arXiv subjects

R. J. Reynolds

Publications and source records attributed to R. J. Reynolds.

41 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv1998

The Gaseous ISM: Observations with the Wisconsin H-alpha Mapper (WHAM)

The Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper (WHAM) is a new facility dedicated to the study of faint optical emission lines from diffuse interstellar gas. During its first 18 months of operation, WHAM carried out a survey of the interstellar H-alpha emission associated with the warm, ionized component of the interstellar medium. The observations consisted of 37,000 spectra obtained with a one degree diameter beam on a 0.98 X 0.85 degree grid (lxb), covering the sky above declination -30 degrees. This survey provides for the first time a detailed picture of the distribution and kinematics of the diffuse ionized hydrogen through the H-alpha line comparable to surveys of the neutral hydrogen obtained through the 21 cm line. Preliminary reduction of the data from selected portions of the sky reveal that the interstellar H II has a complex distribution, with long filaments and loop-like structures extending to high Galactic latitudes and superposed on a more diffuse background. Apart from the H-alpha sky survey, WHAM has also detected for the first time faint diagnostic emission lines in selected directions, [O I] 6300, [O III] 5007, and He I 5876, which provide information about the physical state of the gas and clues about the source of the ionization. Maps of [S II] 6716 and [N II] 6584 over limited regions of the sky are providing information about variations in the temperature and ionization conditions within the Galactic disk, and the detection of faint optical emission lines from high velocity clouds is probing conditions in the halo.

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arXiv1998

H-alpha from High Velocity Clouds

Optical emission lines provide an important new window on the HVCs. Recent studies of the H-alpha line reveal that ionized gas is pervasively associated with the neutral hydrogen in HVCs. The Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper (WHAM) instrument has so far detected H-alpha from high-velocity clouds in the M, A, and C complexes. We find a close spatial correspondence between the neutral and ionized portions of the HVCs with some evidence that the ionized gas envelopes the neutral part of the clouds. The velocities of the H-alpha and 21-cm detections are well correlated, but the intensities are not. If the clouds are photoionized, the H-alpha intensity is a direct measure of the Lyman continuum flux in the Galactic halo. Forthcoming observations of the H-alpha line in combination with other emission lines will give new insights into the high-velocity cloud phenomena and will also probe the physical conditions of their environment.

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arXiv1998

Observational evidence for the accretion of low-metallicity gas onto the Milky Way; metallicity, physical conditions and distance limit for HVC complex C

We present observations of the (field of the) Seyfert galaxy Mark290, which probes the high-velocity cloud (HVC) complex C, one of the largest HVCs. We find that this object has a metallicity of 0.094pm0.020(+0.022-0.019) times solar. We determine a lower limit to its distance of 5 kpc (z>3.5 kpc). If the gas is in thermal equilibrium with a hot halo, then it is also likely that D<30 kpc, putting the HVC in the Galactic Halo, as was the case for HVC complex~A (for which z=2.5--7 kpc). We find that, on this sightline, H+ represents 23pm10% of the hydrogen in the HVC. The total gaseous mass is 2x10^6 (D/5 kpc)^2 Msun and, depending on whether the space velocity is completely radial or vertical, the HVC represents a downward mass flux of ~0.036-0.083 (D/5 kpc) Msun/yr, or 2.9--6.7x10^{-3} (D/5 kpc)^{-1} Msun/yr/kpc^2. The low metallicity and large mass suggest that complex C is unlikely to be part of a Galactic Fountain, but rather represents accreting low-metallicity material. It may be a present-day analogue of the damped Ly-alpha absorbers seen in QSO spectra. Our abundance result provides the first direct observational evidence for the infall of low-metallicity gas on the Milky Way, required in models of galactic chemical evolution. It remains to be seen whether ultimately complex C is a remnant of the formation of the Milky Way (Oort 1970), a gas cloud orbiting the Galaxy (Kerr & Sullivan 1969), a Local Group object (Verschuur 1969, Blitz et al. 1996), the result of tidal interactions between the Magellanic System and the Galaxy >3 Gyr ago (an "Old Magellanic Stream"; Toomre, quoted in Kerr & Sullivan 1969), or was formed when hot, ionized intergalactic gas was compressed by the motion of the Milky Way (Silk et al. 1987).

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arXiv1998

WHAM Observations of H-alpha Emission from High Velocity Clouds in the M, A, and C Complexes

The first observations of the recently completed Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper (WHAM) facility include a study of emission lines from high velocity clouds in the M, A, and C complexes, with most of the observations on the M I cloud. We present results including clear detections of H-alpha emission from all three complexes with intensities ranging from 0.06 R to 0.20 R. In every observed direction where there is significant high velocity H I gas seen in the 21 cm line we have found associated ionized hydrogen emitting the H-alpha line. The velocities of the H-alpha and 21 cm emission are well correlated in every case except one, but the intensities are not correlated. There is some evidence that the ionized gas producing the H-alpha emission envelopes the 21 cm emitting neutral gas but the H-alpha "halo", if present, is not large. If the H-alpha emission arises from the photoionization of the H I clouds, then the implied Lyman continuum flux F_{LC} at the location of the clouds ranges from 1.3 to 4.2 x 10^5 photons cm^{-2} s^{-1}. If, on the other hand, the ionization is due to a shock arising from the collision of the high-velocity gas with an ambient medium in the halo, then the density of the pre-shocked gas can be constrained. We have also detected the [S II] 6716 angstrom line from the M I cloud and have evidence that the [S II] to H-alpha ratio varies with location on the cloud.

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arXiv1998

Faint, Large-scale H-Alpha Filaments in the Milky Way

During the initial data reduction of the Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper (WHAM) H-Alpha Sky Survey, we have discovered several very long (~30--80 deg) filaments superimposed on the diffuse H-Alpha background. These features have no clear correspondence to the other phases of the interstellar medium revealed by 21 cm, X-ray, IR, or radio continuum surveys, and they have no readily identifiable origin or source of ionization. In this letter, the data for two of these faint (I_{H-Alpha} = 0.5--1.5 R) structures are presented. The first is an 80 deg-long, 2 deg-wide arch that extends nearly perpendicular to the Galactic plane at l = 225 deg and attains a maximum latitude of +51 deg near l = 240 deg. Where this feature appears to meet the Galactic plane near l = 225 deg, it is directly above the H II region surrounding CMa R1/OB1. A second filament consists of a ~25--30 deg-long arc spanning l = 210--240 deg at b = +30 deg to +40 deg. Both features have measurable velocity trends with position. However, they have rather constant intensities along their entire lengths, ranging from 0.5--1.5 R (EM = 1--3 cm^{-6} pc) with no obvious trends.

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