after the source began to brighten in the optical and lasted for a period of six months. Our late-time host-dominated spectrum indicates that the host galaxy likely harbors a weak active galactic nucleus. The initial Hubble Space Telescope (HST) spectrum of AT 2019qiz exhibits an iron and low-ionization broad absorption line (FeLoBAL) system that is seen for the first time in a TDE. This spectrum also bears a striking resemblance to that of Gaia16apd, a superluminous supernova. Our observations provide insights into the outflow properties in TDEs and show evidence for a connection between TDEs and engine-powered supernovae at early phases, as originally suggested by Metzger & Stone. In a time frame of 50 days, the UV spectra of AT 2019qiz started to resemble those of previous TDEs with only high-ionization broad absorption lines. The change in UV spectral signatures is accompanied by a decrease in the outflow velocity, which began at 15,000 km s−1 and decelerated to ∼10,000 km s−1. A similar evolution in the Hα emission-line width further supports the speculation that the broad Balmer emission lines are formed in TDE outflows. In addition, we detect narrow absorption features on top of the FeLoBAL signatures in the early HST UV spectrum of AT 2019qiz. The measured H i column density corresponds to a Lyman-limit system, whereas the metal absorption lines (such as N v , C iv , Fe ii , and Mg ii) are likely probing the circumnuclear gas and interstellar medium in the host galaxy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cosmic-ray (CR) sources temporarily enhance the relativistic particle density in their vicinity over the background distribution accumulated from the Galaxy-wide past injection activity and propagation. If individual sources are close enough to the solar system, their localized enhancements may present as features in the measured spectra of the CRs and in the associated secondary electromagnetic emissions. Large-scale loop-like structures visible in the radio sky are possible signatures of such nearby CR sources. If so, these loops may also have counterparts in the high-latitude γ-ray sky. Using ∼10 yr of data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope, applying Bayesian analysis including Gaussian Processes, we search for extended enhanced emission associated with putative nearby CR sources in the energy range from 1 GeV to 1 TeV for the sky region ∣b∣ > 30°. We carefully control the systematic uncertainty due to imperfect knowledge of the interstellar gas distribution. Radio Loop IV is identified for the first time as a γ-ray emitter, and we also find significant emission from Loop I. Strong evidence is found for asymmetric features about the Galactic l = 0° meridian that may be associated with parts of the so-called "Fermi Bubbles," and some evidence is also found for γ-ray emission from other radio loops. Implications for the CRs producing the features and possible locations of the sources of the emissions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supermassive black hole binaries are likely to accrete interstellar gas through a circumbinary disk. Shortly before merger, the inner portions of this circumbinary disk are subject to general relativistic effects. To study this regime, we approximate the spacetime metric of close orbiting black holes by superimposing two boosted Kerr–Schild terms. After demonstrating the quality of this approximation, we carry out very long-term general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of the circumbinary disk. We consider black holes with spin dimensionless parameters of magnitude 0.9, in one simulation parallel to the orbital angular momentum of the binary, but in another anti-parallel. These are contrasted with spinless simulations. We find that, for a fixed surface mass density in the inner circumbinary disk, aligned spins of this magnitude approximately reduce the mass accretion rate by 14% and counter-aligned spins increase it by 45%, leaving many other disk properties unchanged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We construct empirical models of star-forming galaxy evolution assuming that individual galaxies evolve along well-known scaling relations between stellar mass, gas mass, and star formation rate following a simple description of chemical evolution. We test these models by a comparison with observations and detailed Magneticum high-resolution hydrodynamic cosmological simulations. Galaxy star formation rates, stellar masses, gas masses, ages, interstellar medium, and stellar metallicities are compared. It is found that these simple look-back models capture many of the crucial aspects of galaxy evolution reasonably well. Their key assumption of a redshift-dependent power-law relationship between galaxy interstellar medium gas mass and stellar mass is in agreement with the outcome of the complex Magneticum simulations. Star formation rates decline toward lower redshift not because galaxies are running out of gas, but because the fraction of the cold interstellar medium gas, which is capable of producing stars, becomes significantly smaller. Gas accretion rates in both model approaches are of the same order of magnitude. Metallicity in the Magneticum simulations increases with the ratio of stellar mass to gas mass as predicted by the look-back models. The mass–metallicity relationships agree, and the star formation rate dependence of these relationships is also reproduced. We conclude that these simple models provide a powerful tool for constraining and interpreting more complex models based on cosmological simulations and for population synthesis studies analyzing the integrated spectra of stellar populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intensity of the far-ultraviolet (FUV; 6–13.6 eV) interstellar radiation field (ISRF) in galaxies determines the thermal and chemical evolution of the neutral interstellar gas and is key for interpreting extragalactic observations and for theories of star formation. We run a series of galactic disk models and derive the FUV ISRF intensity as a function of the dust-to-gas ratio, star formation rate density, gas density, scale radius, and observer position. We develop an analytic formula for the median FUV ISRF flux. We identify two-dimensionless parameters in the problem: (1) the dimensionless galactic radius, X, which measures the radial extent of FUV sources (OB stellar associations) in the disk; and (2) the opacity over the intersource distance, τ⋆, which measures the importance of dust absorption. These parameters encapsulate the dependence on all of the physical parameters. We find that there exists a critical τ⋆, or equivalently a critical dust-to-gas ratio, , the Milky Way value, at which the ISRF changes behavior. For the ISRF is limited by dust absorption. With decreasing , the ISRF intensity increases as more sources contribute to the flux. For the ISRF saturates as the disk becomes optically thin. We find that the ISRF per star formation rate density in low-metallicity systems, such as dwarf and high-redshift galaxies, is higher by up to a factor of 3–6 compared to their Milky Way counterparts. We discuss the implications these findings have for the potential mechanisms that regulate star formation in low-metallicity galaxies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the results of a detailed investigation into the physical conditions in interstellar material interacting with the supernova remnant (SNR) IC 443. Our analysis is based on a comprehensive examination of high-resolution far-ultraviolet spectra obtained with the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph onboard the Hubble Space Telescope of two stars behind IC 443. One of our targets (HD 43582) probes gas along the entire line of sight through the SNR, while the other (HD 254755) samples material located ahead of the primary supernova shock front. We identify low-velocity quiescent gas in both directions and find that the densities and temperatures in these components are typical of diffuse atomic and molecular clouds. Numerous high-velocity components are observed in the absorption profiles of neutral and singly ionized atomic species toward HD 43582. These components exhibit a combination of greatly enhanced thermal pressures and significantly reduced dust-grain depletions. We interpret this material as cooling gas in a recombination zone far downstream from shocks driven into neutral gas clumps. The pressures derived for a group of ionized gas components at high positive velocity toward HD 43582 are lower than those of the other shocked components, pointing to pressure inhomogeneities across the remnant. A strong, very high velocity component near −620 km s−1 is seen in the absorption profiles of highly ionized species toward HD 43582. The velocity of this material is consistent with the range of shock velocities implied by observations of soft thermal X-ray emission from IC 443. Moderately high velocity gas toward HD 254755 may represent shocked material from a separate foreground SNR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present ALMA Band 7 data of the [C ii ] emission line and underlying far-IR (FIR) continuum for 12 luminous quasars at powered by fast-growing supermassive black holes (SMBHs). Our total sample consists of 18 quasars, 12 of which are presented here for the first time. The new sources consist of six Herschel/SPIRE-detected systems, which we define as "FIR-bright" sources, and six Herschel/SPIRE-undetected systems, which we define as "FIR-faint" sources. We determine dust masses for the quasars hosts of , implying interstellar medium gas masses comparable to the dynamical masses derived from the [C ii ] kinematics. It is found that, on average, the Mg ii line is blueshifted by with respect to the [C ii ] emission line, which is also observed when complementing our observations with data from the literature. We find that all of our FIR-bright subsample and most of the FIR-faint objects lie above the main sequence of star-forming galaxies at. We detect companion submillimeter galaxies for two sources, both FIR-faint, with a range of projected distances of kpc and typical velocity shifts of from the quasar hosts. Of our total sample of 18 quasars, 5/18 are found to have dust-obscured star-forming companions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A majority of the γ-ray emission from star-forming galaxies is generated by the interaction of high-energy cosmic rays with the interstellar gas and radiation fields. Star-forming galaxies are expected to contribute to both the extragalactic γ-ray background and the IceCube astrophysical neutrino flux. Using roughly 10 yr of γ-ray data taken by the Fermi Large Area Telescope, in this study we constrain the γ-ray properties of star-forming galaxies. We report the detection of 11 bona fide γ-ray-emitting galaxies and 2 candidates. Moreover, we show that the cumulative γ-ray emission of below-threshold galaxies is also significantly detected at ∼5σ confidence. The γ-ray luminosity of resolved and unresolved galaxies is found to correlate with the total (8–1000 μm) infrared luminosity as previously determined. Above 1 GeV, the spectral energy distribution of resolved and unresolved galaxies is found to be compatible with a power law with a photon index of ≈2.2–2.3. Finally, we find that star-forming galaxies account for roughly 5% and 3% of the extragalactic γ-ray background and the IceCube neutrino flux, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Broad infrared emission features (e.g., at 3.3, 6.2, 7.7, 8.6, and 11.3 μm) from the gas phase interstellar medium have long been attributed to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). A significant portion (10%-20%) of the Milky Way's carbon reservoir is locked in PAH molecules, which makes their characterization integral to our understanding of astrochemistry. In molecular clouds and the dense envelopes and disks of young stellar objects (YSOs), PAHs are expected to be frozen in the icy mantles of dust grains where they should reveal themselves through infrared absorption. To facilitate the search for frozen interstellar PAHs, laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the positions and strengths of the bands of pyrene mixed with H2O and D2O ices. The D2O mixtures are used to measure pyrene bands that are masked by the strong bands of H2O, leading to the first laboratory determination of the band strength for the CH stretching mode of pyrene in water ice near 3.25 μm. Our infrared band strengths were normalized to experimentally determined ultraviolet band strengths, and we find that they are generally ∼50% larger than those reported by Bouwman et al. based on theoretical strengths. These improved band strengths were used to reexamine YSO spectra published by Boogert et al. to estimate the contribution of frozen PAHs to absorption in the 5-8 μm spectral region, taking into account the strength of the 3.25 μm CH stretching mode. It is found that frozen neutral PAHs contain 5%-9% of the cosmic carbon budget and account for 2%-9% of the unidentified absorption in the 5-8 μm region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the results of a search for emission features from interstellar deuterated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the 4 μm region with the Infrared Camera (IRC) on board AKARI. No significant excess emission is seen in 4.3-4.7 μm in the spectra toward the Orion Bar and M17 after the subtraction of line emission from the ionized gas. A small excess of emission remains at around 4.4 and 4.65 μm, but the ratio of their intensity to that of the band emission from PAHs at 3.3-3.5 μm is estimated as 2%-3%. This is an order of magnitude smaller than the values previously reported and also those predicted by the model of deuterium depletion onto PAHs. Since the subtraction of the ionized gas emission introduces an uncertainty, the deuterated PAH features are also searched for in the reflection nebula GN 18.14.0, which does not show emission lines from ionized gas. We obtain a similar result that excess emission in the 4 μm region, if present, is about 2% of the PAH band emission in the 3 μm region. The present study does not find evidence for the presence of the large amount of deuterated PAHs that the depletion model predicts. The results are discussed in the context of deuterium depletion in the interstellar medium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RX J1713.7–3946 is the most remarkable very high energy γ-ray supernova remnant that emits synchrotron X-rays without thermal features. We made a comparative study of CO, H I, and X-rays in order to better understand the relationship between the X-rays, and the molecular and atomic gas. The results indicate that the X-rays are enhanced around the CO and H I clumps on a pc scale, but are decreased inside the clumps on a 0.1 pc scale. Magnetohydrodynamic numerical simulations of the shock interaction with molecular and atomic gas indicate that the interaction between the shock waves and the clumps excite turbulence, which amplifies the magnetic field around the clumps. We suggest that the amplified magnetic field around the CO and H I clumps enhances the synchrotron X-rays and possibly the acceleration of cosmic-ray electrons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use UV measurements of interstellar CO toward nearby stars to calculate the density in the diffuse molecular clouds containing the molecules responsible for the observed absorption. Chemical models and recent calculations of the excitation rate coefficients indicate that the regions in which CO is found have hydrogen predominantly in molecular form and that collisional excitation is by collisions with H2 molecules. We carry out statistical equilibrium calculations using CO-H2 collision rates to solve for the H2 density in the observed sources without including effects of radiative trapping. We have assumed kinetic temperatures of 50 K and 100 K, finding this choice to make relatively little difference to the lowest transition. For the sources having T ex 10 only for which we could determine upper and lower density limits, we find (n(H2)) = 49 cm-3.While we can find a consistent density range for a good fraction of the sources having either two or three values of the excitation temperature, there is a suggestion that the higher-J transitions are sampling clouds or regions within diffuse molecular cloud material that have higher densities than the material sampled by the J = 1-0 transition. The assumed kinetic temperature and derived H2 density are anticorrelated when the J = 2-1 transition data, the J = 3-2 transition data, or both are included. For sources with either two or three values of the excitation temperature, we find average values of the midpoint of the density range that is consistent with all of the observations equal to 68 cm-3 for Tk = 100 K and 92 cm-3 for Tk = 50 K. The data for this set of sources imply that diffuse molecular clouds are characterized by an average thermal pressure between 4600 and 6800 K cm-3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anomalously broad diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) at 5780.5, 5797.1, 6196.0, and 6613.6Åare found in absorption along the line of sight to Herschel 36, the star illuminating the bright Hourglass region of the Hii region Messier 8. Interstellar absorption from excited CH+ in the J = 1 level and from excited CH in the J = 3/2 level is also seen. To our knowledge, neither those excited molecular lines nor such strongly extended DIBs have previously been seen in absorption from interstellar gas. These unusual features appear to arise in a small region near Herschel 36 which contains most of the neutral interstellar material in the sight line. The CH+ and CH in that region are radiatively excited by strong far-IR radiation from the adjacent infrared source Her 36 SE. Similarly, the broadening of the DIBs toward Herschel 36 may be due to radiative pumping of closely spaced high-J rotational levels of relatively small, polar carrier molecules. If this picture of excited rotational states for the DIB carriers is correct and applicable to most DIBs, the 2.7K cosmic microwave background may set the minimum widths (about 0.35 Å) of known DIBs, with molecular processes and/or local radiation fields producing the larger widths found for the broader DIBs. Despite the intense local UV radiation field within the cluster NGC 6530, no previously undetected DIBs stronger than 10 mÅ in equivalent width are found in the optical spectrum of Herschel 36, suggesting that neither dissociation nor ionization of the carriers of the known DIBs by this intense field creates new carriers with easily detectable DIB-like features. Possibly related profile anomalies for several other DIBs are noted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess how external factors such as local interactions and fresh gas accretion influence the global interstellar medium of galaxies, we analyze the relationship between recent enhancements of central star formation and total molecular-to-atomic (H2/HI) gas ratios, using a broad sample of field galaxies spanning early-to-late type morphologies, stellar masses of 107.2–1011.2M⊙, and diverse stages of evolution. We find that galaxies occupy several loci in a “fueling diagram” that plots H2/HI ratio versus mass-corrected blue-centeredness, a metric tracing the degree to which galaxies have bluer centers than the average galaxy at their stellar mass. Spiral galaxies of all stellar masses show a positive correlation between H2/HI ratio and mass-corrected blue-centeredness. When combined with previous results linking mass-corrected blue-centeredness to external perturbations, this correlation suggests a systematic link between local galaxy interactions and molecular gas inflow/replenishment. Intriguingly, E/S0 galaxies show a more complex picture: some follow the same correlation, some are quenched, and a distinct population of blue-sequence E/S0 galaxies (with masses below key scales associated with transitions in gas richness) defines a separate loop in the fueling diagram. This population appears to be composed of low-mass merger remnants currently in late- or post-starburst states, in which the burst first consumes the H2 while the galaxy center keeps getting bluer, then exhausts the H2, at which point the burst population reddens as it ages. Multiple lines of evidence suggest connected evolutionary sequences in the fueling diagram. In particular, tracking total gas-to-stellar mass ratios within the fueling diagram provides evidence of fresh gas accretion onto low-mass E/S0s emerging from their central starburst episodes. Drawing on a comprehensive literature search, we suggest that virtually all galaxies follow the same evolutionary patterns found in our broad sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present an analysis of the interstellar medium (ISM) toward the γ -ray supernova remnant (SNR) W44. We used NANTEN2 12CO(J = 2-1) and 12CO(J = 1-0) data and Arecibo Hi data in order to identify the molecular and atomic gas in the SNR. We confirmed that the molecular gas is located in the SNR shell with a primary peak toward the eastern edge of the shell. We newly identified high-excitation molecular gas along the eastern shell of the SNR in addition to the high-excitation broad gas previously observed inside the shell; the line intensity ratio between the 12CO(J = 2-1) and 12CO(J = 1-0) transitions in these regions is greater than ~1.0, suggesting a kinetic temperature of 30 K or higher, which is most likely due to heating by shock interaction. By comparing the ISM with γ -rays, we find that target protons of hadronic origin are dominated by molecular protons of average density around 200 cm-3, where the possible contribution of atomic protons is 10% or less. This average density is consistent with the recent discovery of the low-energy γ -rays suppressed in 50 MeV-10 GeV as observed with AGILE and Fermi. The γ -ray spectrum differs from place to place in the SNR, suggesting that the cosmic-ray (CR) proton spectrum significantly changes within the middle-aged SNR perhaps due to the energy-dependent escape of CR protons from the acceleration site. We finally derive a total CR proton energy of ~1049 erg, consistent with the SN origin of the majority of the CRs in the Galaxy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current sheets (CSs) are important signatures of magnetic reconnection in the eruption of confined solar magnetic structures. Models of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) involve formation of a CS connecting the ejected flux rope with the post-eruptionmagnetic loops. CSs have been identified in white light (WL) images of CMEs as narrow rays trailing the outward moving CME core, and in ultraviolet spectra as narrow bright features emitting the [Fe xviii] line. In this work, samples of rays detected in WL images or in ultraviolet spectra have been analyzed. Temperatures, widths, and line intensities of the rays have been measured, and their correlation to the CME properties has been studied. The samples show a wide range of temperatures with hot, coronal, and cool rays. In some cases, the UV spectra support the identification of rays as CSs, but they show that some WL rays are cool material from the CME core. In many cases, both hot and cool material are present, but offset from each other along the Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer slit. We find that about 18% of the WL rays show very hot gas consistent with the CS interpretation, while about 23% show cold gas that we attribute to cool prominence material draining back from the CME core. The remaining events have ordinary coronal temperatures, perhaps because they have relaxed back to a quiescent state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the discovery of a well-defined correlation between B-band face-on central optical depth due to dust, τ f B , and the stellar mass surface density, μ", of nearby (z ⩽ 0.13) spiral galaxies: log(τ f B ) = 1.12(±0.11) . log(μ"/M☉ kpc-2) - 8.6(±0.8). This relation was derived from a sample of spiral galaxies taken from the Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA) survey, which were detected in the FIR/submillimeter (submm) in the Herschel- ATLAS science demonstration phase field. Using a quantitative analysis of the NUV attenuation-inclination relation for complete samples of GAMA spirals categorized according to stellar mass surface density, we demonstrate that this correlation can be used to statistically correct for dust attenuation purely on the basis of optical photometry and Sérsic-profile morphological fits. Considered together with previously established empirical relationships of stellar mass to metallicity and gas mass, the near linearity and high constant of proportionality of the τ f B -μ" relation disfavors a stellar origin for the bulk of refractory grains in spiral galaxies, instead being consistent with the existence of a ubiquitous and very rapid mechanism for the growth of dust in the interstellar medium. We use the τ f B -μ" relation in conjunction with the radiation transfer model for spiral galaxies of Popescu & Tuffs to derive intrinsic scaling relations between specific star formation rate (SFR), stellar mass, and stellar surface density, in which attenuation of the UV light used for the measurement of SFR is corrected on an object-to-object basis. A marked reduction in scatter in these relations is achieved which we demonstrate is due to correction of both the inclination-dependent and face-on components of attenuation. Our results are consistent with a general picture of spiral galaxies in which most of the submm emission originates from grains residing in translucent structures, exposed to UV in the diffuse interstellar radiation field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linear analysis of the formation of protostellar cores in planar magnetic interstellar clouds yields information about length scales involved in star formation. Combining these length scales with various distributions of other environmental variables (i.e., column density and mass-to-flux ratio) and applying Monte Carlo methods allow us to produce synthetic core mass functions (CMFs) for different environmental conditions. Our analysis shows that the shape of the CMF is directly dependent on the physical conditions of the cloud. Specifically, magnetic fields act to broaden the mass function and develop a high-mass tail while ambipolar diffusion will truncate this high-mass tail. In addition, we analyze the effect of small number statistics on the shape and high-mass slope of the synthetic CMFs. We find that observed CMFs are severely statistically limited, which has a profound effect on the derived slope for the high-mass tail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivated by recent observations with Herschel/PACS, and the availability of new rate coefficients for the collisional excitation of CO, the excitation of warm astrophysical CO is revisited with the use of numerical and analytic methods. For the case of an isothermal medium, results have been obtained for a wide range of gas temperatures (100-5000 K) and H2 densities (10³ - 109 cm-3), and presented in the form of rotational diagrams, in which the logarithm of the column density per magnetic substate, log (NJ /gJ ), is plotted for each state, as a function of its energy, EJ. For rotational transitions in the wavelength range accessible to Herschel/PACS, such diagrams are nearly linear when n(H2) ≥108 cm-3. When n(H2) ~ 106.8 -108 cm-3, they exhibit significant negative curvature, whereas when n(H2) ≤104.8 cm-3, the curvature is uniformly positive throughout the PACS-accessible range. Thus, the observation of a positively curved CO rotational diagram does not necessarily require the presence of multiple temperature components. Indeed, for some sources observed with Herschel/PACS, the CO rotational diagrams show a modest positive curvature that can be explained by a single isothermal component. Typically, the required physical parameters are densities in the 104 -105 cm-3 range and temperatures close to the maximum at which CO can survive. Other sources exhibit rotational diagrams with more curvature than can be accounted for by a single temperature component. For the case of a medium with a power-law distribution of gas temperatures, dN/dT ∝ T-b, results have been obtained for H2 densities 10³-109 cm-3 and power-law indices, b, in the range 1-5; such a medium can account for a CO rotational diagram that is more positively curved than any resulting from an isothermal medium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The physical state of interstellar gas and dust is dependent on the processes which heat and cool this medium. To probe heating and cooling of the interstellar medium over a large range of infrared surface brightness, on sub-kiloparsec scales, we employ line maps of [C II] 158 µm, [O I] 63 µm, and [N II] 122 µm in NGC 1097 and NGC 4559, obtained with the Photodetector Array Camera & Spectrometer on board Herschel. We matched new observations to existing Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph data that trace the total emission of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). We confirm at small scales in these galaxies that the canonical measure of photoelectric heating efficiency, ([C II] + [O I])/TIR, decreases as the far-infrared (far-IR) color, vfv(70 µm) vfv(100 µm), increases. In contrast, the ratio of far-IR cooling to total PAH emission, ([C II] + [O I])/PAH, is a near constant ~6% over a wide range of far-IR color, 0.5 < vfv(70 µm) vfv(100 µm) ≿ 0.95. In the warmest regions, where vfv(70 µm) vfv(100 µm) ≾ 0.95, the ratio ([C II] + [O I])/PAH drops rapidly to 4%. We derived representative values of the local ultraviolet radiation density, G0, and the gas density, nH, by comparing our observations to models of photodissociation regions. The ratio G0/nH, derived from fine-structure lines, is found to correlate with the mean dust-weighted starlight intensity, , derived from models of the IR spectral energy distribution. Emission from regions that exhibit a line deficit is characterized by an intense radiation field, indicating that small grains are susceptible to ionization effects. We note that there is a shift in the 7.7/11.3 µm PAH ratio in regions that exhibit a deficit in ([C II] + [O I])/PAH, suggesting that small grains are ionized in these environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]