arXiv subjects

Tek Prasad Adhikari

Publications and source records attributed to Tek Prasad Adhikari.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Tidal Grinding of Dwarf Galaxies in Cluster Environments

Dwarf elliptical galaxies (dEs) dominate galaxy clusters and provide key constraints on environmentally driven galaxy evolution. Here we examine whether the projected shapes of dEs retain information about their accretion and transformation histories using a homogeneous sample of 1,108 bright (m_g < 19 mag) dEs in the Virgo cluster. Based on the axis-ratio (b/a), we define flat (< 0.70) and round (> 0.74) subsamples and compare their spatial and kinematic properties. We find that flat dEs are distributed more uniformly across the cluster, whereas round dEs preferentially occupy regions of stronger tidal fields around massive (M_* > 10^{10} M_sun) galaxies. Within the central 5^\circ x 5^\circ region around the Virgo central galaxy (M87), 149 dEs have spectroscopic radial velocities compiled from public archives. In this region, the two shape classes also exhibit clear kinematic segregation: flat dEs have systematically larger line-of-sight velocity offsets from the cluster mean (median $Δv = 654 km/s$), whereas round dEs have smaller offsets (median $Δv = 414 km/s$), as expected for a more dynamically relaxed population. Flat dEs are consistent with a population that has experienced weaker tidal processing and consequently retains more flattened morphologies. By contrast, round dEs are consistent with prolonged tidal processing (``tidal grinding'') that may have transformed initially flattened systems into rounder spheroids. However, projection contamination of the round subsample may have introduced some uncertainty in the interpretation of intrinsic galaxy shapes.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

A constant pressure model for the warm absorber in Mrk 509

We present the analysis of 900 ks high-resolution RGS XMM-Newton observations of the nearby Seyfert galaxy Mrk 509 with the use of a self-consistent warm absorber (WA) model. We perform a physically motivated approach to the modeling of WA as a stratified medium in constant total pressure (CTP) regime. Powerful outflows are fundamental ingredients of any active galactic nuclei (AGN) structure. They may significantly affect the cosmological environment of their host galaxy. High-resolution X-ray data are best suited for outflow's studies, and the observed absorption lines on heavy elements are evidence of the physical properties of an absorbing gas. Our models allow us to fit continuum shapes bounded together with the line profiles, which gives additional constraints on the gas structure of WA in this source. In this work, we benchmark and test the CTP model on the soft X-ray spectrum of Mrk 509. A grid of synthetic absorbed spectra was computed with the photoionization code Titan assuming that the system was under CTP. As an illuminating spectral energy distribution (SED), we used the most actual multiwavelength observations available for Mrk 509. We apply these models to the high-resolution spectrum of the WA in the Mrk 509, taking into account cold/warm/hot Galactic absorption on the way to the observer. CTP gas with $\log ξ_{0} \sim 1.9$, defined on the cloud surface, fits the data well. A higher ionization component is needed for Ne X absorption. The best-fit model is optically thin with $\log N_{\rm H }= 20.456 \pm 0.016$. The lines are non-saturated, and the CTP spectral fit aligns with previous analyses of Mrk 509 with a constant density WA. The model constrains the gas density, placing the WA cloud at 0.02 pc, consistent with the inner broad line region and the thickening region of the accretion disk.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

Exploring the central region of NGC 1365 in the ultraviolet domain

Active galactic nuclei (AGN) feedback and its impact on their host galaxies are critical to our understanding of galaxy evolution. Here, we present a combined analysis of new high resolution ultraviolet (UV) data from the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UVIT) on AstroSat and archival optical spectroscopic data from VLT/MUSE, for the Seyfert galaxy, NGC 1365. Concentrating on the central 5 kpc region, the UVIT images in the far and near UV show bright star forming knots in the circumnuclear ring as well as a faint central source. After correcting for extinction, we found the star formation rate (SFR) surface density of the circumnuclear 2 kpc ring to be similar to other starbursts, despite the presence of an AGN outflow, as seen in [OIII] 5007 Angstrom. On the other hand, we found fainter UV and thus lower SFR in the direction south-east of the AGN relative to north-west in agreement with observations at other wavelengths from JWST and ALMA. The AGN outflow velocity is found to be lesser than the escape velocity, suggesting that the outflowing gas will rain back into the galaxy. The deep UV data has also revealed diffuse UV emission in the direction of the AGN outflow. By combining [OIII] and UV data, we found the diffuse emission to be of AGN origin.

astro-ph.GA↗