Joseph Silk

Abstract:

This paper provides an overview of the Low Frequency Instrument (LFI) programme within the ESA Planck mission. The LFI instrument has been developed to produce high precision maps of the microwave sky at frequencies in the range 27-77 GHz, below the peak of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation spectrum. The scientific goals are described, ranging from fundamental cosmology to Galactic and extragalactic astrophysics. The instrument design and development are outlined, together with the model philosophy and testing strategy. The instrument is presented in the context of the Planck mission. The LFI approach to ground and inflight calibration is described. We also describe the LFI ground segment. We present the results of a number of tests demonstrating the capability of the LFI data processing centre (DPC) to properly reduce and analyse LFI flight data, from telemetry information to calibrated and cleaned time ordered data, sky maps at each frequency (in temperature and polarization), component emission maps (CMB and diffuse foregrounds), catalogs for various classes of sources (the Early Release Compact Source Catalogue and the Final Compact Source Catalogue). The organization of the LFI consortium is briefly presented as well as the role of the core team in data analysis and scientific exploitation. All tests carried out on the LFI flight model demonstrate the excellent performance of the instrument and its various subunits. The data analysis pipeline has been tested and its main steps verified. In the first three months after launch, the commissioning, calibration, performance, and verification phases will be completed, after which Planck will begin its operational life, in which LFI will have an integral part.

Abstract:

We present a comprehensive theoretical study, using a semi-analytical model within the standard LCDM framework, of the photometric properties of the progenitors of present-day early-type galaxies in the redshift range 00.7) spirals have 75-95% chance of being an early-type progenitor, while the corresponding probability for large blue spirals (M_B<-21.5, B-V<0.7) is 50-75%. The prescriptions developed here can be used to address, from the perspective of the standard model, the issue of `progenitor bias', whereby the exclusion of late-type progenitors in observational studies can lead to inaccurate conclusions regarding the evolution of the early-type population over cosmic time. (abridged)

Abstract:

The star formation history of nearby early-type galaxies is investigated via numerical modelling. Idealized hydrodynamical N-body simulations with a star formation prescription are used to study the minor merger process (1/10 ≤ M1/M2 ≤ 1/4; M1 ≤ M2) between a giant galaxy (host) and a less massive spiral galaxy (satellite) with reasonable assumptions for the ages and metallicities of the merger progenitors. We find that the evolution of the star formation rate is extended over several dynamical times and shows peaks which correspond to pericentre passages of the satellite. The newly formed stars are mainly located in the central part of the satellite remnant while the older stars of the initial disc are deposited at larger radii in shell-like structures. After the final plunge of the satellite, star formation in the central part of the remnant can continue for several Gyr depending on the star formation efficiency. Although the mass fraction in new stars is small, we find that the half-mass radius differs from the half-light radius in the V and H bands. Moreover synthetic 2D images in J, H, NUV, Hβ and V bands, using the characteristic filters of the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope, reveal that residual star formation induced by gas-rich minor mergers can be clearly observed during and after the final plunge, especially in the near-ultraviolet band, for interacting systems at (z ≤ 0.023) over moderate numbers of orbits (approximately two orbits correspond to typical exposure times of ∼3600 s). This suggests that WFC3 has the potential to resolve these substructures, characterize plausible past merger episodes and give clues to the formation of early-type galaxies. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 RAS.

Abstract:

We present Wide Field Camera 3 images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope within a single field in the southern grand design star-forming galaxy M83. Based on their size, morphology, and photometry in continuum-subtracted Hα, [S II], Hβ, [O III], and [O II] filters, we have identified 60 supernova remnant (SNR) candidates, as well as a handful of young ejecta-dominated candidates. A catalog of these remnants, their sizes and, where possible, their Hα fluxes are given. Radiative ages and pre-shock densities are derived from those SNRs that have good photometry. The ages lie in the range 2.62 < log (τrad/yr) < 5.0, and the pre-shock densities at the blast wave range over 0.56 < n 0/cm-3 < 1680. Two populations of SNRs have been discovered. These divide into a nuclear and spiral arm group and an inter-arm population. We infer an arm to inter-arm density contrast of 4. The surface flux in diffuse X-rays is correlated with the inferred pre-shock density, indicating that the warm interstellar medium (ISM) is pressurized by the hot X-ray plasma. We also find that the ISM in the nuclear region of M83 is characterized by a very high porosity and pressure, and infer an SNR rate of 1 per 70-150 yr for the nuclear (R < 300 pc) region. On the basis of the number of SNRs detected and their radiative ages, we infer that the lower mass of Type II SNe in M83 is M min = 16+7-5 M*. Finally, we give evidence for the likely detection of the remnant of the historical supernova, SN1968L. © 2010. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.

Abstract:

We present narrow band, continuum subtracted Hα, [S II], Hβ, [O III] and [O II] data taken with the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope in the nearby dwarf starburst galaxy NGC 4214. From these images, we identify seventeen new planetary nebula candidates, and seven supernova remnant candidates. We use the observed emission line luminosity function of the planetary nebulae to establish a new velocity-independent distance to NGC 4214. We conclude that the PNLF technique gives a reddening independent distance to NGC 4214 of 3.19±0.36 Mpc, and that our current best-estimate of the distance to this galaxy ids 2.98±0.13 Mpc. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.