Blue Compact Dwarf Galaxy NGC Research Articles

The Three Young Nuclear Super Star Clusters in NGC 5253

Abstract The blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 5253 hosts a very young central starburst. The center contains intense radio thermal emission from a massive ultracompact H ii region (or supernebula) and two massive and very young super star clusters (SSCs), which are seen at optical and infrared wavelengths. The spatial correspondence between these three objects over an area of is very uncertain, and it is usually assumed that one of the optically detected SSCs coincides with the supernebula. Using the Gaia Data Release 2 catalog, we improve the absolute astrometry of Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet, optical, and infrared images by a factor of ∼10 and match them to the radio observations with an accuracy of 10–20 mas. We find that there are three SSCs at the center of NGC 5253. At optical wavelengths, the two SSCs lie on either side of the supernebula, which coincides with a highly obscured region. In the infrared, all three SSCs are seen with the supernebula dominating at the longest wavelengths. We examine the properties of the SSCs, which have ages of ∼1 Myr, are very compact ( pc), and are separated by projected distances of only 1.5 and 5.8 pc. It seems likely that they will merge and may form the building blocks for nuclear star clusters.

The very massive star content of the nuclear star clusters in NGC 5253

AbstractThe blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 5253 hosts a very young starburst containing twin nuclear star clusters. Calzetti et al. (2015) find that the two clusters have an age of 1 Myr, in contradiction to the age of 3–5 Myr inferred from the presence of Wolf-Rayet (W-R) spectral features. We use Hubble Space Telescope (HST) far-ultraviolet (FUV) and ground-based optical spectra to show that the cluster stellar features arise from very massive stars (VMS), with masses greater than 100 M⊙, at an age of 1–2 Myr. We discuss the implications of this and show that the very high ionizing flux can only be explained by VMS. We further discuss our findings in the context of VMS contributing to He ii λ1640 emission in high redshift galaxies, and emphasize that population synthesis models with upper mass cut-offs greater than 100 M⊙ are crucial for future studies of young massive clusters.

THE VERY MASSIVE STAR CONTENT OF THE NUCLEAR STAR CLUSTERS IN NGC 5253

ABSTRACT The blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 5253 hosts a very young starburst containing twin nuclear star clusters, separated by a projected distance of 5 pc. One cluster (#5) coincides with the peak of the Hα emission and the other (#11) with a massive ultracompact H ii region. A recent analysis of these clusters shows that they have a photometric age of 1 ± 1 Myr, in apparent contradiction with the age of 3–5 Myr inferred from the presence of Wolf-Rayet features in the cluster #5 spectrum. We examine Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet and Very Large Telescope optical spectroscopy of #5 and show that the stellar features arise from very massive stars (VMSs), with masses greater than 100 M ⊙, at an age of 1–2 Myr. We further show that the very high ionizing flux from the nuclear clusters can only be explained if VMSs are present. We investigate the origin of the observed nitrogen enrichment in the circumcluster ionized gas and find that the excess N can be produced by massive rotating stars within the first 1 Myr. We find similarities between the NGC 5253 cluster spectrum and those of metal-poor, high-redshift galaxies. We discuss the presence of VMSs in young, star-forming galaxies at high redshift; these should be detected in rest-frame UV spectra to be obtained with the James Webb Space Telescope. We emphasize that population synthesis models with upper mass cutoffs greater than 100 M ⊙ are crucial for future studies of young massive star clusters at all redshifts.

Ionized and neutral gas in the XUV discs of nearby spiral galaxies

AbstractWe are conducting a multiwavelength study of XUV discs in nearby, gas-rich spiral galaxies combining the available UV (GALEX) observations with H i data obtained at the ATCA as part of the Local Volume HI Survey (LVHIS) project and multi-object fibre spectroscopy obtained using the 2dF/AAOmega instrument at the 3.9m AAT. Here we present the results of the multiwavelength analysis of the galaxy pair NGC 1512/1510. The H i distribution of NGC 1512 is very extended with two pronounced spiral/tidal arms. Hundreds of independent UV-bright regions are associated with dense H i clouds in the galaxy outskirts. We confirm the detection of ionized gas in the majority of them and characterize their physical properties, chemical abundances and kinematics. Both the gas distribution andthe distribution of the star-forming regions are affected by gravitational interactionwith the neighbouring blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 1510. Our multiwavelength analysis provides new clues about local star-formation processes, the metal redistribution in the outer gaseous discs of spiral galaxies, the importance of galaxy interactions, the fate of the neutral gas and the chemical evolution in nearby galaxies.

Auto-consistent metallicity and star formation history of the nearest blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 6789

We present a detailed auto-consistent study of the nearest blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 6789 by means of optical and UV archive photometry data and optical long-slit ISIS-WHT spectroscopy observations of the five brightest star-forming knots. The analysis of the spectra in all knots allowed the derivation of ionic chemical abundances of oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur, argon and neon using measures of both the high- and low-excitation electron temperatures, leading to the conclusion that NGC 6789 is chemically homogeneous with low values of the abundance of oxygen in the range 12+log(O/H) = 7.80-7.93, but presenting at the same time higher values of the nitrogen-to-oxygen ratio than expected for its metal regime. We used archival HST/WFPC2 F555W and F814W observations of NGC 6789 to perform a photometric study of the colour-magnitude diagram (CMD) of the resolved stellar populations and derive its star formation history (SFH), which is compatible with the presence of different young and old stellar populations whose metallicities do not necessarily increase with age. We fit the observed optical spectrum in all the five knots using the STARLIGHT code and a combination of single stellar populations following the SFH obtained from the CMD. We compare the resulting stellar masses and the relative fractions of the ionising populations with a non-constrained SFH case. The properties of the younger populations were obtained using CLOUDY photoionisation models, giving similar ages in all the knots in the range 3-6 Myr and the estimation of the dust absorption factor, which correlates with the observed GALEX FUV-NUV colour indices. The total photometric extinction and dust-absorption corrected H\alpha\ fluxes were finally used to derive the star formation rates.

The intriguing H i gas in NGC 5253: an infall of a diffuse, low-metallicity H i cloud?★

(Abridged) We present new, deep HI line and 20-cm radio continuum data of the very puzzling blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 5253, obtained with the ATCA as part of the `Local Volume HI Survey' (LVHIS). Our low-resolution HI maps show the disturbed HI morphology that NGC 5253 possesses, including tails, plumes and detached HI clouds. The high-resolution map reveals an HI plume at the SE and an HI structure at the NW that surrounds an Ha shell. We confirm that the kinematics of the neutral gas are highly perturbed and do not follow a rotation pattern. We discuss the outflow and infall scenarios to explain such disturbed kinematics, analyze the environment in which it resides, and compare it properties with those observed in similar star-forming dwarf galaxies. The radio-continuum emission of NGC 5253 is resolved and associated with the intense star-forming region at the center of the galaxy. We complete the analysis using multiwavelength data extracted from the literature. We estimate the SFR using this multiwavelength approach. NGC 5253 does not satisfy the Schmidt-Kennicutt law of star-formation, has a very low HI mass-to-light ratio when comparing with its stellar mass, and seems to be slightly metal-deficient in comparison with starbursts of similar baryonic mass. Taking into account all available multiwavelength data, we conclude that NGC 5253 is probably experiencing the infall of a diffuse, low-metallicity HI cloud along the minor axis of the galaxy, which is comprising the ISM and triggering the powerful starburst. The tidally disturbed material observed at the east and north of the galaxy is a consequence of this interaction, which probably started more than 100 Myr ago. The origin of this HI cloud may be related with a strong interaction between NGC 5253 and the late-type spiral galaxy M 83 in the past.

THE METAL-ENRICHED OUTER DISK OF NGC 2915

We present optical emission-line spectra for outlying HII regions in the extended neutral gas disk surrounding the blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 2915. Using a combination of strong-line R23 and direct oxygen abundance measurements, we report a flat, possibly increasing, metallicity gradient out to 1.2 times the Holmberg radius. We find the outer-disk of NGC 2915 to be enriched to a metallicity of 0.4 Z_solar. An analysis of the metal yields shows that the outer disk of NGC 2915 is overabundant for its gas fraction, while the central star-foming core is similarly under-abundant for its gas fraction. Star formation rates derived from very deep ~14 ks GALEX FUV exposures indicate that the low-level of star formation observed at large radii is not sufficient to have produced the measured oxygen abundances at these galactocentric distances. We consider 3 plausible mechanisms that may explain the metal-enriched outer gaseous disk of NGC 2915: radial redistribution of centrally generated metals, strong galactic winds with subsequent fallback, and galaxy accretion. Our results have implications for the physical origin of the mass-metallicity relation for gas-rich dwarf galaxies.

VLT/FORS Surveys of Wolf-Rayet Stars in the Nearby Universe

AbstractWe present results from a series of VLT/FORS narrow-band imaging and spectroscopic surveys of Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars in nearby spiral galaxies and compare observed populations in high- and low metallicity environments. The metal-rich galaxy M 83 is seen to host an exceptional WR content, with over 1000 WR stars being detected. N(WC)/N(WN) ~ 1.2 and late-type WC subtypes dominate the WC population. At low metallicity, ~100 stars has been identified within NGC 1313, with N(WC)/N(WN) ~ 0.5. In contrast to M83, the WC population of NGC 1313 comprises solely early subtypes plus a WO star (the first WO star to be identified beyond the Local Group). Consequently, the dominant WC subtype may serve as a crude metallicity diagnostic for WR galaxies.In addition, the WR content of the blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 3125 is examined. Previous UV and optical spectroscopic studies of knot A in NGC 3125 derive WR populations which differ by more than an order of magnitude. New VLT observations and archival HST spectroscopy reconcile this discrepancy via the use of LMC WR spectral templates and a reduced nebular-derived interstellar extinction. Empirical N(WR)/N(O) ratios for clusters within NGC 3125 are a factor of two higher than evolutionary synthesis predictions but are consistent with those observed for other young massive clusters.

The Discovery of Globular Clusters in the Protospiral Galaxy NGC 2915: Implications for Hierarchical Galaxy Evolution

We have discovered three globular clusters beyond the Holmberg radius in Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys images of the gas-rich dark matter-dominated blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 2915. The clusters, all of which start to resolve into stars, have MV606 = -8.9 to -9.8 mag, significantly brighter than the peak of the luminosity function of Milky Way globular clusters. Their colors suggest a metallicity [Fe/H] ≈ -1.9 dex, typical of metal-poor Galactic globular clusters. The specific frequency of clusters is at a minimum normal, compared to spiral galaxies. However, since only a small portion of the system has been surveyed, it is more likely that the luminosity and mass normalized cluster content is higher, like that seen in elliptical galaxies and galaxy clusters. This suggests that NGC 2915 resembles a key phase in the early hierarchical assembly of galaxies—the epoch when much of the old stellar population has formed but little of the stellar disk. Depending on the subsequent interaction history, such systems could go on to build up larger elliptical galaxies, evolve into normal spirals, or in rare circumstances remain suspended in their development to become systems like NGC 2915.

The stellar content and distance to the nearby blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 6789

In this paper we present the results of a de- tailed B, V , R, I ,a nd H study of the isolated nearby blue compact dwarf (BCD) galaxy NGC 6789. The ob- served galaxy has not yet been resolved into stars up to now. On CCD frames obtained with 6 m BTA telescope and 2.5 m Nordic telescope the galaxy is well resolved. Its colour-magnitude diagram conrms the two component (core-halo) galaxy morphology, which consists of two stel- lar populations distinct in structure and colour: an inner high surface-brightness young population within 150 pc from the center of the galaxy, and a relatively low surface- brightness intermediate-age population extending out to at least 600 pc. The distance to the galaxy, estimated from the tip of the red giant branch (TRGB) is 2.1 Mpc which places NGC 6789 close to the Local Group. From the mean colour of the RGB, the mean metal abundance of the halo population is estimated as (Fe/H)' 1 dex.

H I and dark matter in the windy starburst dwarf galaxy NGC 1705

We present 21-cm H i line observations of the blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 1705. Previous optical observations show a strong outflow powered by an ongoing starburst dominating the H ii morphology and kinematics. In contrast, most of the H i lies in a rotating disc. An extraplanar H i spur accounts for ∼8 per cent of the total H i mass, and is possibly associated with the H ii outflow. The inferred mass loss rate out of the core of the galaxy is significant, ∼0.2 − 2 M⊙ yr−1, but does not dominate the H i dynamics. Mass model fits to the rotation curve show that the dark matter (DM) halo is dominant at nearly all radii and has a central density ρ0 ≈ 0.1 M⊙ pc−3: ten times higher than typically found in dwarf irregular galaxies, but similar to the only other mass-modelled blue compact dwarf, NGC 2915. This large difference strongly indicates that there is little evolution between dwarf irregular and blue compact dwarf types. Instead, dominant DM haloes may regulate the morphology of dwarf galaxies by setting the critical surface density for disc star formation. Neither our data nor catalogue searches reveal any likely external trigger to the starburst in NGC 1705.

NGC 1705: The missing link between blue compact dwarf and dwarf elliptical galaxies?

We report results of a detailed study of the nearby blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 1705. There are two stellar populations in NGC 1705: an underlying population around a Gyr old or older, and a young population of fairly continuous star formation for the last 250 Myr. An off-centre nucleus, which is probably a young (10 Myr old), massive (106M⊙) globular cluster, is part of this young population. The Hα morphology and emission line kinematics are consistent with an expulsive flow triggered by the formation of the nucleus. We show that NGC 1705 is losing ionized material in this galactic wind with neutral material probably entrained in the flow. This flow may lead to total removal of the ISM. The evolutionary fate of NGC 1705 is uncertain but the most likely outcome is rapid evolution into a nucleated dwarf elliptical galaxy.