Multiwavelength Energy Distributions of Ultraluminous IRAS Galaxies

Abstract

Ultraluminous IRAS Galaxies (ULG's) have luminosities comparable to quasars while their space density is much higher than that of active galaxies. Much debate has centered around the origin of the energy source for these objects, whether this is a burst of star formation or a hidden quasar. The sample studied here is the Sanders et al. (1988) sample, 10 objects with LFIR ≥ 1012L⊙. We discuss our new observations at X-ray and submm wavelengths together with other published data for some of the objects. Some useful ideas can be gained from comparisons of the shape of the spectral energy distributions (SED's) of the ultraluminous objects with other “archetype” objects such as typical starbursts i.e. M82 or type 2 AGN i.e. NGC1068.