Cosmology

Abstract:

We have used the SAURON panoramic integral field spectrograph to study the structure of the Lyα emission-line halo, LAB1, surrounding the submillimetre galaxy SMM J221726+0013. This emission-line halo was discovered during a narrow-band imaging survey of the z = 3.1 large-scale structure in the SSA 22 region. Our observations trace the emission halo out to almost 100 kpc from the submillimetre source and identify two distinct Lyα 'mini-haloes' around the nearby Lyman-break galaxies. The main emission region has a broad line profile, with variations in the line profile seeming chaotic and lacking evidence for a coherent velocity structure. The data also suggest that Lyα emission is suppressed around the submillimetre source. Interpretation of the line structure needs care because Lyα may be resonantly scattered, leading to complex radiative transfer effects, and we suggest that the suppression in this region arises because of such effects. We compare the structure of the central emission-line halo with local counterparts, and find that the emission-line halo around NGC 1275 in the Perseus cluster may be a good local analogue, although the high-redshift halo is factor of ∼ 100 more luminous and appears to have higher velocity broadening. Around the Lyman-break galaxy C15, the emission line is narrower, and a clear shear in the emission wavelength is seen. A plausible explanation for the line profile is that the emission gas is expelled from C15 in a bipolar outflow, similar to that seen in M82.

Abstract:

We review the current status of QSO clustering measurements, particular with respect to their relevance in understanding AGN physics. Measurements based on the 2dF QSO Redshift Survey (2QZ) find a scale length for QSO clustering of s_0=5.76(+0.17-0.27) h-1 Mpc at a redshift ~1.5, very similar to low redshift galaxies. There is no evidence of evolution in the clustering of QSOs from z~0.5 to z~2.2. This lack of evolution and low clustering amplitude suggests a short life time for AGN activity of the order ~10^6-10^7 years. Large surveys such at the 2QZ and SDSS also allow the the study of QSO environments in 3D for the first time (at least at low redshift), early results from this work seem to show no difference between the environments of QSOs and normal galaxies. Future studies e.g. measuring clustering as a function of black hole mass, and deep QSO surveys should provide further insight into the formation and evolution of AGN.

Abstract:

We present SAURON integral-field observations of the S0 galaxy NGC 7332. Existing broadband ground-based and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) photometry reveals a double-disc structure and a boxy bulge interpreted as a bar viewed close to edge-on. The SAURON two-dimensional stellar kinematic maps confirm the existence of the bar and inner disc but also uncover the presence of a cold counter-rotating stellar component within the central 250 pc. The Hβ and [O III] emission line maps show that the ionized gas has a complex morphology and kinematics, including both a component counter-rotating with respect to the stars and a fainter corotating one. Analysis of the absorption line-strength maps show that NGC 7332 is young everywhere. The presence of a large-scale bar can explain most of those properties, but the fact that we see a significant amount of unsettled gas, together with a few peculiar features in the maps, suggests that NGC 7332 is still evolving. Interactions as well as bar-driven processes must thus have played an important role in the formation and evolution of NGC 7332, and presumably of S0 galaxies in general.