arXiv subjects

A. Franceschini

Publications and source records attributed to A. Franceschini.

At least 199 records · Page 11Linked to original sources

arXiv1999

BeppoSAX uncovers a type-2 QSO in the hyperluminous infrared galaxy IRAS 09104+4109

We studied with BeppoSAX the infrared luminous galaxy IRAS 09104+4109 over a very wide X-ray band from 0.1 to 80 keV. Our observations indicate the dominance of a thermal component at energies below 8 keV, which we attribute to the free-free emission from the intracluster (IC) plasma surrounding the source. Above 10 keV we find evidence for the existence of flux in excess with respect to the free-free IC plasma emission. This, together with the marginal detection of a neutral iron line at $\sim 6.4$ keV, gives a strong indication for the presence of an AGN deeply buried within the source. This component is best modelled by a strongly absorbed (N_H > 5 10^{24} cm^{-2}) power-law plus unabsorbed reflection spectrum (0.15<R<0.3), which is also responsible for the cold iron line. The unabsorbed broad-band (2-100 keV) X-ray emission of this AGN is 2.5 10$^{46} erg/s, well within the range of quasar luminosities. Our results indicate that IRAS 09104+4109 is indeed the prototype of a rare class of sources, the luminous type-2 QSOs. The association of this source with a huge cooling-flow of $\sim 1000 M_\odot$ in the cluster, as indicated by the X-ray data, might suggest that such condition of extremely fast mass accumulation could favour the survival of a thick obscuring envelope, which would otherwise be quickly destroyed by the very luminous central source.

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arXiv1999

Source Counts from the 15 microns ISOCAM Deep Surveys

We present the results of the five mid-IR 15 microns (12-18 microns LW3 band) ISOCAM Guaranteed Time Extragalactic Surveys performed in the regions of the Lockman Hole and Marano Field. The roughly 1000 sources detected, 600 of which have a flux above the 80 % completeness limit, guarantee a very high statistical significance for the integral and differential source counts from 0.1 mJy up to 5 mJy. By adding the ISOCAM surveys of the HDF-North and South (plus flanking fields) and the lensing cluster A2390 at low fluxes and IRAS at high fluxes, we cover four decades in flux from 50 microJy to 0.3 Jy. The slope of the differential counts is very steep (alpha =-3.0) in the flux range 0.4-4 mJy, hence much above the Euclidean expectation of alpha =-2.5. When compared with no-evolution models based on IRAS, our counts show a factor of 10 excess at 400 microJy, and a fast convergence, with alpha =-1.6 at lower fluxes.

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arXiv1999

Diffuse Thermal Emission from Very Hot Gas in Starburst Galaxies

BeppoSAX observations of the nearby archetypical starburst galaxies NGC253 and M82 are presented. Spectral analysis shows that the 2-10 keV spectra of both galaxies, extracted from the central 4' regions, are best fitted by a thermal emission model with kT~6-9 keV and metal abundances ~ 0.1-0.3 solar. The spatial analysis yields clear evidence that this emission is extended in NGC 253, and possibly also in M82. These results clearly rule out a LLAGN as the {\it main} origin of the X-ray emission in NGC 253. For M82, the presence of an Fe-K line at ~ 6.7 keV, and the convex profile of its 2-10 keV continuum, indicate a significant thermal component. Contributions from point sources (e.g. X-ray binaries, supernova remnants, and/or a LLAGN) and Compton emission are also likely. Altogether, BeppoSAX results provide compelling evidence for the existence of a hot interstellar plasma in both galaxies, possibly in the form of superwind outflows from the disks of these galaxies. Order-of-magnitude estimates and some implications, such as the expelled mass and the energetics of the outflowing gas of this superwind scenario, are discussed. These new results also suggest some similarity between the X-ray emission from these galaxies and that from the Galactic Ridge.

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arXiv1999

The European Large Area ISO Survey: ELAIS

The European Large Area ISO Survey (ELAIS) has surveyed 12 square degrees of the sky at 15 and 90 microns, and subsets of this area at 6.75 and 175 microns, using the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO). This project was the largest single open time programme executed by ISO, taking 375 hours of data. A preliminary catalogue of more than 1000 galaxies has been produced. In this talk we describe the goals of the project, describe the follow-up programmes that are in progress, and present some first scientific results including a provisional number count analysis at 15 and 90 microns.

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arXiv1999

New photometric models of galactic evolution applied to the HDF

We summarize our modelling of galaxy photometric evolution (GRASIL code). By including the effects of dust grains and PAHs molecules in a two phases clumpy medium, where clumps are associated to star forming regions, we reproduce the observed UV to radio SEDs of galaxies with star formation rates from zero to several hundreds $M_\odot/yr$. GRASIL is a powerful tool to investigate the star formation, the initial mass function and the supernovae rate in nearby starbursts and normal galaxies, as well as to predict the evolution of luminosity functions of different types of galaxies at wavelengths covering six decades. It may be interfaced with any device providing the star formation and metallicity histories of a galaxy. As an application, we have investigated the properties of early-type galaxies in the HDF, tracking the contribution of this population to the cosmic star-formation history, which has a broad peak between z=1.5 and 4. To explain the absence of objects at z $\gsim$ 1.3, we suggest a sequence of dust-enshrouded merging-driven starbursts in the first few Gyrs of galaxies lifetime. We are at present working on a complementary sample of late type objects selected in a similar way.

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arXiv1999

FIRBACK Far Infrared Survey with ISO: Data Reduction, Analysis and First Results

FIRBACK is one of the deepest cosmological surveys performed in the far infrared, using ISOPHOT. We describe this survey, its data reduction and analysis. We present the maps of fields at 175 microns. We point out some first results: source identifications with radio and mid infrared, and source counts at 175 microns. These two results suggest that half of the FIRBACK sources are probably at redshifts greater than 1. We also present briefly the large follow-up program.

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arXiv1999

Isocam Extragalactic Mid-Infrared Deep Surveys Unveiling Dust-Enshrouded Star Formation In The Universe

ISOCAM extragalactic mid-infrared deep surveys have detected a population of strong IR emitters ten times more numerous than expected if there were no evolution from z<0.2 (IRAS) up to the maximum redshift of these galaxies (z=1.5). The mid-IR cosmic background produced by these galaxies (2.35+/-0.8 nW m^-2 sr^-1, at 15 microns above 50 microJy) is larger than 30 per cent of the energy radiated in the I band by the optical galaxies detected in the HDF, which are two orders of magnitude more numerous. This fraction is much higher than in the local universe (z<0.2) as probed by IRAS, where all integrated IR emission from 8 to 1000 microns makes 30 per cent of the optical starlight. Even assuming a conservative SED, they produce a major contribution to the 140 mu m DIRBE background measured by Hauser et al. (1998, 25.1+/-7 nW m^-2 sr^-1) and Lagache et al. (1999, 15.3+/-9.5 nW m^ -2 sr^-1). This is both a confirmation of the strong IR cosmic background that was first detected by Puget et al. (1996) and the first identification of the galaxies responsible for a large fraction of this background at 140 microns. We find that these bright (several 10^11 Lsol) and massive ( = 1.5x10^11 Msol) IR galaxies have a typical redshift of z=0.7 and optical colors similar to field galaxies. The fraction of galaxies with morphological signs of interactions is larger at higher redshift. This is consistent with the nature of local luminous IR galaxies found by IRAS, which often exhibit evidence of galaxy interaction or merging and indicates that interactions should play a crucial role in the evolution of galaxies as expected from bottom-up scenarios.

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arXiv1999

Diffuse Thermal Emission from Very Hot Gas in Starburst Galaxies: Spatial Results

New BeppoSAX observations of the nearby prototypical starburst galaxies NGC 253 and M82 are presented. A companion paper (Cappi et al. 1998;astro-ph/9809325) shows that the hard (2-10 keV) spectrum of both galaxies, extracted from the source central regions, is best described by a thermal emission model with kT ~ 6-9 keV and abundances ~ 0.1-0.3 solar. The spatial analysis yields clear evidence that this emission is extended in NGC 253, and possibly also in M82. This quite clearly rules out a LLAGN as the main responsible for their hard X-ray emission. Significant contribution from point-sources (i.e. X-ray binaries (XRBs) and Supernovae Remnants (SNRs)) cannot be excluded; neither can we at present reliably estimate the level of Compton emission. However, we argue that such contributions shouldn't affect our main conclusion, i.e., that the BeppoSAX results show, altogether, compelling evidence for the existence of a very hot, metal-poor interstellar plasma in both galaxies.

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arXiv1999

A Deep 12 Micron Survey with ISO

We present the first results of a study of faint 12 micron sources detected with the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) in four deep, high galactic latitude fields. The sample includes 50 such sources in an area of 0.1 square degrees down to a 5 sigma flux limit of about 500 microJy. From optical identifications based on the US Naval Observatory (USNO) catalogue and analysis of the optical/IR colours and Digital Sky Survey (DSS) images, we conclude that 37 of these objects are galaxies and 13 are stars. We derive galaxy number counts and compare them with existing IRAS counts at 12 microns, and with models of the 12 micron source population. In particular, we find evidence for significant evolution in the galaxy population, with the no-evolution case excluded at the 3.5 sigma level. The stellar population is well matched by existing models. Two of the objects detected at 12 micron are associated with known galaxies. One of these is an IRAS galaxy at z=0.11 with a luminosity of 10^11 L_sun.

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arXiv1998

A 1.4 GHz Survey of the Southern ELAIS Region

A deep survey of the European Large Area ISO Survey (ELAIS) field in the southern celestial hemisphere (hereinafter S1) has been carried out with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) at 1.4 GHz. The S1 region, covering about 4 square degrees, has been also surveyed in the mid- and far-infrared (5-200 micron) with the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO). The radio survey provides uniform coverage of the entire S1 region, with a sensitivity (5 sigma) of 0.4 mJy over the whole area and 0.2 mJy in the center. To this sensitivity, virtually all the radio counterparts of the far-infrared extragalactic ISO sources should be detected. This paper presents a radio sample - complete at the 5 sigma level - consisting of 581 sources detected at 1.4 GHz. Of these radio sources, 349 have peak flux density in the range 0.2-1 mJy, forming a new homogeneous sample of sub-mJy radio sources. Due to its size, depth and multi-waveband coverage, the sample will allow us to study in greater detail the sub-mJy radio source population. The full catalogue will be available from http://athena.ph.ac.uk/

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arXiv1998

FIRBACK: I. A deep survey at 175 $μ$m with ISO, preliminary results

FIRBACK is a deep survey conducted with the ISOPHOT instrument aboard the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) at an effective wavelength of 175 $μ$m. We present here results we have obtained on the first field, the so-called Marano1 which covers around 0.25 square degree. We find that the source density for objects with a flux above 200 mJy exceeds the counts expected for sources found in the IRAS deep surveys with a similar flux by about an order of magnitude. Such an excess was expected on the basis of the high far infrared background detected with the FIRAS and DIRBE instruments aboard the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). These sources are likely to be redshifted infrared galaxies. The steep number counts indicate strong cosmological evolution in this population. The detected sources account for only 10 % of the cosmic IR background. An extrapolation of the counts down to about 10 mJy would be needeed to account for the whole background at this wavelength.

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arXiv1998

Diffuse Thermal Emission from Very Hot Gas in Starburst Galaxies: Spectral Results

New BeppoSAX observations of the nearby archetypical starburst galaxies (SBGs) NGC253 and M82 are presented. The main observational result is the unambiguous evidence that the hard (2-10 keV) component is (mostly) produced in both galaxies by thermal emission from a metal-poor (~ 0.1-0.3 solar), hot (kT \~ 6- 9 keV) and extended (see companion paper: Cappi et al. 1998) plasma. Possible origins of this newly discovered component are briefly discussed. A remarkable similarity with the (Milky Way) Galactic Ridge's X-ray emission suggests, nevertheless, a common physical mechanism.

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arXiv1998

BeppoSAX detection of the Fe K line in the nearby starburst galaxy NGC 253

We present BeppoSAX results on the nearby starburst galaxy NGC 253. Although extended, a large fraction of the X-ray emission comes from the nuclear region. Preliminary analysis of the LECS/MECS/PDS ~0.2-60 keV data from the central 4' region indicates that the continuum is well fitted by two thermal models: a ``soft'' component with kT ~ 0.9 keV, and a ``hard'' component with kT ~ 6 keV absorbed by a column density of ~ 1.2 x10**22 cm-2. For the first time in this object, the Fe K line at 6.7 keV is detected, with an equivalent width of ~ 300 eV. This detection, together with the shape of the 2--60 keV continuum, implies that most of the hard X-ray emission is thermal in origin, and constrains the iron abundances of this component to be ~0.25 of solar. Other lines clearly detected are Si, S and Fe L/Ne, in agreement with previous ASCA results. We discuss our results in the context of the starburst-driven galactic superwind model.

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arXiv1998

The FIRBACK 175 micron Survey

The FIRBACK project is a collaboration of eight institutes aimed at using long wavelength surveys with ISO to uncover the nature of the Cosmic Far-Infrared Background. We have surveyed nearly 4 sq. deg. in three regions in the northern and southern hemispheres with the ISOPHOT instrument on ISO, using the 175 micron filter. As reported by Puget et al. (1998) and Reach et al. (these proceedings), the first 0.25 sq. deg. region studied in this programme contains many more 175 micron sources than expected. Initial reduction of the remaining survey areas appears to confirm this result. The area surveyed by FIRBACK represents the largest and deepest long wavelength far-IR survey available before the launch of SIRTF.

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arXiv1998

Isocam deep surveys unveiling star formation in the mid-infrared

Before having exhausted the helium in its tank on April 8, 1998, the Infrared Space Observatory had time to perform several complementary surveys at various depths and areas within selected regions of the sky. We present the results of some of the surveys done with the mid-infrared camera, ISOCAM, on-board ISO, and more specifically those surveys which were performed using the broad-band filter LW3 (12-18 microns). We show that mid-infrared allows to discriminate starburst and post-starburst galaxies among galaxies which present similar optical-UV morphological and colour signatures. Furthermore, the strong evolution found in the surveys indicates that more star formation is hidden in the infrared at higher redshifts.

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arXiv1998

Early-Type Galaxies in the Hubble Deep Field: The Star Formation History

We have investigated the properties of a complete K-band selected sample of 35 elliptical and S0 galaxies brighter than K=20.15 in the Hubble Deep Field, as representative of the field galaxy population. This sample has been derived from deep K-band image by the KPNO-IRIM camera, by applying a rigorous morphological classification scheme based on quantitative analyses of the surface brightness profiles. The broad-band spectra of the sample galaxies allow us to date their dominant stellar populations. The majority of bright early-types in this field are found at redshifts z<1.3 to display colors indicative of a fairly wide range of ages (typically 1.5 to 3 Gyrs). We find that the major episodes of star-formation building up typical M_star galaxies have taken place during a wide redshift interval 1 1.3, which should be detectable during the luminous star-formation phase expected to happen at these redshifts. Obvious solutions are a) that the merging events imply perturbed morphologies which prevent selecting them by our morphological classification filter, or b) that a dust-polluted ISM obscures the (either continuous or episodic) events of star-formation. We conclude that the likely solution is a combination thereof, i.e. a set of dust-enshrouded merging-driven starbursts occurring during the first few Gyrs of the galaxy's lifetime.

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arXiv1998

A Deep VLA survey at 20cm of the ISO ELAIS survey regions

We have used the Very Large Array(VLA) in C configuration to carry out a sensitive 20cm radio survey of regions of sky that have been surveyed in the Far Infra-Red over the wavelength range 5-200 microns with ISO as part of the European Large Area ISO Survey(ELAIS). As usual in surveys based on a relatively small number of overlapping VLA pointings the flux limit varies over the area surveyed. The survey has a flux limit that varies from a 5$σ$ limit of 0.135mJy over an area of 0.12deg$^2$ to a 5$σ$ limit of 1.15mJy or better over the whole region covered of 4.22 deg$^2$. In this paper we present the radio catalogue of 867 sources. These regions of sky have previously been surveyed to shallow flux limits at 20cm with the VLA as part of the VLA D configuration NVSS(FWHM=45 arcsec) and VLA B configuration FIRST(FWHM=5 arcsec) surveys. We have carried out a a detailed comparison of the reliability of our own survey and these two independent surveys in order to assess the reliability and completeness of each survey.

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arXiv1998

Extragalactic Source Counts and Contributions to the Anisotropies of the Cosmic Microwave Background. Predictions for the Planck Surveyor mission

We present predictions for the counts of extragalactic sources, the contributions to fluctuations and their spatial power spectrum in each channel foreseen for the Planck Surveyor (formerly COBRAS/SAMBA) mission. The contribution to fluctuations due to clustering of both radio and far--IR sources is found to be generally small in comparison with the Poisson term; however the relative importance of the clustering contribution increases and may eventually become dominant if sources are identified and subtracted down to faint flux limits. The central Planck frequency bands are expected to be ``clean'': at high galactic latitude (|b|>20), where the reduced galactic noise does not prevent the detection of the extragalactic signal, only a tiny fraction of pixels is found to be contaminated by discrete extragalactic sources. Moreover, removal of contaminating signals is eased by the substantial difference between their power spectrum and that of primordial fluctuations.

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