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Adam K. Leroy

Publications and source records attributed to Adam K. Leroy.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Variations in the 3.3 $μ$m Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Feature Across Nearby Galaxies Driven by Metallicity and Radiation Field Spectrum

We use JWST NIRCam imaging to investigate the 3.3 $μ$m polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) feature in nearby galaxies. NIRCam observations of the 3.3 $μ$m feature are emerging as a powerful tool for studying the structure of the interstellar medium (ISM) and the conditions of the dust at ~0".1 resolution. These maps require accurate subtraction of the underlying continuum emission. We present an empirical method to isolate the PAH-correlated emission in the F335M filter using the F300M and F360M filters for continuum subtraction. We find that the slope of the F335M/F300M versus F360M/F300M colors for PAH-correlated emission shows a dependence on local ISM properties, with the strongest dependence on specific star formation rate. Weaker emission features captured by these bands appear suppressed relative to the main 3.3 $μ$m feature in regions of active star formation. We find trends in the 3.3/7.7 and 3.3/11.3 $μ$m ratios that suggest changes in PAH size, charge, and heating by a varying radiation field spectrum. We find decreases in both band ratios with increasing metallicity, which we attribute to a shift to smaller PAH populations at low metallicity. Comparison to optical ionized gas line ratios and dust models show that variations in the interstellar radiation field spectrum influence the PAH feature ratios. This analysis supports inhibited growth formation scenarios for the observed PAH band ratio trends with metallicity and emphasizes the importance of considering the local radiation field characteristics and gas-phase metallicity when using these band ratios as PAH property diagnostics.

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The Birth and Early Feedback of Massive Star Clusters Across the Local Universe

Young massive star clusters (YMCs; ${\gtrsim}10^4\rm\,M_\odot$) represent a distinct, extreme mode of star formation and the closest present-day analogues of the environments in which globular clusters and Cosmic Noon stellar populations assembled. Given the extreme dust extinction in the earliest phase of YMC formation, (sub-)millimeter observations are the only means of probing their assembly and early feedback. Pioneering works with ALMA are limited to individual region studies and to the most massive YMCs in them, leaving many open questions about the initial conditions of YMC formation, the integrated star and cluster formation efficiencies, the dominant pre-supernova feedback channels, and the prevalence and reach of cluster-driven outflows. ALMA2040 will enable mass-complete, resolved surveys in hundreds of host galaxies, transforming the study of massive cluster formation and feedback from individual case analyses into statistical measurements across the full range of galactic environments.

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radio-astro-tools: linking radio astronomical data to the astronomical Python ecosystem

We present the radio-astro-tools code suite, which consists of several Python packages that enable analysis of radio data, especially interferometric spectral cubes, in the context of the Astropy software ecosystem. While these tools were designed with radio data in mind, they are built to be general and have applications on data sets at other wavelengths. The core package, spectral-cube, handles reading, writing and analysis of cube data, and it enables straightforward parallelization via dask and joblib backends. Support packages include casa-formats-io and radio-beam, which handle reading of CASA tables & images and reading and manipulation of point spread functions, respectively. The pvextractor package facilitates creation of position-velocity diagrams. The uvcombine package implements the "feather" algorithm for combining single-dish and interferometric data. The development of radio-astro-tools included several contributions to other repositories, including matplotlib, astropy, and regions to support interaction between CASA and other parts of the astronomy software ecosystem. We also present a detailed set of tutorials written in Jupyter notebooks that can be run interactively in a browser, providing more accessible access to data analysis for radio spectral-line data cubes.

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Star Cluster Populations in 38 Spiral Galaxies: Evidence for Near-Universal Mass and Age Distributions from PHANGS

We present the largest study to date of star cluster mass and age distributions in nearby galaxies. The analysis is based on a uniformly selected catalog of over 15,000 (36,000) human (machine) classified compact clusters across 38 spiral galaxies in the PHANGS-HST survey, with improved photometric SED age dating that mitigates key degeneracies with reddening and metallicity. The galaxies span a factor of ~100 in star formation rate (SFR) and in their surface density of star formation and molecular gas (Sigma_SFR, Sigma_H2), and cover a broad range of morphologies. We find that cluster mass functions are well described by a power law, dN/dM ~ M^beta, with beta=-1.9 +/- 0.2, and that this shape is remarkably similar across all galaxies in our sample and eight composite groups of galaxies with similar SFRs, with no significant dependence on SFR, Sigma_SFR}, or Sigma_H2. Cluster age distributions decline steeply and can be described by dN/dt ~ t^gamma with gamma=-0.83 +/- 0.24, again with little dependence on host-galaxy properties or cluster mass. The independence of the mass and age distributions implies a separable joint distribution, g(M,t) ~ M^beta t^gamma, and suggests that cluster populations in spiral disks are dominated by strong, mass-independent dissolution over their first ~Gyr. These results establish a benchmark for interpreting cluster demographics across diverse galactic environments and provide context for studies of young cluster populations at high redshift.

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Quantifying the decline in CO(2-1) intensity around PHANGS-HST star clusters: Constraints on molecular gas dispersal, stellar feedback, and cluster formation efficiency

We combine the largest survey of star clusters in nearby galaxies to-date, PHANGS-HST, with maps of molecular gas maps from PHANGS-ALMA to constrain the efficiency of cluster formation and the typical timescales over which clusters become dis-associated from their natal molecular gas. We analyse 29,233 clusters in 36 galaxies using CO maps at 150 pc resolution. For each star cluster with stellar mass $\geq 10^{3.5}$ M$_\odot$, we measure the radial profiles of CO(2-1) integrated intensity and obtain local background-subtracted CO intensity, $I_{\rm CO}^{\rm bkgsub}$, at cluster centre. We group the clusters by age and mass to quantify the dependence of $I_{\rm CO}^{\rm bkgsub}$ and corresponding molecular gas mass, $M_{\rm mol}$, on these cluster properties. To account for the cluster mass ($M_{\rm SC}$) dependence, we also calculate the normalised mass ratio of $(M_{\rm mol}/M_{\rm SC})$. We find that CO intensity varies systematically with cluster age and mass. Clusters that are spatially associated with H$α$ emission exhibit the highest $I_{\rm CO}^{\rm bkgsub}$ of 7.4 K km s$^{-1}$, corresponding to a $M_{\rm mol}/M_{\rm SC}$ ratio of 82 and implying a cluster formation efficiency ($ε_{\rm obs}$) of $\sim 1.2\%$. Young clusters without associated H$α$ emission show lower and age-dependent $I_{\rm CO}^{\rm bkgsub}$ and $M_{\rm mol}/M_{\rm SC}$, decreasing from 1.3 K km s$^{-1}$ and 15 for clusters with age 1-3 Myr, to a level $\approx$ 0 for clusters older than 9--10 Myr. Clusters older than 10 Myr show no statistical excess of CO intensity. We use the clusters with H$α$ association as initial conditions to model the impact of cluster drift and demonstrate that this is unlikely to drive the observed cluster-gas spatial disassociation on short timescales of 4-6 Myr. Instead, early stellar feedback seems likely to be the main driver.

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The Milky Way Joins the Extragalactic World: I. PHANGS

Complete catalogs of molecular clouds in the Milky Way allow analysis of the molecular medium and the star formation properties of the Milky Way that closely follows the method used for nearby galaxies, in particular in the PHANGS project. The dependencies of the depletion time on other properties of molecular gas in the Milky Way are similar to those of other galaxies when analyzed in an analogous way. They exhibit a large scatter and relatively weak correlations. The strongest correlation is a decrease in depletion time with increasing velocity dispersion. We explore the effects of spatial resolution, sensitivity, cloud identificaton method, averaging method, and tracer choice on our results. Metallicity effects in converting observations to mass can have a substantial impact. Somewhat fortuitously, differences in conversion methods between PHANGS and the Milky Way do not affect the current comparison. Inadequate spatial resolution, resulting in unresolved cloud structure, has the most important effect on interpretation of both extragalactic observations and existing catalogs of Milky Way clouds.

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A Detailed GASKAP-HI View of Shells and Loops in the Magellanic Bridge

We present 8 pc-scale GASKAP-HI observations of an HI shell (diameter \sim130 pc) associated with the Hαshell DEM171 in the Magellanic Bridge. The Bridge's diffuse, HI-dominated environment, with minimal galactic shearing and fewer overlapping star-forming regions, provides an ideal environment to study cold gas formation driven by stellar feedback. To investigate the HI multi-phase structure and kinematics of the shell, we perform Gaussian decomposition of HI line profiles. We identify cold HI components with velocity dispersions σ< 2.5 km/s located within the shell. Complementary Herschel far-infrared (FIR) 250\micron and Hαmaps show that while the central cavity is ionized, the shell walls contain cold HI, molecular gas, and dust, suggesting that stellar feedback has promoted cold gas formation or swept pre-existing cold gas into the shell walls. We also identify cold HI clumps outside the shell tracing a larger-scale structure, MB-Loop I. To investigate the large-scale context, we apply a Fourier transform method to HI emission-line profiles to map the lower limit of cold-gas column densities across a section of the Bridge, revealing structures from large loops to smaller shells. The association between MB-Loop I and the HI shell suggests that cold HI gas may pre-exist before shell expansion. Finally, the shell exhibits asymmetric expansion, with a preferred orientation roughly perpendicular to the arc along MB-Loop I. Our results show that cold HI gas exists across a wide range of spatial scales in the Magellanic Bridge, highlighting the dynamic interplay that shapes the surrounding interstellar medium.

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Mid-Infrared Colors Vary with Galactic Environment: Contrasting Star-Forming Disks, Young Centers, and Quiescent Star-Formation Deserts

We present $50{-}100\,$pc-resolution JWST/MIRI and NIRCam measurements of mid-infrared (mid-IR) color variations in the diffuse interstellar medium (ISM) of 71 nearby star-forming galaxies from the PHANGS-JWST survey. Mid-IR emission traces the dust column density, intensity ($U$) and hardness of the interstellar radiation field, and the physical state (charge, size) and abundance of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Mid-IR colors that trace PAH band-ratios remain fairly constant in the diffuse ISM of star-forming disks. However, they show stark variations in extreme environments: highly star-forming central molecular zones (CMZs) and star-formation deserts/quiescent bulges. In CMZs, PAH-to-continuum ($3.3/21$, $7.7/21$, and $11.3/21\,μ$m) and the $10/21\,μ$m continuum colors are $0.2{-}0.4$ dex lower than in normal disks. We attribute this to higher $U$ based on the far-IR dust colors and the high $21\,μ{\rm m}/Σ_{\rm Mol}$, which we suggest to be a good tracer of $U$ outside star-forming regions. Meanwhile, star-formation deserts show low $7.7\,μ$m PAH emission, resulting in low $7.7/21\,μ$m and $7.7/11.3\,μ$m, while all other mid-IR colors remain typical. This suggests the presence of more neutral PAHs in star-formation deserts, where low $7.7\,μ$m likely reflects ISM conditions similar to early-type and elliptical galaxies. All environments form part of a continuous trend in $7.7/11.3\,μ$m vs.\ specific star-formation rate.

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JWST Whirlpool Galaxy Treasury: Mid-Infrared Emission in M51 and its Relation to Gas Column and Star Formation

Using JWST/MIRI imaging of M51 in eight broadband filters, we investigate correlations of mid-infrared emission from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and dust continuum with molecular, atomic, and ionized gas traced by CO(1-0), HI, and Pa-alpha, respectively. In molecular gas-dominated regions, PAH-dominated filters (F560W, F770W, F1130W, F1280W) exhibit near-linear correlations with CO(1-0) at 40 pc scale, indicating that PAHs are well-mixed with gas and experience relatively constant radiation field intensities. The F1500W, F1800W, and F2100W dust continuum-dominated filters show shallower slopes with CO(1-0), reflecting contributions from star-forming regions with high radiation field intensities. This is reinforced by the near-linear scaling between F2100W and Pa-alpha. PAH-dominated bands do not show this linear trend with Pa-alpha, likely due to their destruction in ionized regions. F1000W behaves similarly to PAH bands in its correlations with CO(1-0) and Pa-alpha. Modeling mid-infrared emission with an empirical decomposition into gas- and star-formation-associated components shows that PAH-dominated filters receive comparable contributions from both, while the relative contribution associated with the Pa-alpha template increases toward longer wavelengths, reaching $\sim$75% in F2100W. These results demonstrate that mid-infrared simultaneously traces the gas column and star formation, but with a systematic wavelength-dependent shift in what drives the correlations: PAHs being more gas-tracing and dust-continuum reflecting star formation. Lastly, considering both HI and H$_2$ at 440 pc resolution, we find a tight, linear relation between $Σ_{HI+H_2}$ and PAH-dominated filters. Although most of our coverage is in H$_2$-dominated regions, we note similar observations with HI, suggesting that PAHs are also well-mixed with atomic gas.

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A Multiwavelength Inventory for the Local Group L-band Survey I: Atlas and Radial Profiles of Local Group Galaxies

Resolving atomic gas at $\lesssim100$ pc physical resolution is currently feasible only for the very nearest galaxies. We combine 120 pc resolution HI data using the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) from the first data release of the Local Group L-Band Survey (LGLBS) with uniformly processed infrared, ultraviolet, H$α$, and CO maps. We analyze the radial profiles of gas, stars, and recent star formation for six local galaxies: M31, M33, IC 10, IC 1613, NGC 6822, and WLM. Across the sample, atomic-gas disks are the most extended component, reaching $r_{\rm HI}=2.8$-$5.8$ kpc in the dwarfs and $13$-$26$ kpc in M33 and M31. Azimuthally averaged $Σ_{\rm HI}$ profiles are often flat or only slowly declining compared to the steeper decline of $Σ_{\star}$ and $Σ_\mathrm{SFR}$, with outer HI scale lengths of $l_{\rm HI}^{\rm outer}\approx1.0$-$8.5$ kpc. The mass-weighted HI surface densities on 120 pc scale generally exceed the azimuthally averaged values by 10-70%, showing that localized high-column-density atomic structures persist even where azimuthally averaged profiles appear smooth. Atomic-gas depletion times rise from $τ_{\rm dep}^{\rm atom}\approx0.8$-17 Gyr within the stellar half-mass radius to 10s-100 Gyr in the outer disks. Molecular depletion times are shorter. We provide a public release of these multi-wavelength data, which provide a valuable reference for the LGLBS targets and also form the basis for a companion paper that relates star formation, gas phases, and midplane pressure on 120 pc scales.

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The PHANGS-AstroSat Atlas of Nearby Star Forming Galaxies

We present the Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby GalaxieS (PHANGS)-AstroSat atlas, which contains ultraviolet imaging of 31 nearby star-forming galaxies captured by the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UVIT) on the AstroSat satellite. The atlas provides a homogeneous data set of far- and near-ultraviolet maps of galaxies within a distance of 22 Mpc and a median angular resolution of 1.4 arcseconds (corresponding to a physical scale between 25 and 160 pc). After subtracting a uniform ultraviolet background and accounting for Milky Way extinction, we compare our estimated flux densities to GALEX observations, finding good agreement. We find candidate extended UV disks around the galaxies NGC 6744 and IC 5332. We present the first statistical measurements of the clumping of the UV emission and compare it to the clumping of molecular gas traced with ALMA. We find that bars and spiral arms exhibit the highest degree of clumping, and the molecular gas is even more clumped than the FUV emission in galaxies. We investigate the variation of the ratio of observed FUV to H$α$ in different galactic environments and kpc-sized apertures. We report that $\sim 65$% variation of the $\log_{10}$(FUV/H$α$) can be described through a combination of dust attenuation with star formation history parameters. The PHANGS-AstroSat atlas enhances the multi-wavelength coverage of our sample, offering a detailed perspective on star formation. When integrated with PHANGS data sets from ALMA, VLT-MUSE, HST and JWST, it develops our comprehensive understanding of attenuation curves and dust attenuation in star-forming galaxies.

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The EDGE-CALIFA Survey: Star Formation Efficiency and Galaxy Quenching across 62 Main Sequence, Green Valley, and Red Galaxies

We present GBT-EDGE, a new CO(1-0) survey using the Green Bank Telescope to map 62 nearby (10-140 Mpc) galaxies spanning the star-forming main sequence (SFMS), green valley, and red sequence. The galaxy sample is selected from the CALIFA survey with integral field spectroscopy (IFS), which provides a representative census of local galactic environments. Combining the CO dataset with CALIFA's optical IFS measurements, we derive molecular gas masses, star formation rates (SFR), metallicities, and stellar mass densities to measure star formation efficiency (SFE) and investigate the physical drivers of galaxy quenching. We obtain a median molecular gas depletion time of $2.10^{+2.35}_{-1.31}$, $6.90^{+17.00}_{-3.67}$, and $127.7^{+201.6}_{-113.4}$ Gyr for our sample of main sequence, green valley, and red galaxies, respectively, assuming a Galactic CO-to-H2 conversion factor. By applying various conversion factor prescriptions, we also confirm a systematic decrease of SFE with galaxy's offset below the SFMS, regardless of the adopted prescription. This suggests that the low SFR in some quenched galaxies is primarily driven by suppressed SFE rather than an absence of molecular gas. Our results provide evidence that galaxies below the main sequence can retain substantial molecular gas reservoirs comparable to star-forming galaxies, but they exhibit longer depletion times and form stars inefficiently, possibly due to the combined effects of low gas density and morphological quenching mechanisms.

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Revisiting ram pressure stripping in Wolf-Lundmark-Melotte: No evidence for stripped HI with LGLBS

We analyze HI 21-cm observations of the Local Group dwarf galaxy Wolf-Lundmark-Melotte (WLM) from the Local Group L-Band Survey to search for evidence of ram pressure stripping. While previous MeerKAT-16 observations of WLM showed evidence for off-galaxy atomic gas emission with a geometry suggestive of ram pressure stripping, our observations find no evidence for this stripped gas. We demonstrate that our observations would be sensitive to the claimed detections and suggest that an uncorrected observational flaw with the MeerKAT data led to the apparent off-galaxy emission. The lack of off-galaxy emission obviates the need for uncharacteristically high values of the density of the intergalactic medium in this region.

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JWST Observations of Starbursts: Dust Processing in the M82 Superwind

We present JWST MIRI and NIRCam imaging of the inner ~5 kpc of the M82 superwind at 0.05-0.375'' (~0.9-6.5 pc) resolution. Targeted filters probe emission from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs; F335M, F360M, F770W, F1130W) and continuum (F250M, F360M). The images reveal a network of cool wind filaments traced by PAHs. PAH surface brightness declines with the inverse square of distance to the midplane, suggesting that the incident radiation field from the starburst drives the observed PAH intensity out to 2.5 kpc. The 3.3/11.3 and 3.3/7.7 band ratios show uniformity with distance from the starburst, though comparisons with mid-IR dust emission models indicate a modest shift toward larger PAHs. Outside the disk, 11.3/7.7 increases moderately, reflecting that PAHs become more neutral with distance from the starburst as they are exposed to a declining radiation field and ionization parameter. Overall, PAHs in the wind are consistent with standard-to-large sizes and standard-to-high ionization states. Including Spitzer and Herschel data, PAH abundance (qPAH) is set at ~1% in the starburst and remains unchanging out to 5 kpc off the disk. This flat qPAH profile suggests that PAHs are shielded from the hot wind, perhaps residing in the surface layers of cool clouds, with possible replenishment from cloud interiors and enrichment of the halo from previous bursts. In this picture, clouds are not dense enough to promote PAH growth, and they likely undergo radiative cooling and mixing with the hot phase to survive the gauntlet for at least ~20 Myr.

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From gas to stars along the spiral wave: CO, HCN, and star formation variations across the spiral arms in NGC 4321 and M51

Molecular clouds form stars from the interstellar medium via gravitational collapse, following a sequence from low-density gas to high-density cores and eventually the formation of stars. In classical density wave theory, gas clouds orbiting the galaxy experience gas compression and triggered star formation, while encountering the gravitational well of spiral arms. We aim to trace these different phases of the molecular cloud life cycle via tracers of molecular gas (CO), dense molecular gas (HCN), and star formation (H$α$, 24 $μ$m) within the spiral arms of two grand-design spiral galaxies: NGC 4321 and M51 (NGC 5194). In the spiral arms of these galaxies, we investigate the relation between molecular gas, dense gas, and star formation (CO-HCN-SFR) at matched physical resolutions of 270 pc and 125 pc in NGC 4321 and M51, respectively. We employed spiral arm masks for these galaxies and investigate trends of HCN/CO and SFR/HCN (SFR/CO), which serve as proxies for the dense gas fraction and dense (molecular) gas star formation efficiency, perpendicular to the spiral arm spines. We find that HCN/CO, SFR/CO, and SFR/HCN increase from the upstream towards the downstream side of both spiral arms of NGC 4321, while their trends are less prominent in M51. Our results indicate that large-scale galactic dynamics (e.g. density waves) can induce a sequence of gas density and star formation-to-gas density variations perpendicular to the spiral arms. This sequence contributes to the increased scatter seen among spectroscopic ratios such as HCN/CO and SFR/HCN at sub-kiloparsec scales.

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The PHANGS-Hα survey. Ground-based narrow-band imaging of nearby star-forming galaxies

We present PHANGS-Hα, a narrow-band imaging survey that maps Hα emission over a sample of 65 nearby massive star-forming galaxies. The data were obtained using the MPG-ESO 2.2-meter telescope at La Silla and the du Pont 2.5-meter telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, in the framework of the multi-wavelength cloud-scale (50-100 pc) resolution mapping of molecular gas and star formation conducted by the Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby GalaxieS (PHANGS) collaboration. PHANGS-Hα complements the already published PHANGS-ALMA, PHANGS-MUSE, PHANGS-HST, and PHANGS-JWST surveys, providing an anchor point for the photometric and astrometric calibration of these datasets, as well as samples of H ii regions, and star formation rate maps for the bulk of the PHANGS sample. We present observations, data processing, and calibration of the PHANGS-Hα dataset, as well as the procedures used to derive emission-line fluxes from narrow-band imaging. A subset of galaxies with available spectroscopic Ha mapping from the PHANGS-MUSE survey allows for a detailed comparison with the narrow-band photometry presented here. This informs a series of best practices for the processing of narrow-band Hα imaging that we apply to the full dataset.

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The Radial and Vertical Structure of Molecular Gas in the Edge-On Galaxy NGC 4565

We present high-resolution (0.94" $\approx$ 55 pc) ALMA CO(2-1) and 13CO(2-1) observations of the highly inclined (i~87.5 deg) galaxy NGC 4565 covering out to galactocentric radius Rgal > $\pm$ 17 kpc. The combination of sensitivity and resolution enables the detection of CO emission well into the HI-dominated outer disk while isolating individual molecular clouds across the full extent of the galaxy. Although often described as an edge-on Milky Way analog, the molecular gas profile of NGC 4565 has a central gap which is more similar to M31. The 13CO/12CO ratio remains consistent at 0.086 $\pm$ 0.009 from Rgal = 5-13 kpc. Based on fits to position-velocity slices, the molecular disk remains thin, with a FWHM scale height of 79.1 $\pm$ 1.6 pc measured from the vertical intensity profile with little evidence for vertical flaring. Molecular clouds in NGC 4565 show sizes, linewidths, and surface densities consistent with those found in similar environments in PHANGS-ALMA galaxies and in M31. We identify a prominent star-forming complex on the ring-an overdensity of molecular gas we term the East Ring Pileup. This feature hosts a compact, multiwavelength-bright region, which we call the Jewel. Effects of galaxy inclination on molecular cloud radius, velocity dispersion, surface density, and virial parameter appear as second-order effects that are strongest in velocity dispersion. At this resolution, GMCs are preferentially aligned with the disk of the galaxy and horizontally elongated by a factor of~2.

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The Hidden Life of Stars: Embedded Beginnings to AGB Endings in the PHANGS-JWST Sample. I. Catalog of Mid-IR Sources

We present a multiwavelength catalog of mid-infrared-selected compact sources in 19 nearby galaxies, combining JWST NIRCam/MIRI, HST UV-optical broadband, H$α$ narrow-band, and ALMA CO observations. We detect 24,945 compact sources at 21 $μ$m and 55,581 at 10 $μ$m. Artificial star tests show 50% completeness limits of $\sim$5 $μ$Jy for the 10 $μ$m catalog, and $\sim$24 $μ$Jy for the 21 $μ$m catalog. We find that 21 $μ$m compact sources contribute $\sim$20% of the total galaxy emission in that band, but only contribute $5%$ at 10 $μ$m. We classify sources using stellar evolution and population synthesis models combined with empirical classifications derived from the literature. Our classifications include H$α$-bright and dust-embedded optically faint clusters, red supergiants (RSGs), oxygen-rich and carbon-rich AGB stars, and a range of rarer stellar types. In sampling a broad range of star forming environments with a uniform, well-characterized selection, this catalog enables enables analyses of infrared-bright stellar populations. We find that H$α$-faint sources account for only 10% of dusty (likely young) clusters, implying that the infrared-bright, optically-faint phase of cluster evolution is short compared to the H$α$-bright stage. The luminosity functions of 10 and 21 $μ$m sources follow power-law distributions, with the 21 $μ$m slope ($-1.7 \pm 0.1$) similar to that of giant molecular cloud mass functions and ultraviolet bright star-forming complexes, while the 10 $μ$m slope ($-2.0 \pm 0.1$) is closer to that of young stellar clusters.

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