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James W. Kulp

Publications and source records attributed to James W. Kulp.

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LEGGOS II: A Strong Lens Model and Source-Plane Projection of the Clumpy Star-Forming Galaxy SGASJ111020.0+645950.8 at z=2.48

Strong gravitational lensing by galaxy clusters combined with the resolution of JWST enables studies of star formation on ~10-100 pc scales in galaxies at z~2-4. As part of the LEnsing and Galaxy Growth: Observing Substructures survey (LEGGOS), we present an updated strong lensing model of the galaxy cluster SDSSJ1110+6459 (z=0.659), which lenses the clumpy star-forming galaxy SGASJ111020.0+645950.8 at z=2.481 into a highly magnified giant arc. Using JWST NIRCam imaging, NIRSpec spectroscopy, and archival HST data, we confirm and refine the identification of four multiply imaged background sources, including one newly identified system, and map over 20 luminous regions between each image of the primary arc. Spectroscopy confirms that several previously ambiguous edge "clumps" belong to the main arc at z=2.481. Despite the limited number of strongly lensed sources in the field, the resulting lens model has high precision, owing to the high density of JWST-resolved clump constraints that tightly probe the lensing potential near the giant arc. The model yields a projected lens mass of $M(<250~\mathrm{kpc}) = 1.21^{+0.09}_{-0.04} \times 10^{14}~M_\odot$, an Einstein radius of $\theta_\mathrm{E} = 10.8^{+0.3}_{-0.4}~\mathrm{arcsec}$, and a total effective magnification of $\mu_\mathrm{tot}=24.2^{+3.4}_{-1.2}$ for the giant arc. Across the arc, individual clump magnifications span $\mu_\mathrm{clump}\sim4-19$, with fractional magnification uncertainties of $\sigma_\mu/|\mu_{\rm best}|\sim0.03-0.09$. We report a $\sim2-8\times$ improvement in magnification precision over previous models. Ongoing and future analyses of this arc will enable robust measurements of star-forming structure, building on the lensing foundation established here for LEGGOS studies of galaxy growth and feedback during cosmic noon.

astro-ph.GA

LEGGOS I: The JWST LEGGOS Survey -- LEnsing and Galaxy Growth: Observing Substructures -- Unpacks the Nature of Clumpy Star Formation and Quenching in Gravitationally Lensed Galaxies beyond Cosmic Noon

We present first results from the JWST LEGGOS Survey (LEnsing and Galaxy Growth: Observing Substructures), aimed at studying the physics of clumpy star formation and quenching in eight lensed galaxies at $z\sim2$--4. LEGGOS combines multiple Cycle 2 JWST GO programs (GO 4125, GO 3843) and Cycle 1 archival data, and utilizes strong gravitational lensing with NIRCam imaging and NIRSpec integral-field spectroscopy. LEGGOS targets UV-bright, highly magnified systems to resolve $\sim$10--200 pc regions in both rest-frame optical continuum and nebular emission. This overview paper describes the survey design, data reduction and calibration strategy, and science-quality data products, and highlights early examples demonstrating how spectroscopy breaks key degeneracies inherent to photometry-only clump studies, including identifying recent quenching in previously-thought UV star forming galaxies. We introduce a uniform analysis framework that jointly models lensing reconstruction, multi-band photometry, and integral field spectroscopy to disentangle multiple stellar populations within individual clumps and their surrounding diffuse regions. Using maps of Balmer recombination lines and key emission line diagnostic ratios, we connect star formation histories, dust attenuation, and nebular conditions on sub-kpc scales -- LEGGOS galaxies range from uniform metallicities across the whole galaxy, to having higher clump metallicities and harder ionization conditions relative to diffuse regions. The full survey dataset, with simultaneous flux and morphology constraints on clumpy source-plane regions, and a flexible spectrophotometric SPS modeling approach, provides a direct bridge between parsec-scale star formation physics and galaxy assembly at and beyond cosmic noon, offering a robust and efficient means of resolving star formation in the first galaxies.

astro-ph.GA