A Test of the Standard Hypothesis for the Origin of the H [CSC]i[/CSC] Holes in Holmberg II

Abstract

The nearby irregular galaxy Holmberg II (Ho II, DDO 50) has been extensively mapped in H I using the Very Large Array, revealing intricate structure in its interstellar gas component, as reported by Puche et al. in 1992. An analysis of these structures shows the neutral gas to contain a number of expanding H I holes. The formation of the H I holes has been attributed to multiple supernova (SN) events occurring within wind-blown shells around young, massive star clusters, with as many as 10–200 SNe required to produce many of the holes. From the sizes and expansion velocities of the holes, Puche et al. assigned ages of ~107 to 108 years. If the SN scenario for the formation of the H I holes is correct, it implies the existence of star clusters with a substantial population of late B, A, and F main-sequence stars at the centers of the holes. Many of these clusters should be detectable in deep ground-based CCD images of the galaxy. To test the SN hypothesis for the formation of the H I holes, we have obtained and analyzed deep broadband BVR and narrowband Hα images of Ho II. We compare the optical and H I data and search for evidence of the expected star clusters in and around the H I holes. We also use the H I data to constrain models of the expected remnant stellar population. Assuming that the H I holes are created by multiple SNe, that the number of SNe required can be determined from the observed energetics of the holes, and that the SNe represent the high-mass population of a cluster with a normal initial mass function, we show that in several of the holes the observed upper limits for the remnant cluster brightness are strongly inconsistent with the SN hypothesis described by Puche et al. Moreover, many of the H I holes are located in regions of very low optical surface brightness that show no indication of recent star formation. Here we present our findings, discuss their implications, and explore possible alternative explanations for the existence of the H I holes in Ho II, including the recent suggestion that some of the holes could be produced by gamma-ray burst events.