arXiv subjects

M. Birkinshaw

Publications and source records attributed to M. Birkinshaw.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

arXiv2007

The Dynamical State fo the Starless Dense Core FeSt 1-457: A Pulsating Globule?

High resolution molecular line observations of CS, HCO+, C18O and N2H+ were obtained toward the starless globule FeSt 1-457 in order to investigate its kinematics and chemistry. The HCO+ and CS spectra show clear self-reversed and asymmetric profiles across the face of the globule. The sense of the observed asymmetry is indicative of the global presence of expansion motions in the outer layers of the globule. These motions appear to be subsonic and significantly below the escape velocity of the globule. Comparison of our observations with near-infrared extinction data indicate that the globule is gravitationally bound. Taken together these considerations lead us to suggest that the observed expansion has its origin in an oscillatory motion of the outer layers of the globule which itself is likely in a quasi-stable state near hydrostatic equilibrium. Analysis of the observed linewidths of CO and N2H+ confirm that thermal pressure is the dominant component of the cloud's internal support. A simple calculation suggests that the dominant mode of pulsation would be an l = 2 mode with a period of 0.3 Myr. Deformation of the globule due to the large amplitude l = 2 oscillation may be responsible for the double-peaked structure of the core detected in high resolution extinction maps. Detailed comparison of the molecular-line observations and extinction data provides evidence for significant depletion of C18O and perhaps HCO+ while N2H+ may be undepleted to a cloud depth of about 40 magnitudes of visual extinction.

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arXiv2007

The interaction between radio lobes and hot gas in the nearby radio galaxies 3C285 and 3C442A

We present Chandra observations of two nearby radio galaxies in group environments, 3C285 and 3C442A. The host galaxies of both sources are involved in mergers with nearby massive galaxies, and the hot gas in the systems is extended along lines joining the interacting galaxies. Both sources show strong evidence for interactions between the radio lobes and the asymmetrical hot gas. We argue that the structure in the hot gas is independent of the existence of the radio lobes in these systems, and argue that hot gas shaped by an ongoing massive galaxy merger may play an important role in the dynamics of radio lobes in other objects. For 3C442A, our observations show that gas is being driven out of both members of the host interacting galaxy pair, and the implied constraints on galaxy velocities are consistent with mildly supersonic motions with respect to the group-scale hot gas. The previously known filamentary radio structure in the center of 3C442A may be a result of the interaction between hot gas expelled from these galaxies and pre-existing radio-emitting plasma. In 3C285, where there is no ongoing galaxy merger, the powerful radio source is probably having a significant effect on the energetics of the host group.

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arXiv2007

The effect of a Chandra-measured merger-related gas component on the lobes of a dead radio galaxy

We use Chandra data to infer that an X-ray bright component of gas is in the process of separating the radio lobes of 3C 442A. This is the first radio galaxy with convincing evidence that central gas, overpressured with respect to the lobe plasma and not simply a static atmosphere, is having a major dynamical effect on the radio structure. We speculate that the expansion of the gas also re-excites electrons in the lobes of 3C 442A through compression and adiabatic heating. Two features of 3C 442A contribute to its dynamical state. Firstly, the radio source is no longer being powered by a detected active jet, so that the dynamical state of the radio plasma is at the mercy of the ambient medium. Secondly the two early-type galaxies, NGC 7236 and NGC 7237, one of which was the original host of 3C 442A, are undergoing a merger and have already experienced a close encounter, suggesting that the X-ray bright gas is mostly the heated combined galaxy atmospheres. The lobes have been swept apart for about 10^8 yrs by the pressure-driven expansion of the X-ray bright inner gas.

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arXiv2007

A Radio through X-ray Study of the Hot Spots, Active Nucleus, and Environment of the Nearby FR II Radio Galaxy 3C 33

We present results from {\em Chandra}/ACIS-S, {\em Spitzer}, {\em XMM-Newton}, {\em HST}, and VLA observations of the radio hot spots, extended environment, and nucleus of the nearby ($z$=0.0597) FR II radio galaxy 3C 33. This is a relatively low-power FR II radio galaxy, and so we expect, {\it a priori}, to detect a significant X-ray synchrotron component to the emission from the hot spots. We detect X-ray emission coincident with the two knots of polarized optical emission from the southern hot spot (SHS), as well as along the northwest arm of this hot spot. We also detect X-ray emission from two compact regions of the northern hot spot (NHS), as well as diffuse emission behind the radio peak. The X-ray flux density of the region at the tip of the southern hot spot, the most compact radio feature of the southern lobe, is consistent with the synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) process. The X-ray flux densities of the other three regions of the SHS and the two compact regions of the NHS are an order of magnitude or more above the predictions from either the SSC and inverse-Compton scattering of the CMB (IC/CMB) mechanisms, thus strongly disfavoring these scenarios unless they are far from equipartition ($B$ $\sim$4-14 times smaller than the equipartition values). The X-ray flux from the diffuse region behind the NHS is consistent with the IC/CMB prediction assuming a small departure from equipartition. We conclude that the X-ray emission is synchrotron emission from multiple populations of ultrarelativistic electrons unless these regions are far from equipartition. There must therefore be unresolved substructure within each knot, similar to that which is found in Chandra observations of nearby FR I jets such as Centaurus A and 3C 66B.

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arXiv2006

The structure of the jet in 3C 15 from multi-band polarimetry

We investigate the structure of the kpc-scale jet in the nearby (z = 0.073) radio galaxy 3C 15, using new optical Hubble Space Telescope (HST) ACS/F606W polarimetry together with archival multi-band HST imaging, Chandra X-ray data and 8.4 GHz VLA radio polarimetry. The new data confirm that synchrotron radiation dominates in the optical. With matched beams, the jet is generally narrower in the optical than in the radio, suggesting a stratified flow. We examine a simple two-component model comprising a highly relativistic spine and lower-velocity sheath. This configuration is broadly consistent with polarization angle differences seen in the optical and radio data. The base of the jet is relatively brighter in the ultraviolet and X-ray than at lower energies, and the radio and optical polarization angles vary significantly as the jet brightens downstream. Further out, the X-ray intensity rises again and the apparent magnetic field becomes simpler, indicating a strong shock. Modelling the synchrotron spectrum of this brightest X-ray knot provides an estimate of its minimum internal pressure, and a comparison with the thermal pressure from X-ray emitting gas shows that the knot is overpressured and likely to be a temporary, expanding feature.

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arXiv2006

Detailed Structure of the X-ray Jet in 4C 19.44 (=PKS1354+195)

We investigate the variations of the magnetic field, Doppler factor, and relativistic particle density along the jet of a quasar at z=0.72. We chose 4C 19.44 for this study because of its length and straight morphology. The 18 arcsec length of the jet provides many independent resolution elements in the Chandra X-ray image. The straightness suggests that geometry factors, although uncertain, are almost constant along the jet. We assume the X-ray emission is from inverse Compton scattering of the cosmic microwave background. With the aid of assumptions about jet alignment, equipartition between magnetic-field and relativistic-particle energy, and filling factors, we find that the jet is in bulk relativistic motion with a Doppler factor about 6 at an angle no more than 10 degrees to the line of sight over deprojected distances about 150--600 kpc from the quasar, and with a magnetic field approximately 10 micro Gauss.

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arXiv2006

In-situ acceleration of subrelativistic electrons in the Coma halo and the halo's influence on the Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect

The stochastic acceleration of subrelativistic electrons from a background plasma is studied in order to find a possible explanation of the hard X-ray (HXR) emission detected from the Coma cluster. We calculate the necessary energy supply as a function of the plasma temperature and of the electron energy. We show that, for the same value of the HXR flux, the energy supply changes gradually from its high value (when emitting particle are non-thermal) to lower values (when the electrons are thermal). The kinetic equations we use include terms describing particle thermalization as well as momentum diffusion due to the Fermi II acceleration. We show that the temporal evolution of the particle distribution function has, at its final stationary stage, a rather specific form: it cannot be described by simple exponential or power-law expressions. A broad transfer region is formed by Coulomb collisions at energies between the Maxwellian and power-law parts of the distribution function. In this region the radiative lifetime of a single electron differs greatly from the lifetime of the distribution function as a whole. For a plasma temperature of 8 keV, the particles emitting bremsstrahlung at 20-80 keV lie in this quasi-thermal regime. We show that the energy supply required by quasi-thermal electrons to produce the observed HXR flux from Coma is one or two orders of magnitude smaller than the value derived from the assumption of a nonthermal origin of the emitting particles. This result may solve the problem of rapid cluster overheating by nonthermal electrons. We finally predict the change in Coma's SZ effect caused by the distortions of the Maxwellian electron spectrum, and we show that evidence for acceleration of subrelativistic electrons can be derived from detailed spectral measurements.

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arXiv2006

Discovery of an X-ray Jet and Extended Jet Structure in the Quasar PKS 1055+201

This letter reports rich X-ray jet structures found in the Chandra observation of PKS 1055+201. In addition to an X-ray jet coincident with the radio jet we detect a region of extended X-ray emission surrounding the jet as far from the core as the radio hotspot to the North, and a similar extended X-ray region along the presumed path of the unseen counterjet to the Southern radio lobe. Both X-ray regions show a similar curvature to the west, relative to the quasar. We interpret this as the first example where we separately detect the X-ray emission from a narrow jet and extended, residual jet plasma over the entire length of a powerful FRII jet.

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arXiv2006

Determining Distances to Clusters of Galaxies using Resonant X-ray Emission Lines

Bright clusters of galaxies can be seen out to cosmological distances, and thus they can be used to derive cosmological parameters. Although the continuum X-ray emission from the intra-cluster gas is optically thin, the optical depth of resonant lines of ions of heavy elements can be larger than unity. In this Letter we study the feasibility of deriving distances to clusters of galaxies by determining the spatial distribution of the intra-cluster gas from X-ray imaging and the optical depth from resonant emission lines (the XREL method). We solve the radiative transfer problem for line scattering in the hot intra-cluster gas using Monte Carlo simulations. We discuss the spatial and spectral resolutions needed to use the XREL method for accurate determination of distances, and hence cosmological parameters, and show that accurate distances will be obtained by applying this technique with the next generation of high resolution X-ray spectrometers.

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arXiv2006

Observations of Magnetic Fields and Relativistic Beaming in Four Quasar Jets

We discuss the physical properties of four quasar jets imaged with the Chandra X-ray Observatory in the course of a survey for X-ray emission from radio jets. These objects have sufficient counts to study their spatially resolved properties, even in the 5 ks survey observations. We have acquired Australia Telescope Compact Array data with resolution matching Chandra. We have searched for optical emission with Magellan, with sub-arcsecond resolution. The radio to X-ray spectral energy distribution for most of the individual regions indicates against synchrotron radiation from a single-component electron spectrum. We therefore explore the consequences of assuming that the X-ray emission is the result of inverse Compton scattering on the cosmic microwave background. If particles and magnetic fields are near minimum energy density in the jet rest frames, then the emitting regions must be relativistically beamed, even at distances of order 500 kpc from the quasar. We estimate the magnetic field strengths, relativistic Doppler factors, and kinetic energy flux as a function of distance from the quasar core for two or three distinct regions along each jet. We develop, for the first time, estimates in the uncertainties in these parameters, recognizing that they are dominated by our assumptions in applying the standard synchrotron minimum energy conditions. The kinetic power is comparable with, or exceeds, the quasar radiative luminosity, implying that the jets are a significant factor in the energetics of the accretion process powering the central black hole. The measured radiative efficiencies of the jets are of order 10^(-4).

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arXiv2005

Chandra and XMM-Newton Observations of a Sample of Low-Redshift FRI and FRII Radio-Galaxy Nuclei

We present spectral results, from Chandra and XMM-Newton observations, of a sample of 22 low-redshift (z < 0.1) radio galaxies, and consider whether the core emission originates from the base of a relativistic jet, an accretion flow, or contains contributions from both. We find correlations between the unabsorbed X-ray, radio, and optical fluxes and luminosities of FRI-type radio-galaxy cores, implying a common origin in the form of a jet. On the other hand, we find that the X-ray spectra of FRII-type radio-galaxy cores is dominated by absorbed emission, with $N_{\rm H} > 10^{23}$ atoms cm$^{-2}$, that is likely to originate in an accretion flow. We discuss several models which may account for the different nuclear properties of FRI- and FRII-type cores, and also demonstrate that both heavily obscured, accretion-related, and unobscured, jet-related components may be present in all radio-galaxy nuclei. Any absorbed, accretion-related, components in FRI-type galaxies have low radiative efficiencies.

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arXiv2005

The Knotty Question of the Jet of PKS B1421-490

We report the discovery of unusually strong optical and X-ray emission associated with a knot in the radio jet of PKS B1421-490. The knot is the brightest feature observed beyond the radio band, with knot/core flux ratios \~300 and 3.7 at optical and X-ray frequencies. We interpret the extreme optical output of the knot as synchrotron emission. The nature of the X-ray emission is unclear. We consider a second synchrotron component, inverse Compton emission from a relativistic, decelerating jet, and the possibility that this feature is a chance superposition of an unusual BL Lac object.

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arXiv2005

The XMM Large-Scale Structure Survey: An initial sample of galaxy groups and clusters to a redshift z<0.6

We present X-ray and optical spectroscopic observations of twelve galaxy groups and clusters identified within the XMM Large-Scale Structure (LSS) survey. Groups and clusters are selected as extended X-ray sources from a 3.5 deg2 XMM image mosaic above a flux limit 8e-15 ergs/s/cm2 in the [0.5-2] keV energy band. Deep BVRI images and multi-object spectroscopy confirm each source as a galaxy concentration located within the redshift interval 0.29<z<0.56. We combine line-of-sight velocity dispersions with the X-ray properties of each structure computed from a two-dimensional surface brightness model and a single temperature fit to the XMM spectral data. The resulting distribution of X-ray luminosity, temperature and velocity dispersion indicate that the XMM-LSS survey is detecting low-mass clusters and galaxy groups to redshifts z < 0.6. Confirmed systems display little or no evidence for X-ray luminosity evolution at a given X-ray temperature compared to lower redshift X-ray group and cluster samples. A more complete understanding of these trends will be possible with the compilation of a statistically complete sample of galaxy groups and clusters anticipated within the continuing XMM-LSS survey.

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arXiv2005

X-ray synchrotron emission from the oblique shock in the jet of the powerful radio galaxy 3C 346

We report the first detection, with Chandra, of X-ray emission from the jet of the powerful narrow-line radio galaxy 3C 346. X-rays are detected from the bright radio and optical knot at which the jet apparently bends by about 70 degrees. The Chandra observation also reveals a bright galaxy-scale atmosphere within the previously-known cluster, and provides a good X-ray spectrum for the bright core of 3C 346. The X-ray emission from the knot is synchrotron radiation, as seen in lower-power sources. In common with these sources, there is evidence of morphological differences between the radio/optical and X-ray structures, and the spectrum is inconsistent with a one-component continuous-injection model. We suggest that the X-ray-bright knot is associated with a strong oblique shock in a moderately relativistic, light jet, at about 20 degrees to the line of sight, and that this shock is caused by the jet interacting with the wake in the cluster medium behind 3C 346's companion galaxy. The general jet curvature can result from pressure gradients in the cluster atmosphere.

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arXiv2005

An X-ray study of magnetic field strengths and particle content in FRII radio sources

We present a Chandra and XMM-Newton study of X-ray emission from the lobes of 33 classical double radio galaxies and quasars. We report new detections of lobe-related X-ray emission in 11 sources. Together with previous detections we find that X-ray emission is detected from at least one radio lobe in ~75 percent of the sample. For all of the lobe detections, we find that the measured X-ray flux can be attributed to inverse-Compton scattering of the cosmic microwave background radiation, with magnetic field strengths in the lobes between (0.3 - 1.3) B_eq, where the value B_eq corresponds to equipartition between the electrons and magnetic field assuming a filling factor of unity. There is a strong peak in the magnetic field strength distribution at B ~ 0.7 B_eq. We find that > 70 percent of the radio lobes are either at equipartition or electron dominated by a small factor. The distribution of measured magnetic field strengths differs for narrow-line and broad-line objects, in the sense that broad-line radio galaxies and quasars appear to be further from equipartition; however, this is likely to be due to a combination of projection effects and worse systematic uncertainty in the X-ray analysis for those objects. Our results suggest that the lobes of classical double radio sources do not contain an energetically dominant proton population, because this would require the magnetic field energy density to be similar to the electron energy density rather than the overall energy density in relativistic particles.

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arXiv2005

Chandra and XMM-Newton Observations of NGC 6251

We present new X-ray observations of the nucleus, jet and extended emission of the nearby radio galaxy NGC 6251 using the Chandra/ACIS-S camera, together with a reanalysis of archival Chandra/ACIS-I and XMM-Newton/EPIC data. We find that the nuclear X-ray spectrum is well-fitted with an absorbed power-law, and that there is tentative, but not highly significant, evidence for Fe K$α$ emission. We argue that the observed nuclear X-ray emission is likely to originate in a relativistic jet, based on the double-peaked nature, and our synchrotron self-Compton modelling, of the radio-to-X-ray spectral energy distribution. However, we cannot rule out a contribution from an accretion flow. We resolve X-ray jet emission in three distinct regions, and argue in favour of a synchrotron origin for all three; inverse-Compton emission models are possible but require extreme parameters. We detect thermal emission on both galaxy and group scales, and demonstrate that hot gas can confine the jet, particularly if relativistic beaming is important. We show evidence that the radio lobe has evacuated a cavity in the X-ray-emitting gas, and suggest that the lobe is close to the plane of the sky, with the jet entering the lobe close to the surface nearest to the observer.

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arXiv2004

A Chandra observation of the X-ray environment and jet of 3C296

We have observed the twin-jet radio galaxy 3C296 with Chandra. X-ray emission is detected from the nucleus, from the inner parts of the radio jet, and from a small-scale thermal environment around the jet deceleration region. As we have found in previous observations of other twin-jet radio galaxies, the X-ray jet and a steep pressure gradient in the external thermal environment are associated with the region where strong bulk deceleration of the jet material is suggested by radio observations. Our observations provide additional evidence that the inner jets of twin-jet objects are always associated with a relatively cool, dense central X-ray emitting component with a short cooling time.

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arXiv2004

Continuing a Chandra Survey of Quasar Radio Jets

We are conducting an X-ray survey of flat spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs) with extended radio structures. We summarize our results from the first stage of our survey, then we present findings from its continuation. We have discovered jet X-ray emission from 12 of our first 20 Chandra targets, establishing that strong 0.5-7.0 keV emission is a common feature of FSRQ jets. The X-ray morphology is varied, but in general closely matches the radio structure until the first sharp radio bend. In the sources with optical data as well as X-ray detections we rule out simple synchrotron models for X-ray emission, suggesting these systems may instead be dominated by inverse Compton (IC) scattering. Fitting models of IC scattering of cosmic microwave background photons suggests that these jets are aligned within a few degrees of our line of sight, with bulk Lorentz factors of a few to ten and magnetic fields a bit stronger than $10^{-5}$ G. In the weeks prior to this meeting, we have discovered two new X-ray jets at $z > 1$. One (PKS B1055+201) has a dramatic, $20''$-long jet. The other (PKS B1421-490) appears unremarkable at radio frequencies, but at higher frequencies the jet is uniquely powerful: its optically-dominated, with jet/core flux ratios of 3.7 at 1 keV and 380 at 480 nm.

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