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DOE OSTI2010

GROUP FINDING IN THE STELLAR HALO USING M-GIANTS IN THE TWO MICRON ALL SKY SURVEY: AN EXTENDED VIEW OF THE PISCES OVERDENSITY?

A density-based hierarchical group-finding algorithm is used to identify stellar halo structures in a catalog of M-giants from the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS). The intrinsic brightness of M-giant stars means that this catalog probes deep into the halo where substructures are expected to be abundant and easy to detect. Our analysis reveals 16 structures at high Galactic latitude (greater than 15{sup 0}), of which 10 have been previously identified. Among the six new structures, two could plausibly be due to masks applied to the data, one is associated with a strong extinction region, and one is probably a part of the Monoceros Ring. Another one originates at low latitudes, suggesting some contamination from disk stars, but also shows protrusions extending to high latitudes, implying that it could be a real feature in the stellar halo. The last remaining structure is free from the defects discussed above and hence is very likely a satellite remnant. Although the extinction in the direction of the structure is very low, the structure does match a low-temperature feature in the dust maps. While this casts some doubt on its origin, the low-temperature feature could plausibly be due to real dust in the structure itself. The angular position and distance of this structure encompass the Pisces overdensity traced by RR Lyraes in Stripe 82 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). However, the 2MASS M-giants indicate that the structure is much more extended than what is visible with the SDSS, with the point of peak density lying just outside Stripe 82. The morphology of the structure is more like a cloud than a stream and reminiscent of that seen in simulations of satellites disrupting along highly eccentric orbits. This finding is consistent with expectations of structure formation within the currently favored cosmological model: assuming the cosmologically predicted satellite orbit distributions are correct, prior work indicates that such clouds should be the dominant debris structures at large Galactocentric radii ({approx}100 kpc and beyond).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

RADIO AND DEEP CHANDRA OBSERVATIONS OF THE DISTURBED COOL CORE CLUSTER ABELL 133

We present results based on new Chandra and multi-frequency radio observations of the disturbed cool core cluster Abell 133. The diffuse gas has a complex bird-like morphology, with a plume of emission extending from two symmetric wing-like features. The plume is capped with a filamentary radio structure that has been previously classified as a radio relic. X-ray spectral fits in the region of the relic indicate the presence of either high-temperature gas or non-thermal emission, although the measured photon index is flatter than would be expected if the non-thermal emission is from inverse Compton scattering of the cosmic microwave background by the radio-emitting particles. We find evidence for a weak elliptical X-ray surface brightness edge surrounding the core, which we show is consistent with a sloshing cold front. The plume is consistent with having formed due to uplift by a buoyantly rising radio bubble, now seen as the radio relic, and has properties consistent with buoyantly lifted plumes seen in other systems (e.g., M87). Alternatively, the plume may be a gas sloshing spiral viewed edge-on. Results from spectral analysis of the wing-like features are inconsistent with the previous suggestion that the wings formed due to the passage of a weak shock through the cool core. We instead conclude that the wings are due to X-ray cavities formed by displacement of X-ray gas by the radio relic. The central cD galaxy contains two small-scale cold gas clumps that are slightly offset from their optical and UV counterparts, suggestive of a galaxy-galaxy merger event. On larger scales, there is evidence for cluster substructure in both optical observations and the X-ray temperature map. We suggest that the Abell 133 cluster has recently undergone a merger event with an interloping subgroup, initialing gas sloshing in the core. The torus of sloshed gas is seen close to edge-on, leading to the somewhat ragged appearance of the elliptical surface brightness edge. We show that the additional buoyant force from a passing subcluster can have a significant effect on the rise trajectories of buoyant bubbles, although this effect alone cannot fully explain the morphology of Abell 133. The radio observations reveal a large-scale double-lobed structure not previously identified in the literature. We conclude that this structure represents a previously unreported background giant radio galaxy at z = 0.293, the northern lobe of which overlies the radio relic in the core of Abell 133. A rough estimate indicates that the contribution of this background lobe to the total radio emission in the region of the relic is modest (<13%).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

THE DETECTABILITY OF DARK MATTER ANNIHILATION WITH FERMI USING THE ANISOTROPY ENERGY SPECTRUM OF THE GAMMA-RAY BACKGROUND

The energy dependence of the anisotropy (the anisotropy energy spectrum) of the large-scale diffuse gamma-ray background can reveal the presence of multiple source populations. Annihilating dark matter in the substructure of the Milky Way halo could give rise to a modulation in the anisotropy energy spectrum of the diffuse gamma-ray emission measured by Fermi, enabling the detection of a dark matter signal. We determine the detectability of a dark-matter-induced modulation for scenarios in which unresolved blazars are the primary contributor to the measured emission above {approx}1 GeV and find that in some scenarios pair-annihilation cross sections on the order of the value expected for thermal relic dark matter can produce a detectable feature. We anticipate that the sensitivity of this technique to specific dark matter models could be improved by tailored likelihood analysis methods.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

THE KINEMATICS OF IONIZED GAS IN LYMAN-BREAK ANALOGS AT z {approx} 0.2

We present results for 19 'Lyman-break analogs' observed with Keck/OSIRIS with an adaptive-optics-assisted spatial resolution of less than 200 pc. We detect satellites/companions, diffuse emission, and velocity shear, all with high signal-to-noise ratios. These galaxies present remarkably high velocity dispersion along the line of sight ({approx}70 km s{sup -1}), much higher than standard star-forming spirals in the low-redshift universe. We artificially redshift our data to z {approx} 2.2 to allow for a direct comparison with observations of high-z Lyman-break galaxies and find striking similarities between both samples. This suggests that either similar physical processes are responsible for their observed properties, or, alternatively, that it is very difficult to distinguish between different mechanisms operating in the low- versus high-redshift starburst galaxies based on the available data. The comparison between morphologies in the UV/optical continuum and our kinemetry analysis often shows that neither is by itself sufficient to confirm or completely rule out the contribution from recent merger events. We find a correlation between the kinematic properties and stellar mass, in that more massive galaxies show stronger evidence for a disk-like structure. This suggests a co-evolutionary process between the stellar mass buildup and the formation of morphological and dynamical substructure within the galaxy.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

STAR FORMATION IN THE TAURUS FILAMENT L 1495: FROM DENSE CORES TO STARS

We present a study of dense structures in the L 1495 filament in the Taurus Molecular Cloud and examine its star-forming properties. In particular, we construct a dust extinction map of the filament using deep near-infrared observations, exposing its small-scale structure in unprecedented detail. The filament shows highly fragmented substructures and a high mass-per-length value of M{sub line} = 17 M{sub sun} pc{sup -1}, reflecting star-forming potential in all parts of it. However, a part of the filament, namely B 211, is remarkably devoid of young stellar objects. We argue that in this region the initial filament collapse and fragmentation is still taking place and star formation is yet to occur. In the star-forming part of the filament, we identify 39 cores with masses from 0.4 to 10 M{sub sun} and preferred separations in agreement with the local Jeans length. Most of these cores exceed the Bonnor-Ebert critical mass, and are therefore likely to collapse and form stars. The dense core mass function follows a power law with exponent {Gamma} = 1.2 {+-} 0.2, a form commonly observed in star-forming regions.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

DOES M31 RESULT FROM AN ANCIENT MAJOR MERGER?

The M31 haunted halo is likely associated with a rich merger history, currently assumed to be caused by multiple minor mergers. Here we use the GADGET2 simulation code to test whether M31 could have experienced a major merger in its past history. Our results indicate that a (3 {+-} 0.5):1 gaseous-rich merger with r{sub pericenter} = 25 {+-} 5 kpc and a polar orbit can explain many properties of M31 and of its halo. The interaction and fusion may have begun 8.75 {+-} 0.35 and 5.5 {+-} 0.5 Gyr ago, respectively. Observed fractions of the bulge and the thin and thick disks can be retrieved for a star formation history that is almost quiescent before the fusion. This also accords well with the observed relative fractions of intermediate age and old stars in both the thick disk and the Giant Stream. In this model, the Giant Stream is caused by returning stars from a tidal tail which contains material previously stripped from the satellite prior to the fusion. These returning stars are trapped into elliptical orbits or loops for long periods of time which can reach a Hubble time, and belong to a plane that is 45{sup 0} offset from the M31 disk position angle. Because these streams of stars are permanently fed by new infalling stars with high energy from the tidal tail, we predict large loops which scale rather well with the features recently discovered in the M31 outskirts. We demonstrate that a single merger could explain first-order (intensity and size), morphological, and kinematical properties of the disk, thick disk, bulge, and streams in the halo of M31, as well as the observed distribution of stellar ages, and perhaps metallicities. This challenges the current scenarios assuming that each feature in the disk (the 10 kpc ring) or in its outskirts (thick disk, the Giant Stream, and the numerous streams) is associated with an equivalent number of minor mergers. Given the large number of parameters, further constraints are certainly required to better render the complexity of M31 and of the substructures within its halo which may ultimately lead to a more precise geometry of the encounter. This would allow us, in principle, to evaluate the impact of such a major event on the Andromeda system and the Local Group.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2010

HIERARCHICAL STELLAR STRUCTURES IN THE LOCAL GROUP DWARF GALAXY NGC 6822

We present a comprehensive study of the star cluster population and the hierarchical structure in the clustering of blue stars with ages {approx}<500 Myr in the Local Group dwarf irregular galaxy NGC 6822. Our observational material comprises the most complete optical stellar catalog of the galaxy from imaging with the Suprime-Cam at the 8.2 m Subaru Telescope. We identify 47 distinct star clusters with the application of the nearest-neighbor density method to this catalog for a detection threshold of 3{sigma} above the average stellar density. The size distribution of the detected clusters can be very well approximated by a Gaussian with a peak at {approx}68 pc. The total stellar masses of the clusters are estimated by extrapolating the cumulative observed stellar mass function of all clusters to be in the range 10{sup 3}-10{sup 4} M{sub sun}. Their number distribution is fitted very well by a power law with index {alpha} {approx} 1.5 {+-} 0.7, which is consistent with the cluster mass functions of other Local Group galaxies and the cluster initial mass function. In addition to the detected star clusters of the galaxy, the application of the nearest-neighbor density method for various density thresholds, other than 3{sigma}, enabled the identification of stellar concentrations in various lengthscales. The stellar density maps constructed with this technique provide a direct proof of hierarchically structured stellar concentrations in NGC 6822, in the sense that smaller dense stellar concentrations are located inside larger and looser ones. We illustrate this hierarchy by the so-called dendrogram, or structure tree of the detected stellar structures, which demonstrates that most of the detected structures split up into several substructures over at least three levels. We quantify the hierarchy of these structures with the use of the minimum spanning tree method. We find that structures detected at 1, 2, and 3{sigma} density thresholds are hierarchically constructed with a fractal dimension of D {approx} 1.8. Some of the larger stellar concentrations, particularly in the northern part of the central star-forming portion of the galaxy, coincide with IR-bright complexes previously identified with Spitzer and associated with high column density neutral gas, indicating structures that currently form stars. The morphological hierarchy in stellar clustering, which we observe in NGC 6822, resembles that of the turbulent interstellar matter, suggesting that turbulence on pc and kpc scales has been probably the major agent that regulated clustered star formation in NGC 6822.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

MOLECULAR GAS EVOLUTION ACROSS A SPIRAL ARM IN M51

We present sensitive and high angular resolution CO(1-0) data obtained by the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy observations toward the nearby grand-design spiral galaxy M51. The angular resolution of 0.''7 corresponds to 30 pc, which is similar to the typical size of giant molecular clouds (GMCs), and the sensitivity is also high enough to detect typical GMCs. Within the 1' field of view centered on a spiral arm, a number of GMC-scale structures are detected as clumps. However, only a few clumps are found to be associated with each giant molecular association (GMA) and more than 90% of the total flux is resolved out in our data. Considering the high sensitivity and resolution of our data, these results indicate that GMAs are not mere confusion with GMCs but plausibly smooth structures. In addition, we have found that the most massive clumps are located downstream of the spiral arm, which suggests that they are at a later stage of molecular cloud evolution across the arm and plausibly are cores of GMAs. By comparing with H{alpha} and Pa{alpha} images, most of these cores are found to have nearby star-forming regions. We thus propose an evolutionary scenario for the interstellar medium, in which smaller molecular clouds collide to form smooth GMAs at spiral arm regions and then star formation is triggered in the GMA cores. Our new CO data have revealed the internal structure of GMAs at GMC scales, finding the most massive substructures on the downstream side of the arm in close association with the brightest H II regions.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

ANATOMY OF A POST-STARBURST MINOR MERGER: A MULTI-WAVELENGTH WFC3 STUDY OF NGC 4150

We present a spatially resolved near-UV/optical study, using the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on board the Hubble Space Telescope, of NGC 4150, a sub-L{sub *}, early-type galaxy (ETG) of around 6 x 10{sup 9} M{sub sun}, which has been observed as part of the WFC3 Early-Release Science Programme. Previous work indicates that this galaxy has a large reservoir of molecular hydrogen gas, exhibits a kinematically decoupled core (a likely indication of recent merging) and strong, central H{beta} absorption (indicative of young stars). While relatively uninspiring in its optical image, the core of NGC 4150 shows ubiquitous near-UV emission and remarkable dusty substructure. Our analysis shows this galaxy to lie in the near-UV green valley, and its pixel-by-pixel photometry exhibits a narrow range of near-UV/optical colors that are similar to those of nearby E+A (post-starburst) galaxies and lie between those of M83 (an actively star-forming spiral) and the local quiescent ETG population. We parameterize the properties of the recent star formation (RSF; age, mass fraction, metallicity, and internal dust content) in the NGC 4150 pixels by comparing the observed near-UV/optical photometry to stellar models. The typical age of the RSF is around 0.9 Gyr, consistent with the similarity of the near-UV colors to post-starburst systems, while the morphological structure of the young component supports the proposed merger scenario. The typical RSF metallicity, representative of the metallicity of the gas fuelling star formation, is {approx}0.3-0.5 Z{sub sun}. Assuming that this galaxy is a merger and that the gas is sourced mainly from the infalling companion, these metallicities plausibly indicate the gas-phase metallicity (GPM) of the accreted satellite. Comparison to the local mass-GPM relation suggests (crudely) that the mass of the accreted system is {approx}3 x 10{sup 8} M{sub sun}, making NGC 4150 a 1:20 minor merger. A summation of the pixel RSF mass fractions indicates that the RSF contributes {approx}2%-3% of the stellar mass. This work reaffirms our hypothesis that minor mergers play a significant role in the evolution of ETGs at late epochs.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

THE SHAPE AND PROFILE OF THE MILKY WAY HALO AS SEEN BY THE CANADA-FRANCE-HAWAII TELESCOPE LEGACY SURVEY

We use Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey data for 170 deg{sup 2}, recalibrated and transformed to the Sloan Digital Sky Survey ugri photometric system, to study the distribution of near-turnoff main-sequence stars in the Galactic halo along four lines of sight to heliocentric distances of {approx}35 kpc. We find that the halo stellar number density profile becomes steeper at Galactocentric distances greater than R{sub gal} {approx} 28 kpc, with the power-law index changing from n{sub inner} = -2.62 {+-} 0.04 to n{sub outer} = -3.8 {+-} 0.1. In particular, we test a series of single power-law models and find them to be strongly disfavored by the data. The parameters for the best-fit Einasto profile are n = 2.2 {+-} 0.2 and R{sub e} = 22.2 {+-} 0.4 kpc. We measure the oblateness of the halo to be q {identical_to} c/a = 0.70 {+-} 0.01 and detect no evidence of it changing across the range of probed distances. The Sagittarius stream is detected in the l = 173 deg. and b = -62 deg. direction as an overdensity of [Fe/H] {approx} -1.5 dex stars at R{sub gal} {approx} 32 kpc, providing a new constraint for the Sagittarius stream and dark matter halo models. We also detect the Monoceros stream as an overdensity of [Fe/H] > -1.5 dex stars in the l = 232 deg. and b = 26 deg. direction at R{sub gal} {approx}< 25 kpc. In the two sight lines where we do not detect significant substructure, the median metallicity is found to be independent of distance within systematic uncertainties ([Fe/H] {approx} -1.5 {+-} 0.1 dex).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

ICES IN THE QUIESCENT IC 5146 DENSE CLOUD

This paper presents spectra in the 2 to 20 {mu}m range of quiescent cloud material located in the IC 5146 cloud complex. The spectra were obtained with NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility SpeX instrument and the Spitzer Space Telescope's Infrared Spectrometer. We use these spectra to investigate dust and ice absorption features in pristine regions of the cloud that are unaltered by embedded stars. We find that the H{sub 2}O-ice threshold extinction is 4.03 {+-} 0.05 mag. Once foreground extinction is taken into account, however, the threshold drops to 3.2 mag, equivalent to that found for the Taurus dark cloud, generally assumed to be the touchstone quiescent cloud against which all other dense cloud and embedded young stellar object observations are compared. Substructure in the trough of the silicate band for two sources is attributed to CH{sub 3}OH and NH{sub 3} in the ices, present at the {approx}2% and {approx}5% levels, respectively, relative to H{sub 2}O-ice. The correlation of the silicate feature with the E(J - K) color excess is found to follow a much shallower slope relative to lines of sight that probe diffuse clouds, supporting the previous results by Chiar et al.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

DENSITY VARIATIONS IN THE NW STAR STREAM OF M31

The Pan Andromeda Archeological Survey (PAndAS) CFHT Megaprime survey of the M31-M33 system has found a star stream which extends about 120 kpc NW from the center of M31. The great length of the stream, and the likelihood that it does not significantly intersect the disk of M31, means that it is unusually well suited for a measurement of stream gaps and clumps along its length as a test for the predicted thousands of dark matter sub-halos. The main result of this paper is that the density of the stream varies between zero and about three times the mean along its length on scales of 2-20 kpc. The probability that the variations are random fluctuations in the star density is less than 10{sup -5}. As a control sample, we search for density variations at precisely the same location in stars with metallicity higher than the stream [Fe/H] = [0, -0.5] and find no variations above the expected shot noise. The lumpiness of the stream is not compatible with a low mass star stream in a smooth galactic potential, nor is it readily compatible with the disturbance caused by the visible M31 satellite galaxies. The stream's density variations appear to be consistent with the effects of a large population of steep mass function dark matter sub-halos, such as found in LCDM simulations, acting on an approximately 10 Gyr old star stream. The effects of a single set of halo substructure realizations are shown for illustration, reserving a statistical comparison for another study.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

USING THE X-RAY MORPHOLOGY OF YOUNG SUPERNOVA REMNANTS TO CONSTRAIN EXPLOSION TYPE, EJECTA DISTRIBUTION, AND CHEMICAL MIXING

Supernova remnants (SNRs) are a complex class of sources, and their heterogeneous nature has hindered the characterization of their general observational properties. To overcome this challenge, in this paper, we use statistical tools to analyze the Chandra X-ray images of Galactic and Large Magellanic Cloud SNRs. We apply two techniques, a power-ratio method (a multipole expansion) and wavelet-transform analysis, to measure the global and local morphological properties of the X-ray line and thermal emission in 24 SNRs. We find that Type Ia SNRs have statistically more spherical and mirror-symmetric thermal X-ray emission than core-collapse (CC) SNRs. The ability to type SNRs based on thermal emission morphology alone enables, for the first time, the typing of SNRs with weak X-ray lines and those with low-resolution spectra. Based on our analyses, we identify one source (SNR G344.7-0.1) as originating from a CC explosion that was of unknown origin previously; we also confirm the tentative Type Ia classifications of G337.2-0.7 and G272.2-3.2. Although the global morphology is indicative of the explosion type, the relative morphology of the X-ray line emission within SNRs is not: all sources in our sample have well-mixed ejecta, irrespective of stellar origin. In particular, we find that 90% of the bright metal-line-emitting substructures are spatially coincident and have similar scales, even if the metals arise from different burning processes. Moreover, the overall X-ray line morphologies within each SNR are the same, with <6% differences. These findings reinforce observationally that hydrodynamical instabilities can efficiently mix ejecta in Type Ia and CC SNRs. The only exception is W49B, which can be attributed to its jet-driven/bipolar explosive origin. Based on comparative analyses across our sample, we describe several observational constraints that can be used to test hydrodynamical models of SNR evolution; notably, the filling factor of X-ray emission decreases with SNR age.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

SPATIALLY RESOLVED SPECTROSCOPY AND CHEMICAL HISTORY OF STAR-FORMING GALAXIES IN THE HERCULES CLUSTER: THE EFFECTS OF THE ENVIRONMENT

Spatially resolved spectroscopy has been obtained for a sample of 27 star-forming (SF) galaxies selected from our deep H{alpha} survey of the Hercules cluster. We have applied spectral synthesis models to all emission-line spectra of this sample using the population synthesis code STARLIGHT and have obtained fundamental parameters of stellar components such as mean metallicity and age. The emission-line spectra were corrected for underlying stellar absorption using these spectral synthesis models. Line fluxes were measured and O/H and N/O gas chemical abundances were obtained using the latest empirical calibrations. We have derived the masses and total luminosities of the galaxies using available Sloan Digital Sky Survey broadband photometry. The effects of cluster environment on the chemical evolution of galaxies and on their mass-metallicity (MZ) and luminosity-metallicity (LZ) relations were studied by combining the derived gas metallicities, the mean stellar metallicities and ages, the masses and luminosities of the galaxies, and their existing H I data. Our Hercules SF galaxies are divided into three main subgroups: (1) chemically evolved spirals with truncated ionized-gas disks and nearly flat oxygen gradients, demonstrating the effect of ram-pressure stripping; (2) chemically evolved dwarfs/irregulars populating the highest local densities, possible products of tidal interactions in preprocessing events; and (3) less metallic dwarf galaxies that appear to be 'newcomers' to the cluster and are experiencing pressure-triggered star formation. Most Hercules SF galaxies follow well-defined MZ and LZ sequences (for both O/H and N/O), though the dwarf/irregular galaxies located at the densest regions appear to be outliers to these global relations, suggesting a physical reason for the dispersion in these fundamental relations. The Hercules cluster appears to be currently assembling via the merger of smaller substructures, providing an ideal laboratory where the local environment has been found to be a key parameter in understanding the chemical history of galaxies.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

MEASURING GRAVITATIONAL LENSING FLEXION IN A1689 USING AN ANALYTIC IMAGE MODEL

Measuring dark matter substructure within galaxy cluster halos is a fundamental probe of the {Lambda}CDM model of structure formation. Gravitational lensing is a technique for measuring the total mass distribution which is independent of the nature of the gravitating matter, making it a vital tool for studying these dark-matter-dominated objects. We present a new method for measuring weak gravitational lensing flexion fields, the gradients of the lensing shear field, to measure mass distributions on small angular scales. While previously published methods for measuring flexion focus on measuring derived properties of the lensed images, such as shapelet coefficients or surface brightness moments, our method instead fits a mass-sheet transformation invariant Analytic Image Model (AIM) to each galaxy image. This simple parametric model traces the distortion of lensed image isophotes and constrains the flexion fields. We test the AIM method using simulated data images with realistic noise and a variety of unlensed image properties, and show that it successfully reproduces the input flexion fields. We also apply the AIM method for flexion measurement to Hubble Space Telescope observations of A1689 and detect mass structure in the cluster using flexion measured with this method. We also estimate the scatter in the measured flexion fields due to the unlensed shape of the background galaxies and find values consistent with previous estimates.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

THE SLOAN GREAT WALL. MORPHOLOGY AND GALAXY CONTENT

We present the results of a study of the morphology and galaxy content of the Sloan Great Wall (SGW), the richest galaxy system in the nearby universe. We use the luminosity density field to determine superclusters in the SGW, and the fourth Minkowski functional V{sub 3} and the morphological signature (the K{sub 1}-K{sub 2} shapefinder curve) to show the different morphologies of the SGW, from a single filament to a multibranching, clumpy planar system. We show that the richest supercluster in the SGW, SCl 126, and especially its core, resembles a very rich filament, while another rich supercluster in the SGW, SCl 111, resembles a 'multispider'-an assembly of high-density regions connected by chains of galaxies. We study the substructure of individual galaxy populations determined by their color in these superclusters using Minkowski functionals and find that in the high-density core of the SGW the clumpiness of red and blue galaxies is similar, but in the outskirts of superclusters the distribution of red galaxies is clumpier than that of blue galaxies. At intermediate densities, the systems of blue galaxies have tunnels through them. We assess the statistical significance of our results using the halo model and smoothed bootstrap. We study the galaxy content and the properties of groups of galaxies in the two richest superclusters of the SGW, paying special attention to bright red galaxies (BRGs) and the first ranked (the most luminous) galaxies in SGW groups. The BRGs are the nearby luminous red galaxies; they are mostly bright and red and typically reside in groups (several groups host five or more BRGs). About one-third of the BRGs are spirals. The scatter of colors of elliptical BRGs is smaller than that of spiral BRGs. About half of the BRGs and of first ranked galaxies in groups have large peculiar velocities. Groups with elliptical BRGs as their first ranked galaxies populate superclusters more uniformly than the groups that have a spiral BRG as their first ranked galaxy. The galaxy and group content of the core of the supercluster SCl 126 shows several differences in comparison with the outskirts of this supercluster and with the supercluster SCl 111. Here, groups with BRGs are richer and have larger velocity dispersions than groups with BRGs in the outskirts of this supercluster and in SCl 111. The fraction of those BRGs that do not belong to any group is the smallest here. In the core of the supercluster SCl 126, the fraction of red galaxies is larger than in the outskirts of this supercluster or in the supercluster SCl 111. Here, the peculiar velocities of the first ranked galaxies are larger than in the outskirts of this supercluster or in the supercluster SCl 111 and the peculiar velocities of elliptical BRGs are larger than those of spiral BRGs, while in the outskirts of this supercluster and in the supercluster SCl 111 the peculiar velocities of spiral BRGs are larger than those of elliptical BRGs. All this suggests that the formation history and evolution of individual neighbor superclusters in the SGW have been different and the SGW is not a genuine physical structure but an assembly of very rich galaxy systems.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

VERY LARGE TELESCOPE/NACO POLARIMETRIC DIFFERENTIAL IMAGING OF HD100546-DISK STRUCTURE AND DUST GRAIN PROPERTIES BETWEEN 10 AND 140 AU

We present polarimetric differential imaging (PDI) data of the circumstellar disk around the Herbig Ae/Be star HD100546 obtained with Very Large Telescope/NACO. We resolve the disk in polarized light in the H and K{sub s} filter between {approx}0.''1 and 1.''4 (i.e., {approx}10-140 AU). The innermost disk regions are directly imaged for the first time and the mean apparent disk inclination and position angle are derived. The surface brightness along the disk major axis drops off roughly with S(r){proportional_to}r {sup -3} but has a maximum around 0.''15 suggesting a marginal detection of the main disk inner rim at {approx}15 AU. We find a significant brightness asymmetry along the disk minor axis in both filters with the far side of the disk appearing brighter than the near side. This enhanced backward scattering and a low total polarization degree of the scattered disk flux of 14{sup +19}{sub -8}% suggest that the dust grains on the disk surface are larger than typical interstellar medium grains. Empirical scattering functions reveal the backward scattering peak at the largest scattering angles and a second maximum for the smallest scattering angles. This indicates a second dust grain population preferably forward scattering and smaller in size. It shows that, relatively, in the inner disk regions (40-50 AU) a higher fraction of larger grains is found compared to the outer disk regions (100-110 AU). Finally, our images reveal distinct substructures between 25 and 35 AU physical separation from the star and we discuss the possible origin for the two features in the context of ongoing planet formation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

A PRECISE CLUSTER MASS PROFILE AVERAGED FROM THE HIGHEST-QUALITY LENSING DATA

We outline our methods for obtaining high-precision mass profiles, combining independent weak-lensing distortion, magnification, and strong-lensing measurements. For massive clusters, the strong- and weak-lensing regimes contribute equal logarithmic coverage of the radial profile. The utility of high-quality data is limited by the cosmic noise from large-scale structure along the line of sight. This noise is overcome when stacking clusters, as too are the effects of cluster asphericity and substructure, permitting a stringent test of theoretical models. We derive a mean radial mass profile of four similar mass clusters of high-quality Hubble Space Telescope and Subaru images, in the range R = 40-2800 kpc h {sup -1}, where the inner radial boundary is sufficiently large to avoid smoothing from miscentering effects. The stacked mass profile is detected at 58{sigma} significance over the entire radial range, with the contribution from the cosmic noise included. We show that the projected mass profile has a continuously steepening gradient out to beyond the virial radius, in remarkably good agreement with the standard Navarro-Frenk-White form predicted for the family of cold dark matter (CDM) dominated halos in gravitational equilibrium. The central slope is constrained to lie in the range, -dln {rho}/dln r = 0.89{sup +0.27}{sub -0.39}. The mean concentration is c{sub vir} = 7.68{sup +0.42}{sub -0.40} (at M{sub vir} = 1.54{sup +0.11}{sub -0.10} x 10{sup 15} M{sub sun} h {sup -1}), which is high for relaxed, high-mass clusters, but consistent with {Lambda}CDM when a sizable projection bias estimated from N-body simulations is considered. This possible tension will be more definitively explored with new cluster surveys, such as CLASH, LoCuSS, Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam, and XXM-XXL, to construct the c{sub vir}-M{sub vir} relation over a wider mass range.

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