| 1. |
- Windhorst, Rogier A., et al.
(författare)
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JWST PEARLS. Prime extragalactic areas for reionization and lensing science : project overview and first results
- 2023
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Ingår i: Astronomical Journal. - : Institute of Physics (IOP). - 0004-6256 .- 1538-3881. ; 165:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We give an overview and describe the rationale, methods, and first results from NIRCam images of the JWST “Prime Extragalactic Areas for Reionization and Lensing Science” (PEARLS) project. PEARLS uses up to eight NIRCam filters to survey several prime extragalactic survey areas: two fields at the North Ecliptic Pole (NEP); seven gravitationally lensing clusters; two high redshift protoclusters; and the iconic backlit VV 191 galaxy system to map its dust attenuation. PEARLS also includes NIRISS spectra for one of the NEP fields and NIRSpec spectra of two high-redshift quasars. The main goal of PEARLS is to study the epoch of galaxy assembly, active galactic nucleus (AGN) growth, and First Light. Five fields—the JWST NEP Time-Domain Field (TDF), IRAC Dark Field, and three lensing clusters—will be observed in up to four epochs over a year. The cadence and sensitivity of the imaging data are ideally suited to find faint variable objects such as weak AGN, high-redshift supernovae, and cluster caustic transits. Both NEP fields have sightlines through our Galaxy, providing significant numbers of very faint brown dwarfs whose proper motions can be studied. Observations from the first spoke in the NEP TDF are public. This paper presents our first PEARLS observations, their NIRCam data reduction and analysis, our first object catalogs, the 0.9–4.5 μm galaxy counts and Integrated Galaxy Light. We assess the JWST sky brightness in 13 NIRCam filters, yielding our first constraints to diffuse light at 0.9–4.5 μm. PEARLS is designed to be of lasting benefit to the community.
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| 2. |
- Diego, Jose M., et al.
(författare)
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JWST's PEARLS : Mothra, a new kaiju star at z=2.091 extremely magnified by MACS0416, and implications for dark matter models
- 2023
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 679
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report the discovery of Mothra, an extremely magnified monster star, likely a binary system of two supergiant stars, in one of the strongly lensed galaxies behind the galaxy cluster MACS J0416.1-2403. Mothra is in a galaxy with spectroscopic redshift z = 2.091 in a portion of the galaxy that is parsecs away from the cluster caustic. The binary star is observed only on the side of the critical curve with negative parity but has been detectable for at least eight years, implying the presence of a small lensing perturber. Microlenses alone cannot explain the earlier observations of this object made with the Hubble Space Telescope. A larger perturber with a mass of at least 10(4 )M(circle dot) offers a more satisfactory explanation. Based on the lack of perturbation on other nearby sources in the same arc, the maximum mass of the perturber is 2.5 x 10(6) M-circle dot, making this the smallest substructure constrained by lensing at z > 0.3. The existence of this millilens is fully consistent with expectations from standard cold dark matter cosmology. On the other hand, the existence of such a small substructure in a cluster environment has implications for other dark matter models. In particular, warm dark matter models with particle masses below 8.7 keV are excluded by our observations. Similarly, axion dark matter models are consistent with the observations only if the axion mass is in the range 0.5 x 10(-22) eV < m(a )< 5 x 10(-22) eV.
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| 3. |
- Hsiao, Tiger Yu-Yang, et al.
(författare)
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JWST Reveals a Possible z similar to 11 Galaxy Merger in Triply Lensed MACS0647-JD
- 2023
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Letters. - : American Astronomical Society. - 2041-8205 .- 2041-8213. ; 949:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- MACS0647-JD is a triply lensed z similar to 11 galaxy originally discovered with the Hubble Space Telescope. The three lensed images are magnified by factors of similar to 8, 5, and 2 to AB mag 25.1, 25.6, and 26.6 at 3.5 mu m. The brightest is over a magnitude brighter than other galaxies recently discovered at similar redshifts z > 10 with JWST. Here, we report new JWST imaging that clearly resolves MACS0647-JD as having two components that are either merging galaxies or stellar complexes within a single galaxy. The brighter larger component "A" is intrinsically very blue (ss similar to-2.6 +/- 0.1), likely due to very recent star formation and no dust, and is spatially extended with an effective radius similar to 70 +/- 24 pc. The smaller component "B" (r similar to 20-+ 58 pc) appears redder (ss similar to-2 +/- 0.2), likely because it is older (100-200 Myr) with mild dust extinction (AV similar to 0.1 mag). With an estimated stellar mass ratio of roughly 2:1 and physical projected separation similar to 400 pc, we may be witnessing a galaxy merger 430 million years after the Big Bang. We identify galaxies with similar colors in a high-redshift simulation, finding their star formation histories to be dissimilar, which is also suggested by the spectral energy distribution fitting, suggesting they formed further apart. We also identify a candidate companion galaxy "C" similar to 3 kpc away, likely destined to merge with A and B. Upcoming JWST Near Infrared Spectrograph observations planned for 2023 January will deliver spectroscopic redshifts and more physical properties for these tiny magnified distant galaxies observed in the early universe.
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| 4. |
- Nabizadeh, Armin, et al.
(författare)
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A search for high-redshift direct-collapse black hole candidates in the PEARLS north ecliptic pole field
- 2024
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 683
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Direct-collapse black holes (DCBHs) of mass ∼ 104-105 M⊙ that form in HI-cooling halos in the early Universe are promising progenitors of the greater than or similar to 109 M⊙ supermassive black holes that fuel observed z greater than or similar to 7 quasars. Efficient accretion of the surrounding gas onto such DCBH seeds may render them sufficiently bright for detection with the JWST up to z ≈ 20. Additionally, the very steep and red spectral slope predicted across the ≈ 1-5 μm wavelength range of the JWST/NIRSpec instrument during their initial growth phase should make them photometrically identifiable up to very high redshifts. In this work, we present a search for such DCBH candidates across the 34 arcmin2 in the first two spokes of the JWST cycle-1 PEARLS survey of the north ecliptic pole time-domain field covering eight NIRCam filters down to a maximum depth of ∼ 29 AB mag. We identify two objects with spectral energy distributions consistent with the Pacucci et al. (2016) DCBH models. However, we also note that even with data in eight NIRCam filters, objects of this type remain degenerate with dusty galaxies and obscured active galactic nuclei over a wide range of redshifts. Follow-up spectroscopy would be required to pin down the nature of these objects. Based on our sample of DCBH candidates and assumptions on the typical duration of the DCBH steep-slope state, we set a conservative upper limit of less than or similar to 5x10-4 comoving Mpc-3 (cMpc-3) on the comoving density of host halos capable of hosting DCBHs with spectral energy distributions similar to the Pacucci et al. (2016) models at z ≈ 6-14.
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| 5. |
- Martin, Alec, et al.
(författare)
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UV-bright Star-forming Clumps and Their Host Galaxies in UVCANDELS at 0.5 ≤ z ≤ 1
- 2023
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 955:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Giant star-forming clumps are a prominent feature of star-forming galaxies (SFGs) and contain important clues on galaxy formation and evolution. However, the basic demographics of clumps and their host galaxies remain uncertain. Using the Hubble Space Telescope/Wide Field Camera 3 F275W images from the Ultraviolet Imaging of the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey, we detect and analyze giant star-forming clumps in galaxies at 0.5 ≤ z ≤ 1, connecting two epochs when clumps are common (at cosmic high noon, z ∼ 2) and rare (in the local Universe). We construct a clump sample whose rest-frame 1600 Å luminosity is 3 times higher than the most luminous local H ii regions (MUV ≤ −16 AB). In our sample, 35% ± 3% of low-mass galaxies (log[M∗/M⊙] < 10) are clumpy (i.e., containing at least one off-center clump). This fraction changes to 22% ± 3% and 22% ± 4% for intermediate (10 ≤ log[M∗/M⊙] ≤ 10.5) and high-mass (log[M∗/M⊙] > 10.5) galaxies, in agreement with previous studies. When compared to similar-mass nonclumpy SFGs, low- and intermediate-mass clumpy SFGs tend to have higher star formation rates (SFRs) and bluer rest-frame U − V colors, while high-mass clumpy SFGs tend to be larger than nonclumpy SFGs. However, clumpy and nonclumpy SFGs have similar Sérsic index, indicating a similar underlying density profile. Furthermore, we investigate how the UV luminosity of star-forming regions correlates with the physical properties of host galaxies. On average, more luminous star-forming regions reside in more luminous, smaller, and/or higher specific SFR galaxies and are found closer to their hosts' galactic centers.
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| 6. |
- Smith, Brent M., et al.
(författare)
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Lyman Continuum Emission from Active Galactic Nuclei at 2.3 ≲ z ≲ 3.7 in the UVCANDELS Fields
- 2024
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 964:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the results of our search for Lyman continuum (LyC)-emitting (weak) active galactic nuclei (AGN) at redshifts 2.3 ≲ z ≲ 4.9 from Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) F275W observations in the Ultraviolet Imaging of the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (UVCANDELS) fields. We also include LyC emission from AGN using HST WFC3 F225W, F275W, and F336W imaging found in Early Release Science (ERS) and Hubble Deep UV Legacy Survey data. We performed exhaustive queries of the Vizier database to locate AGN with high-quality spectroscopic redshifts. In total, we found 51 AGN that met our criteria within the UVCANDELS and ERS footprints. Out of these 51, we find 12 AGN that had ≥4σ detected LyC flux in the WFC3/UVIS images. Using a wide variety of space-based plus ground-based data, ranging from X-ray to radio wavelengths, we fit the multiwavelength photometric data of each AGN to a CIGALE spectral energy distribution (SED) using AGN models and correlate various SED parameters to the LyC flux. Kolmogorov–Smirnov tests of the SED parameter distributions for the LyC-detected and nondetected AGN showed they are likely not distinct samples. However, we find that the X-ray luminosity, star formation onset age, and disk luminosity show strong correlations relative to their emitted LyC flux. We also find strong correlations of the LyC flux to several dust parameters, i.e., polar and toroidal dust emission and 6 μm luminosity, and anticorrelations with metallicity and AFUV. We simulate the LyC escape fraction (fesc) using the CIGALE and intergalactic medium transmission models for the LyC-detected AGN and find an average fesc ≃ 18%, weighted by uncertainties. We stack the LyC fluxes of subsamples of AGN according to the wavelength continuum region in which they are detected and find no significant distinctions in their LyC emission, although our submillimeter-detected F336W sample (3.15 < z < 3.71) shows the brightest stacked LyC flux. These findings indicate that LyC production and escape in AGN are more complicated than the simple assumption of thermal emission and a 100% escape fraction. Further testing of AGN models with larger samples than presented here is needed.
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| 7. |
- Vanzella, Eros, et al.
(författare)
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JWST/NIRCam Probes Young Star Clusters in the Reionization Era Sunrise Arc
- 2023
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 945:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Star cluster formation in the early universe and its contribution to reionization remains largely unconstrained to date. Here we present JWST/NIRCam imaging of the most highly magnified galaxy known at z ∼ 6, the Sunrise arc. We identify six young massive star clusters (YMCs) with measured radii spanning from ∼20 down to ∼1 pc (corrected for lensing magnification), estimated stellar masses of ∼106–7 M⊙, and ages of 1–30 Myr based on SED fitting to photometry measured in eight filters extending to rest frame 7000 Å. The resulting stellar mass surface densities are higher than 1000 M⊙ pc−2 (up to a few 105 M⊙ pc−2), and their inferred dynamical ages qualify the majority of these systems as gravitationally bound stellar clusters. The star cluster ages map the progression of star formation along the arc, with two evolved systems (≳10 Myr old) followed by very young clusters. The youngest stellar clusters (<5 Myr) show evidence of prominent Hβ+[O ııı] emission based on photometry with equivalent widths larger than >1000 Å rest frame and are hosted in a 200 pc sized star-forming complex. Such a region dominates the ionizing photon production with a high efficiency log(ξion [Hz erg-1]~25.7 . A significant fraction of the recently formed stellar mass of the galaxy (10%–30%) occurred in these YMCs. We speculate that such sources of ionizing radiation boost the ionizing photon production efficiency, which eventually carves ionized channels that might favor the escape of Lyman continuum radiation. The survival of some of the clusters would make them the progenitors of massive and relatively metal-poor globular clusters in the local universe.
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| 8. |
- Wilkins, Stephen M., et al.
(författare)
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First Light And Reionization Epoch Simulations (FLARES) VII : The star formation and metal enrichment histories of galaxies in the early Universe
- 2023
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press. - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 518:3, s. 3935-3948
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The star formation and metal enrichment histories of galaxies - at any epoch - constitute one of the key properties of galaxies, and their measurement is a core aim of observational extragalactic astronomy. The lack of deep rest-frame optical coverage at high redshift has made robust constraints elusive, but this is now changing thanks to JWST. In preparation for the constraints provided by JWST, we explore the star formation and metal enrichment histories of galaxies at z = 5-13 using the First Light And Reionization Epoch Simulations (FLARES) suite. Built on the EAGLE model, the unique strategy of FLARES allows us to simulate galaxies with a wide range of stellar masses (and luminosities) and environments. While we predict significant redshift evolution of average ages and specific star formation rates, our core result is mostly a flat relationship of age and specific star formation rate with stellar mass. We also find that galaxies in this epoch predominantly have strongly rising star formation histories, albeit with the normalization dropping with redshift and stellar mass. In terms of chemical enrichment, we predict a strong stellar mass-metallicity relation present at z = 10 and beyond alongside significant a-enhancement. Finally, we find no large-scale environmental dependence of the relationship between age, specific star formation rate, or metallicity with stellar mass.
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| 9. |
- Wilkins, Stephen M., et al.
(författare)
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First Light and Reionization Epoch Simulations (flares) - XIV. The Balmer/4000 Ã… breaks of distant galaxies
- 2023
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press. - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 527:3, s. 7965-7973
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- With the successful launch and commissioning of JWST we are now able to routinely spectroscopically probe the rest-frame optical emission of galaxies at z > 6 for the first time. Among the most useful spectral diagnostics used in the optical is the Balmer/4000 & Aring; break; this is, in principle, a diagnostic of the mean ages of composite stellar populations. However, the Balmer break is also sensitive to the shape of the star formation history, the stellar (and gas) metallicity, the presence of nebular continuum emission, and dust attenuation. In this work, we explore the origin of the Balmer/4000 & Aring; break using the SYNTHESIZER synthetic observations package. We then make predictions of the Balmer/4000 & Aring; break using the First Light and Reionization Epoch Simulations at 5 < z < 10. We find that the average break strength weakly correlates with stellar mass and rest-frame far-ultraviolet luminosity, but that this is predominantly driven by dust attenuation. We also find that break strength provides a weak diagnostic of the age but performs better as a means to constrain star formation and stellar mass, alongside the ultraviolet and optical luminosity, respectively.
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| 10. |
- Kuschel, Maxwell, et al.
(författare)
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Investigating the Dominant Environmental Quenching Process in UVCANDELS/COSMOS Groups
- 2023
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 947:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We explore how the fraction of quenched galaxies changes in groups of galaxies with respect to the distance to the center of the group, redshift, and stellar mass to determine the dominant process of environmental quenching in 0.2 < z < 0.8 groups. We use new UV data from the UVCANDELS project in addition to existing multiband photometry to derive new galaxy physical properties of the group galaxies from the zCOSMOS 20 k group catalog. Limiting our analysis to a complete sample of log (M*/M⊙) > 10.56 group galaxies, we find that the probability of being quenched increases slowly with decreasing redshift, diverging from the stagnant field galaxy population. A corresponding analysis on how the probability of being quenched increases with time within groups suggests that the dominant environmental quenching process is characterized by slow (∼Gyr) timescales. We find a quenching time of approximately Gyr, consistent with the slow processes of strangulation and delayed-then-rapid quenching although more data are needed to confirm this result.
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