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Tiger Y. -Y Hsiao

Publications and source records attributed to Tiger Y. -Y Hsiao.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

Unveiling the Cosmic Gems Arc at $z\sim10$ with JWST NIRCam

We present recent JWST NIRCam imaging observations of SPT0615-JD (also known as the Cosmic Gems Arc), lensed by the galaxy cluster SPT-CL J0615-5746. The 5 arcsec long arc is the most highly magnified $z>10$ galaxy known. It straddles the lensing critical curve and reveals five star clusters with radii of $\sim 1$ pc or less. We measure the full arc to have F200W 24.5 AB mag, consisting of two mirror images, each 25.3 AB mag with a median magnification of $μ\sim 60^{+17}_{-8}$ (delensed 29.7 AB mag, $M_{UV} = -17.8$). The galaxy has an extremely strong Lyman break F115W$-$F200W $>3.2$ mag ($2σ$ lower limit), is undetected in all bluer filters ($< 2σ$), and has a very blue continuum slope redward of the break ($β= -2.7 \pm 0.1$). This results in a photometric redshift $z_{phot} = 10.2 \pm 0.2$ (95% confidence) with no significant likelihood below $z<9.8$. Based on spectral energy distribution fitting to the total photometry, we estimate an intrinsic stellar mass of $M_{*} \sim 2.4 - 5.6 \times 10^{7} M_{\odot}$, young mass-weighted age of $\sim 21 - 79$ Myr, low dust content ($A_V < 0.15$), and a low metallicity of $\lesssim 1\%~Z_{\odot}$. We identify a fainter third counterimage candidate within 2.2 arcsec of the predicted position, lensed to AB mag 28.4 and magnified by $μ\sim 2$, suggesting the fold arc may only show $\sim 60$% of the galaxy. SPT0615-JD is a unique laboratory to study star clusters observed within a galaxy just 460 Myr after the Big Bang.

astro-ph.GA↗

High-Redshift Galaxy Candidates at $z = 9-10$ as Revealed by JWST Observations of WHL0137-08

We report the discovery of four galaxy candidates observed 450 - 600 Myr after the Big Bang with photometric redshifts between z ~ 8.3 - 10.2 measured using the JWST NIRCam imaging of the galaxy cluster WHL0137-08 observed in 8 filters spanning 0.8-5.0 micron, plus 9 Hubble filters spanning 0.4-1.7 micron. One candidate is gravitationally lensed with a magnification of ~8, while the other three are located in a nearby NIRCam module with expected magnifications of <~ 1.1. Using SED fitting, we estimate the stellar masses of these galaxies are typically in the range log M*/Msun = 8.3 - 8.7. All appear young with mass-weighted ages < 240 Myr, low dust content A_V < 0.15 mag, and specific star formation rates sSFR ~0.25 - 10 /Gyr for most. One z ~ 9 candidate is consistent with an age < 5 Myr and a sSFR ~10 /Gyr, as inferred from a strong F444W excess, implying [OIII]+H-beta rest-frame equivalent width ~2000 Angstrom, although an older z ~ 10 object is also allowed. Another z ~ 9 candidate is lensed into an arc 2.4 arcsec long with a magnification of ~8. This arc is the most spatially-resolved galaxy at z ~ 9 known to date, revealing structures ~30 pc across. Follow-up spectroscopy of WHL0137-08 with JWST/NIRSpec will be useful to spectroscopically confirm these high-redshift galaxy candidates and to study their physical properties in more detail.

astro-ph.GA↗

JWST Imaging of Earendel, the Extremely Magnified Star at Redshift $z=6.2$

The gravitationally lensed star WHL0137-LS, nicknamed Earendel, was identified with a photometric redshift $z_{phot} = 6.2 \pm 0.1$ based on images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. Here we present James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) images of Earendel in 8 filters spanning 0.8--5.0$μ$m. In these higher resolution images, Earendel remains a single unresolved point source on the lensing critical curve, increasing the lower limit on the lensing magnification to $μ> 4000$ and restricting the source plane radius further to $r < 0.02$ pc, or $\sim 4000$ AU. These new observations strengthen the conclusion that Earendel is best explained by an individual star or multiple star system, and support the previous photometric redshift estimate. Fitting grids of stellar spectra to our photometry yields a stellar temperature of $T_{\mathrm{eff}} \simeq 13000$--16000 K assuming the light is dominated by a single star. The delensed bolometric luminosity in this case ranges from $\log(L) = 5.8$--6.6 $L_{\odot}$, which is in the range where one expects luminous blue variable stars. Follow-up observations, including JWST NIRSpec scheduled for late 2022, are needed to further unravel the nature of this object, which presents a unique opportunity to study massive stars in the first billion years of the universe.

astro-ph.GA↗