| 1. |
- Wisotzki, L., et al.
(author)
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Nearly all the sky is covered by Lyman-alpha emission around high-redshift galaxies
- 2018
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In: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 562:7726, s. 229-232
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Galaxies are surrounded by large reservoirs of gas, mostly hydrogen, that are fed by inflows from the intergalactic medium and by outflows from galactic winds. Absorption-line measurements along the lines of sight to bright and rare background quasars indicate that this circumgalactic medium extends far beyond the starlight seen in galaxies, but very little is known about its spatial distribution. The Lyman-alpha transition of atomic hydrogen at a wavelength of 121.6 nanometres is an important tracer of warm (about 104 kelvin) gas in and around galaxies, especially at cosmological redshifts greater than about 1.6 at which the spectral line becomes observable from the ground. Tracing cosmic hydrogen through its Lyman-a emission has been a long-standing goal of observational astrophysics(1-3), but the extremely low surface brightness of the spatially extended emission is a formidable obstacle. A new window into circumgalactic environments was recently opened by the discovery of ubiquitous extended Lyman-alpha emission from hydrogen around high-redshift galaxies(4,5). Such measurements were previously limited to especially favourable systems(6-8) or to the use of massive statistical averaging(9,10) because of the faintness of this emission. Here we report observations of low-surface-brightness Lyman-alpha emission surrounding faint galaxies at redshifts between 3 and 6. We find that the projected sky coverage approaches 100 per cent. The corresponding rate of incidence (the mean number of Lyman-alpha emitters penetrated by any arbitrary line of sight) is well above unity and similar to the incidence rate of high-column-density absorbers frequently detected in the spectra of distant quasars(11-14). This similarity suggests that most circumgalactic atomic hydrogen at these redshifts has now been detected in emission.
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| 2. |
- Giesers, B., et al.
(author)
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A stellar census in globular clusters with MUSE: Binaries in NGC 3201
- 2019
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In: Astronomy & Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 632
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We utilise multi-epoch MUSE spectroscopy to study binary stars in the core of the Galactic globular cluster NGC 3201. Our sample consists of 3553 stars with 54 883 spectra in total comprising 3200 main-sequence stars up to 4 magnitudes below the turn-off. Each star in our sample has between 3 and 63 (with a median of 14) reliable radial velocity measurements within five years of observations. We introduce a statistical method to determine the probability of a star showing radial velocity variations based on the whole inhomogeneous radial velocity sample. Using HST photometry and an advanced dynamical MOCCA simulation of this specific cluster we overcome observational biases that previous spectroscopic studies had to deal with. This allows us to infer a binary frequency in the MUSE field of view and enables us to deduce the underlying true binary frequency of (6.75 ± 0.72)% in NGC 3201. The comparison of the MUSE observations with the MOCCA simulation suggests a large portion of primordial binaries. We can also confirm a radial increase in the binary fraction towards the cluster centre due to mass segregation. We discovered that in the core of NGC 3201 at least (57.5 ± 7.9)% of blue straggler stars are in a binary system. For the first time in a study of globular clusters, we were able to fit Keplerian orbits to a significant sample of 95 binaries. We present the binary system properties of eleven blue straggler stars and the connection to SX Phoenicis-type stars. We show evidence that two blue straggler formation scenarios, the mass transfer in binary (or triple) star systems and the coalescence due to binary-binary interactions, are present in our data. We also describe the binary and spectroscopic properties of four sub-subgiant (or red straggler) stars. Furthermore, we discovered two new black hole candidates with minimum masses (M sin i) of (7.68 ± 0.50) M⊙, (4.4 ± 2.8) M⊙, and refine the minimum mass estimate on the already published black hole to (4.53 ± 0.21) M⊙. These black holes are consistent with an extensive black hole subsystem hosted by NGC 3201.
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| 3. |
- Urrutia, T., et al.
(author)
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The MUSE-Wide Survey : survey description and first data release
- 2019
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 624
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present the MUSE-Wide survey, a blind, 3D spectroscopic survey in the CANDELS/GOODS-S and CANDELS/COSMOS regions. The final survey will cover 100 x 1 arcmin(2) MUSE fields. Each MUSE-Wide pointing has a depth of one hour and hence targets more extreme and more luminous objects over ten times the area of the MUSE-Deep fields. The legacy value of MUSE-Wide lies in providing spectroscopy of everything without photometric pre-selection. We describe the data reduction, post-processing and PSF characterization of the first 44 CANDELS /GOODS-S MUSE-Wide pointings released with this publication. Using a 3D matched filtering approach we detect 1602 emission line sources, including 479 Lyman-alpha (Ly alpha) emitting galaxies with redshifts 2.9 less than or similar to z less than or similar to 6.3. We cross-matched the emission line sources to existing photometric catalogs, finding almost complete agreement in redshifts (photometric and spectroscopic) and stellar masses for our low redshift (z < 1.5) emitters. At high redshift, we only find similar to 55% matches to photometric catalogs. We encounter a higher outlier rate and a systematic offset of Delta z similar or equal to 0.2 when comparing our MUSE redshifts with photometric redshifts from the literature. Cross-matching the emission line sources with X-ray catalogs from the Chandra Deep Field South, we find 127 matches, mostly in agreement with the literature redshifts, including ten objects with no prior spectroscopic identification. Stacking X-ray images centered on our Ly alpha emitters yields no signal; the Ly alpha population is not dominated by even low luminosity AGN. Other cross-matches of our emission-line catalog to radio and submillimeter data, yielded far lower numbers of matches, most of which already were covered by the X-ray catalog. A total of 9205 photometrically selected objects from the CANDELS survey lie in the MUSE-Wide footprint, of which we provide optimally extracted 1D spectra. We are able to determine the spectroscopic redshift of 98% of 772 photometrically selected galaxies brighter than 24th F775W magnitude. All the data in the first data release - datacubes, catalogs, extracted spectra, maps - are available on the MUSE-Wide data release webpage.
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| 4. |
- Fensch, J., et al.
(author)
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Ionization processes in a local analogue of distant clumpy galaxies : VLT MUSE IFU spectroscopy and FORS deep images of the TDG NGC 5291N
- 2016
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 585
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Context. We present Integral Field Unit (IFU) observations with MUSE and deep imaging with FORS of a dwarf galaxy recently formed within the giant collisional HI ring surrounding NGC 5291. This Tidal Dwarf Galaxy (TDG) -like object has the characteristics of typical z = 1-2 gas-rich spiral galaxies: a high gas fraction, a rather turbulent clumpy interstellar medium, the absence of an old stellar population, and a moderate metallicity and star formation efficiency. Aims. The MUSE spectra allow us to determine the physical conditions within the various complex substructures revealed by the deep optical images and to scrutinize the ionization processes at play in this specific medium at unprecedented spatial resolution. Methods. Starburst age, extinction, and metallicity maps of the TDG and the surrounding regions were determined using the strong emission lines H beta, [OIII], [OI], [NII], H alpha, and [SII] combined with empirical diagnostics. Different ionization mechanisms were distinguished using BPT-like diagrams and shock plus photoionization models. Results. In general, the physical conditions within the star-forming regions are homogeneous, in particular with a uniform half-solar oxygen abundance. On small scales, the derived extinction map shows narrow dust lanes. Regions with atypically strong [OI] emission line immediately surround the TDG. The [OI]/H alpha ratio cannot be easily accounted for by the photoionization by young stars or shock models. At greater distances from the main star-foming clumps, a faint diffuse blue continuum emission is observed, both with the deep FORS images and the MUSE data. It does not have a clear counterpart in the UV regime probed by GALEX. A stacked spectrum towards this region does not exhibit any emission line, excluding faint levels of star formation, or stellar absorption lines that might have revealed the presence of old stars. Several hypotheses are discussed for the origin of these intriguing features.
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| 5. |
- Boselli, A., et al.
(author)
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Evidence for ram-pressure stripping in a cluster of galaxies at z=0.7
- 2019
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 631
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) observations of the cluster of galaxies CGr32 (M200'2×1014M) atz=0.73 revealthe presence of two massive star-forming galaxies with extended tails of diffuse gas detected in the [Oii]λλ3727–3729 Å emission-line doublet. The tails, which have a cometary shape with a typical surface brightness of a few 10−18erg s−1cm−2arcsec−2, extendup to'100 kpc (projected distance) from the galaxy discs, and are not associated with any stellar component. All this observationalevidence suggests that the gas was removed during a ram-pressure stripping event. This observation is thus the first evidence thatdynamical interactions with the intracluster medium were active when the Universe was only half its present age. The density of thegas derived using the observed [Oii]λ3729/[Oii]λ3726 line ratio implies a very short recombination time, suggesting that a source ofionisation is necessary to keep the gas ionised within the tail.
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| 6. |
- Diener, C., et al.
(author)
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The MUSE-Wide survey : detection of a clustering signal from Lyman alpha emitters in the range 3 < z < 6
- 2017
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In: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 471:3, s. 3186-3192
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present a clustering analysis of a sample of 238 Ly alpha emitters at redshift 3 less than or similar to z less than or similar to 6 from the MUSE-Wide survey. This survey mosaics extragalactic legacy fields with 1h MUSE pointings to detect statistically relevant samples of emission line galaxies. We analysed the first year observations from MUSE-Wide making use of the clustering signal in the line-of-sight direction. This method relies on comparing pair-counts at close redshifts for a fixed transverse distance and thus exploits the full potential of the redshift range covered by our sample. A clear clustering signal with a correlation length of r(0) = 2.9(-1.1)(+1.0) Mpc (comoving) is detected. Whilst this result is based on only about a quarter of the full survey size, it already shows the immense potential of MUSE for efficiently observing and studying the clustering of Ly alpha emitters.
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| 7. |
- Drake, A. B., et al.
(author)
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The MUSE Hubble Ultra Deep Field Survey VI. The faint-end of the Lyα luminosity function at 2.91
- 2017
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 608
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present the deepest study to date of the Ly alpha luminosity function in a blank field using blind integral field spectroscopy from MUSE. We constructed a sample of 604 Ly alpha emitters (LAEs) across the redshift range 2.91 < z < 6.64 using automatic detection software in the Hubble Ultra Deep Lield. The deep data cubes allowed us to calculate accurate total Ly alpha fluxes capturing low surface-brightness extended Ly alpha emission now known to be a generic property of high-redshift star-forming galaxies. We simulated realistic extended LAEs to fully characterise the selection function of our samples, and performed flux-recovery experiments to test and correct for bias in our determination of total Ly alpha fluxes. We find that an accurate completeness correction accounting for extended emission reveals a very steep faint-end slope of the luminosity function, alpha, down to luminosities of log(10) L erg s(-1) < 41.5, applying both the 1/V-max and maximum likelihood estimators. Splitting the sample into three broad redshift bins, we see the faint-end slope increasing from -2.03(-0.07)(+1.42) at z approximate to 3.44 to -2.86(-infinity)(+0.76) Z approximate to 76 at z approximate to 5.48, however no strong evolution is seen between the 68% confidence regions in L*-alpha parameter space. Using the Ly alpha line flux as a proxy for star formation activity, and integrating the observed luminosity functions, we find that LAEs' contribution to the cosmic star formation rate density rises with redshift until it is comparable to that from continuum-selected samples by z approximate to 6. This implies that LAEs may contribute more to the star-formation activity of the early Universe than previously thought, as any additional intergalactic medium (IGM) correction would act to further boost the Ly alpha luminosities. Linally, assuming fiducial values for the escape of Ly alpha and LyC radiation, and the dumpiness of the IGM, we integrated the maximum likelihood luminosity function at 5.00 < z < 6.64 and find we require only a small extrapolation beyond the data (<1 dex in luminosity) for LAEs alone to maintain an ionised IGM at z approximate to 6.
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| 8. |
- Sandin, Christer, et al.
(author)
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Three-component modelling of O-rich AGB star winds : I. Effects of drift using forsterite
- 2023
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 677
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Stellar winds of cool and pulsating asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars enrich the interstellar medium with large amounts of processed elements and various types of dust. We present the first study on the influence of gas-to-dust drift on ab initio simulations of stellar winds of M-type stars driven by radiation pressure on forsterite particles. Our study is based on our radiation hydrodynamic model code T-800 that includes frequency-dependent radiative transfer, dust extinction based on Mie scattering, grain growth and ablation, gas-to-dust drift using one mean grain size, a piston that simulates stellar pulsations, and an accurate high spatial resolution numerical scheme. To enable this study, we calculated new gas opacities based on the EXOMOL database, and we extended the model code to handle the formation of minerals that may form in M-type stars. We determine the effects of drift by comparing drift models to our new and extant non-drift models. Three out of four new drift models show high drift velocities, 87- 310 km s-1. Our new drift model mass-loss rates are 1.7- 13 per cent of the corresponding values of our non-drift models, but compared to the results of two extant non-drift models that use the same stellar parameters, these same values are 0.33- 1.5 per cent. Meanwhile, a comparison of other properties such as the expansion velocity and grain size show similar values. Our results, which are based on single-component forsterite particles, show that the inclusion of gas-to-drift is of fundamental importance in stellar wind models driven by such transparent grains. Assuming that the drift velocity is insignificant, properties such as the mass-loss rate may be off from more realistic values by a factor of 50 or more.
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