The optical velocity of the Antlia dwarf galaxy

We present the results of a Very Large Telescope observing programme carried out in service mode using fors 1 on ANTU (UT1) in long slit mode to determine the optical velocities of nearby low surface brightness galaxies. Outlying Local Group galaxies are of paramount importance in placing constraints on the dynamics and thus on both the age and the total mass of the Local Group. Optical velocities are also necessary to determine if the observations of H  i gas in and around these systems are the result of gas associated with these galaxies or a chance superposition with high-velocity H  i clouds or the Magellanic Stream. The data were of a sufficient signal-to-noise ration to enable us to obtain a reliable result in one of the galaxies we observed – Antlia – for which we have found an optical heliocentric radial velocity of 351±15 km s⁻¹.     

H i and dark matter in the windy starburst dwarf galaxy NGC 1705

We present 21-cm H  i line observations of the blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 1705. Previous optical observations show a strong outflow powered by an ongoing starburst dominating the H  ii morphology and kinematics. In contrast, most of the H  i lies in a rotating disc. An extraplanar H  i spur accounts for ∼8 per cent of the total H  i mass, and is possibly associated with the H  ii outflow. The inferred mass loss rate out of the core of the galaxy is significant, ∼0.2 − 2 M_⊙ yr⁻¹, but does not dominate the H  i dynamics. Mass model fits to the rotation curve show that the dark matter (DM) halo is dominant at nearly all radii and has a central density ρ₀ ≈ 0.1 M_⊙ pc⁻³: ten times higher than typically found in dwarf irregular galaxies, but similar to the only other mass-modelled blue compact dwarf, NGC 2915. This large difference strongly indicates that there is little evolution between dwarf irregular and blue compact dwarf types. Instead, dominant DM haloes may regulate the morphology of dwarf galaxies by setting the critical surface density for disc star formation. Neither our data nor catalogue searches reveal any likely external trigger to the starburst in NGC 1705.     

Neutral gas and dust in the central region of the ultraluminous infrared galaxy Mrk 273

We have used MERLIN to observe neutral hydrogen absorption against the central region of the ultraluminous infrared galaxy (ULIRG) galaxy Mrk 273 with an angular resolution of 0.2 arcsec. This represents a factor of 5 increase in resolution compared with previous work. Absorption has been resolved against two of three radio continuum components. A Hubble Space Telescope ( HST ) image reveals a complex central region composed of clumpy emission obscured by dust lanes. We find that the northern and south-eastern radio components are associated with two optical components. The alignment supports the idea that Mrk 273 has a double nucleus due to a recent galactic merger event.
Broad, strong and spatially varying absorption is seen against the northern radio component with a velocity gradient of 1990±50 km s⁻¹ kpc⁻¹. The absorption resolves into six discrete components with an average column density of 1.7×10²² atom cm⁻². We propose that the absorption is due to a clumpy ring or disc of neutral gas of radius ∼250 pc rotating around a central starburst. In addition to the broad component, narrow absorption (<100 km s⁻¹) is detected against the northern and south-eastern components. Absorption is not detected against the weak (2 mJy) south-western component. We propose that the narrow absorption is due to quiescent gas in a large-scale dust lane that coincides with these regions of narrow absorption.     

Spectrophotometric investigations of the blue compact dwarf galaxy Mrk 35

Preliminary results from a detailed spectrophotometric analysis of the blue compact dwarf galaxy (BCD) Mrk 35 are presented. We have performed deep UBVRI broad-band and H_α narrow-band optical observations, near-infrared (JHK _s) imaging and long-slit spectroscopy of the galaxy. Mrk 35 is composed of a very young starburst population distributed in a bar-like structure, placed on top of an underlying, older stellar host galaxy. Using predictions of evolutionary synthesis models, we estimate the ages of both the starburst regions and the underlying stellar component. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

H i in extremely metal deficient galaxies – III. Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope observations of blue compact galaxy HS 0822+3542

We present the results of Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope H  i 21-cm line observations of the extremely metal deficient (XMD) blue compact galaxy (BCG) HS 0822+3542. HS 0822+3542 is the smallest known XMD galaxy; from Hubble Space Telescope ( HST ) imaging, it has been suggested that it actually consists of two still smaller (∼100 pc sized) ultra-compact dwarfs that are in the process of merging. The brighter of these two putative ultra-compact dwarfs has an ocular appearance, similar to that seen in galaxies that have suffered a penetrating encounter with a smaller companion. From our H  i imaging, we find that the gas distribution and kinematics in this object are similar to that of other low-mass galaxies, albeit with some evidence for tidal disturbance. On the other hand, the H  i emission has an angular size ∼25 times larger than that of the putative ultra-compact dwarfs. The optical emission is also offset from the centre of the H  i emission. HS 0822+3542 is located in the nearby Lynx–Cancer void, but has a nearby companion low surface brightness dwarf galaxy SAO 0822+3545. In light of all this, we also consider a scenario where the optical emission from HS 0822+3542 comes not from two merging ultra-compact dwarfs but from multiple star-forming regions in a tidally disturbed galaxy. In this model, the ocular appearance of the brighter star-forming region could be the result of triggered star formation.     

Star-forming regions in blue compact dwarf galaxies

We present near-infrared 2.1-μm continuum and Brγ and 1–0S(1) line images of three blue compact dwarf galaxies: II Zw 40, NGC 5253 and He 2-10. Comparison of the morphologies of the emission-line regions and continuum together with the line ratios shows that in these cases the starbursts are typified by strongly peaked Brγ and weak diffuse H₂ emission, indicating the presence of one or more compact nuclei, and also tidal tails. We consider the possible origins of the H₂ emission, and conclude that shock excitation in cloud collisions, and hence dynamical processes such as interactions or mergers, is important. By comparing models of the equivalent width of Brγ to other age constraints from the literature we show that the star formation must have occurred not only recently but in a short-duration burst. The current centres of star formation in all three galaxies are of a similar age but, whereas the hotspots in He 2-10 are coeval, we find phase differences between those in NGC 5253. We compare the masses and sizes of the star formation sites to those of present-day globular clusters.     

Andromeda IV,a solitary gas‐rich dwarf galaxy

Observations are presented of the isolated dwarf irregular galaxy And IV made with the Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys and the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope in the 21 cm HI line. We determine the galaxy distance of 7.17 ± 0.31 Mpc using the Tip of Red Giant Branch method. The galaxy has a total blue absolute magnitude of –12.81 mag, linear Holmberg diameter of 1.88 kpc, and an HI ‐disk extending to 8.4 times the optical Holmberg radius. The HI massto‐blue luminosity ratio for And IV amounts 12.9 M_⊙/L_⊙. From the GMRT data we derive the rotation curve for the HI and fit it with different mass models. We find that the data are significantly better fit with an iso‐thermal dark matter halo, than by an NFW halo. We also find that MOND rotation curve provides a very poor fit to the data. The fact that the isothermal dark matter halo provides the best fit to the data supports models in which star formation feedback results in the formation of a dark matter core in dwarf galaxies. The total mass‐to‐blue luminosity ratio of 162 M_⊙/L_⊙ makes And IV among the darkest dIrr galaxies known. However, its baryonic‐to‐dark mass ratio (M_gas + M *)/M_T = 0.11 is close to the average cosmic baryon fraction of 0.15. (© 2016 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The orbit and mass of the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy

Possible orbital histories of the Sgr dwarf galaxy are explored. A special-purpose N -body code is used to construct the first models of the Milky Way–Sgr dwarf system in which both the Milky Way and the Sgr dwarf are represented by full N -body systems and followed for a Hubble time. These models are used to calibrate a semi-analytic model of the Sgr dwarf's orbit that enables us to explore a wider parameter space than is accessible to the N -body models. We conclude that the extant data on the Sgr dwarf are compatible with a wide range of orbital histories. At one extreme the Sgr dwarf initially possesses ∼10¹¹ M_⊙ and starts from a Galactocentric distance R _D(0)≳200 kpc. At the other extreme the Sgr dwarf starts with ∼10⁹ M_⊙ and R _D(0)∼60 kpc, similar to its present apocentric distance. In all cases the Sgr dwarf is initially dark matter dominated and the current velocity dispersion of the Sgr dwarf's dark matter is tightly constrained to be 21±2 km s⁻¹. This number is probably compatible with the smaller measured dispersion of the Sgr dwarf's stars because of (i) the dynamical difference between dark and luminous matter, and (ii) velocity anisotropy.     

Modelling the dynamical evolution of the Bootes dwarf spheroidal galaxy

We investigate a wide range of possible evolutionary histories for the recently discovered Bootes dwarf spheroidal galaxy, a Milky Way satellite. By means of N -body simulations, we follow the evolution of possible progenitor galaxies of Bootes for a variety of orbits in the gravitational potential of the Milky Way. The progenitors considered cover the range from dark matter-free star clusters to massive, dark matter-dominated outcomes of cosmological simulations. For each type of progenitor and orbit, we compare the observable properties of the remnant after 10 Gyr with those of Bootes observed today. Our study suggests that the progenitor of Bootes must have been, and remains now, dark matter-dominated. In general, our models are unable to reproduce the observed high velocity dispersion in Bootes without dark matter. Our models do not support time-dependent tidal effects as a mechanism able to inflate significantly the internal velocity dispersion. As none of our initially spherical models is able to reproduce the elongation of Bootes, our results suggest that the progenitor of Bootes may have had some intrinsic flattening. Although the focus of this paper is the Bootes dwarf spheroidal, these models may be of general relevance to understanding the structure, stability and dark matter content of all dwarf spheroidal galaxies.     

High-order 2MASS galaxy correlation functions: probing the Gaussianity of the primordial density field

We study Parker instability (PI) operating in a non-adiabatic, gravitationally stratified, interstellar medium. We discuss models with two kinds of heating mechanisms. The first one results from photoionization models. The other, relying on supplemental sources, has been postulated by Reynolds, Haffner & Tufte. The cooling rate, corresponding to radiative losses, is an approximation to the one given by Dalgarno & McCray. An unperturbed state of the system represents a magnetohydrostatic and thermal equilibrium. We perform linear stability analysis by solving the boundary value problem. We find that the maximum growth rate of PI rises for increasing magnitudes of non-adiabatic effects. In the pure photoionization model, the maximum growth rate of the general non-adiabatic case coincides with the isothermal limit. Adding other sources of heat leads to a maximum growth rate that is larger than the one corresponding to the isothermal limit. We find that the influence of the supplemental heating on PI also leads to a decrease in temperature in magnetic valleys. Finally, we conclude that the initial gas cooling due to the action of PI may promote a subsequent onset of thermal instability in magnetic valleys and formation of giant molecular clouds.     

The large peculiar velocity of the cD galaxy in Abell 3653

We present a catalogue of galaxies in Abell 3653 from observations made with the 2-degree field (2dF) spectrograph at the Anglo-Australian Telescope. Of the 391 objects observed, we find 111 are bona fide members of Abell 3653. We show that the cluster has a velocity of   cz = 32 214 ± 83  km s⁻¹ ( z = 0.10 738 ± 0.00 027)  , with a velocity dispersion typical of rich, massive clusters of  σ _cz = 880⁺⁶⁶₋₅₄  . We find that the cD galaxy has a peculiar velocity of  683 ± 96  km s⁻¹  in the cluster rest frame – some 7σ away from the mean cluster velocity, making it one of the largest and most significant peculiar velocities found for a cD galaxy to date. We investigate the cluster for signs of substructure, but do not find any significant groupings on any length scale. We consider the implications of our findings on cD formation theories.     

Determination of the intrinsic velocity field in the M87 jet

A new method to estimate the Doppler beaming factor of relativistic large-scale jet regions is presented. It is based on multiwaveband fitting to radio-to-X-ray continua with synchrotron spectrum models. Combining our method with available observational data of proper motions, we derive the intrinsic velocity as well as the viewing angles to the line of sight for eight knotty regions down the M87 jet. The results favour the 'modest beaming' scenario along the jet, with Doppler factors varying between  ∼2–5  . The inner jet of M87 suffers sharp deceleration, and the intrinsic speed remains roughly constant down the outer jet. The orientation of the inner jet regions is fully consistent with the result of 10°–19° to the line of sight suggested by previous Hubble Space Telescope ( HST ) proper motion studies of the M87 jet. The outer jet, however, shows systematic deflection off the inner jet to a much smaller inclination  (θ≪ 10°)  . Further calculation of knot A suggests that this deflection can be regarded as evidence that the outer jet suffers some departure from equipartition. The nucleus region of the M87 jet should have a viewing angle close to its first knot HST-1, i.e.  θ∼ 15°  , which favours the idea that M87 may be a misaligned blazar. This work provides some hints about the overall dynamics of this famous extragalactic jet.