Galactic Halo Gas Research Articles

Soft X-ray and ultraviolet metal-line emission from the gas around galaxies

(Abridged) A large fraction of the gas in galactic haloes has temperatures between 10^4.5 and 10^7 K. At these temperatures, cooling is dominated by metal-line emission if the metallicity Z>~0.1 Zsun. We explore the detectability of several lines using large cosmological, hydrodynamical simulations. We stack surface brightness maps centred on galaxies to calculate the expected mean surface brightness profiles for different halo masses. Assuming a detection limit of 10^-1 photon s^-1 cm^-2 sr^-1, proposed X-ray telescopes can detect O VIII emission from z=0.125 out to 80% of the virial radius (Rvir) of groups and clusters and out to 0.4Rvir for haloes with masses Mhalo=10^12-13 Msun. Emission lines from C VI, N VII, O VII, and Ne X can be detected out to smaller radii, 0.1-0.5Rvir. With a detection limit of 10^-20 erg s^-1 cm^-2 arcsec^-2, future UV telescopes can detect C III emission out to 0.2-0.6Rvir at z=0.25. C IV, O VI, Si III, and Si IV can be seen out to 0.1-0.2Rvir for Mhalo>10^12 Msun. Optical HI H-alpha emission is comparable in strength to C III emission. At z=3 it may be possible to observe C III out to 0.2-0.3Rvir and other rest-frame UV lines out to ~0.1Rvir for Mhalo>10^11 Msun with upcoming optical instruments. Metal-line emission is typically biased towards high density and metallicity and towards the temperature at which the emissivity curve of the corresponding metal line peaks. The bias is similar for the different soft X-ray lines considered, whereas it varies strongly between different UV lines. Active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback can change the inner surface brightness profiles significantly, but it generally does not change the radius out to which the emission can be observed. Metal-line emission is a promising probe of the warm and hot, enriched gas around galaxies and provides a unique window into the interactions between galaxies and their gaseous haloes.

PROBING THE STRUCTURE AND KINEMATICS OF THE TRANSITION LAYER BETWEEN THE MAGELLANIC STREAM AND THE HALO IN H I

The Magellanic Stream (MS) is a nearby laboratory for studying the fate of cool gas streams injected into a gaseous galactic halo. We investigate properties of the boundary layer between the cool MS gas and the hot Milky Way halo with 21 cm HI observations of a relatively isolated cloud having circular projection in the northern MS. Through averaging and modeling techniques, our observations obtained with the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope (GBT), reach unprecedented 3\sigma\ sensitivity of ~10^17/cm^2, while retaining the telescope's 9.1' resolution in the essential radial dimension. We find an envelope of diffuse neutral gas with FWHM of 60 km/s, associated in velocity with the cloud core having FWHM of 20 km/s, extending to 3.5 times the core radius with a neutral mass seven times that of the core. We show that the envelope is too extended to represent a conduction-dominated layer between the core and the halo. Its observed properties are better explained by a turbulent mixing layer driven by hydrodynamic instabilities. The fortuitous alignment of the NGC 7469 background source near the cloud center allows us to combine UV absorption and HI emission data to determine a core temperature of 8350 +/- 50 K. We show that the HI column density and size of the core can be reproduced when a slightly larger cloud is exposed to Galactic and extragalactic background ionizing radiation. Cooling in the large diffuse turbulent mixing layer envelope extends the cloud lifetime by at least a factor of two relative to a simple hydrodynamic ablation case, suggesting that the cloud is likely to reach the Milky Way disk.

Gas in galactic halos

AbstractThe interstellar medium in galactic halos is described as a consequence of feedback mechanisms from processes related to star-formation in the disk. The presence of gas in galactic halos is also expected due to accretion of gas from the circumgalactic environment. The observational evidence for gas in galactic halos - from the hot X-ray emitting coronal phase to cool molecular gas and dust - is reviewed and discussed in the context of current models of the ISM and the “infall vs. outflow“ debate.

Gaseous Galaxy Halos

Galactic halo gas traces inflowing star-formation fuel and feedback from a galaxy's disk and is therefore crucial to our understanding of galaxy evolution. In this review, we summarize the multiwavelength observational properties and origin models of Galactic and low-redshift spiral galaxy halo gas. Galactic halos contain multiphase gas flows that are dominated in mass by the ionized component and extend to large radii. The densest, coldest halo gas observed in neutral hydrogen (Hi) is generally closest to the disk (<20 kpc), and absorption line results indicate warm and warm-hot diffuse halo gas is present throughout a galaxy's halo. The hot halo gas detected is not a significant fraction of a galaxy's baryons. The disk-halo interface is where the multiphase flows are integrated into the star-forming disk, and there is evidence for both feedback and fueling at this interface from its temperature and kinematic gradients, and Hi structures. The origin and fate of halo gas are considered in the context of cosmological and idealized local simulations. Accretion along cosmic filaments occurs in both hot (>105.5 K) and cold modes in simulations, with the compressed material close to the disk being the coldest and densest, in agreement with observations. There is evidence in halo gas observations for radiative and mechanical feedback mechanisms, including escaping photons from the disk, supernova-driven winds, and a galactic fountain. Satellite accretion also leaves behind abundant halo gas. This satellite gas interacts with the existing halo medium, and much of this gas will become part of the diffuse halo before it reaches the disk. The accretion rate from cold and warm halo gas is generally below a galaxy disk's star-formation rate, but gas at the disk-halo interface and stellar feedback may be important additional fuel sources.

Neutral hydrogen sub-structure in the Galactic Halo outside the solar circle

21-cm studies of the Galactic extra-planar gas layer can help us understand the origin of the gaseous Galactic halo and its interaction with the Milky Way disk. The 100-m Effelsberg radio telescope was utilized to detect and analyze a population of Hi halo clouds belonging to this layer, at Galactocentric radii R > 8.5kpc, following Galactic rotation. This sample of clouds has similar properties to the population detected by Lockman with the GBT at R < 8.5kpc. High resolution follow-up observations resolve them into a number of small, dense, cold arc-minute sized Hi cores. Their study provides evidence for a thermal equilibrium with the extended warmer envelopes. Single dish observations with the 300-m Arecibo telescope disclosed a sample of Hi clouds with similar properties. A power spectrum analysis of the Arecibo maps probes the characteristics of turbulence as a dominant physical process in the halo region.

High-velocity clouds and extended gaseous galactic halos

This contribution summarizes some recent results concerning gas in Galaxy halos. In the past few years, distances have been determined for six high-velocity clouds (HVCs), including the second largest, complex C. The derived distances range from about 2 to 10 kpc, placing these HVCs in the near Galactic halo, but far above the Galactic plane. Distances of ∼10 kpc were determined to three different concentrations in Complex C, implying a mass of ∼5 × 10 7 M ⊙ ; this cloud is known to have a metallicity of ∼0.15 solar, and represents an inflow of 0.15–0.25 M ⊙ yr −1 of low-metallicity material. A statistical analysis of the sky and velocity distribution of the ∼200 small HVCs shows that they probably form a population of clouds orbiting the Milky Way, with distances up to 80 kpc, and a radial inflow component of 50 km s −1 . A study of 115 Lyα and 14 O VI absorption lines at redshifts z v −1 ) in the spectra of 76 AGNs shows that half of the intergalactic Lyα absorption lines originate within 450 kpc of galaxies. The amount of gas inside this distance is a factor 2–4 more than the total amount of mass inside the galaxies.

The intergalactic medium over the last 10 billion years - II. Metal-line absorption and physical conditions

We investigate the metallicity evolution and content of the intergalactic medium (IGM) and galactic halo gas from z=2->0 using 110-million particle cosmological hydrodynamic simulations. We focus on the detectability and physical properties of UV resonance metal-line absorbers observable with Hubble's Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS). We confirm that galactic superwind outflows are required to enrich the IGM to observed levels down to z=0 using three wind prescriptions contrasted to a no-wind simulation. Our favoured momentum-conserved wind prescription deposits metals closer to galaxies owing to its moderate energy input, while the more energetic constant wind model enriches the warm-hot IGM 6.4x more. Despite these significant differences, all wind models produce metal-line statistics within a factor of two of existing observations. This is because OVI, CIV, SiIV, and NeVIII absorbers primarily arise from T<10^5 K, photo-ionised gas that is enriched to similar levels in the three feedback schemes. OVI absorbers trace the diffuse phase with delta<100, which is enriched to ~1/50 Zsol at z=0, although the absorbers themselves usually exceed 0.3 Zsol and arise from inhomogeneously distributed, un-mixed winds. CIV and SiIV absorbers trace primarily T~10^4 K gas inside haloes. We predict COS will observe a population of NeVIII photo-ionised absorbers tracing T<10^5 K, delta~10 gas. MgX and SiXII are rarely detected in COS S/N=30 simulated sight lines although detections trace T=10^(6-7) K halo gas. In general, the IGM is enriched in an outside-in manner, where wind-blown metals released at higher redshift reach lower overdensities, resulting in higher ionisation species tracing lower-density, older metals. At z=0, the 90% of baryons outside of galaxies are enriched to 0.096 Zsol, but the 65% of unbound baryons in the IGM have 0.018 Zsol and contain only 4% of all metals.

Probing star formation across cosmic time with absorption-line systems

We present an empirical connection between cold gas in galactic halos and star formation. Using a sample of more than 8,500 MgII absorbers from SDSS quasar spectra, we report the detection of a 15 sigma correlation between the rest equivalent width W0 of MgII absorbers and the associated OII luminosity, an estimator of star formation rate. This correlation has interesting implications: using only observable quantities we show that MgII absorbers trace a substantial fraction of the global OII luminosity density and recover the overall star formation history of the Universe derived from classical emission estimators up to z~2. We then show that the distribution function of MgII rest equivalent widths, dN/dW0 inherits both its shape and amplitude from the OII luminosity function Phi(L). These distributions can be naturally connected, without any free parameter. Our results imply a high covering factor of cold gas around star forming galaxies: C>0.5, favoring outflows as the mechanism responsible for MgII absorption. We then argue that intervening MgII absorbers and blue-shifted MgII absorption seen in the spectra of star forming galaxies are essentially the same systems. These results not only shed light on the nature of MgII absorbers but also provide us with a new probe of star formation, in absorption, i.e. in a way which does not suffer from dust extinction and with a redshift-independent sensitivity. As shown in this analysis, such a tool can be applied in a noise-dominated regime, i.e. using a dataset for which emission lines are not detected in individual objects. This is of particular interest for high redshift studies.

The collisions of high-velocity clouds with the galactic halo

Spiral galaxies are surrounded by a widely distributed hot coronal gas and seem to be fed by infalling clouds of neutral hydrogen gas with low metallicity and high velocities. We numerically study plasma waves produced by the collisions of these high-velocity clouds (HVCs) with the hot halo gas and with the gaseous disk. In particular, we tackle two problems numerically: 1) collisions of HVCs with the galactic halo gas and 2) the dispersion relations to obtain the phase and group velocities of plasma waves from the equations of plasma motion as well as further important physical characteristics such as magnetic tension force, gas pressure, etc. The obtained results allow us to understand the nature of MHD waves produced during the collisions in galactic media and lead to the suggestion that these waves can heat the ambient halo gas. These calculations are aiming at leading to a better understanding of dynamics and interaction of HVCs with the galactic halo and of the importance of MHD waves as a heating process of the halo gas.

HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPESURVEY OF INTERSTELLAR HIGH-VELOCITY Si III

We describe an ultraviolet spectroscopic survey of interstellar high-velocity cloud (HVC) absorption in the strong 1206.500 Angstrom line of Si III using the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph aboard the Hubble Space Telescope. Because the Si III line is 4-5 times stronger than O VI 1031.926, it provides a sensitive probe of ionized gas down to column densities N(Si III) = 5x10^11 cm^-2 at Si III equivalent width 10 mA. We detect high-velocity Si III over (91+/-4)% of the sky (53 of 58 sight lines), and 59% of the HVCs show negative LSR velocities. Per sight line, the mean HVC column density is <log N(SiIII)> = 13.19 +/- 0.45, while the mean for all 90 velocity components is 12.92 +/- 0.46. Lower limits due to Si III line saturation are included in this average, so the actual mean/median values are even higher. The Si III appears to trace an extensive ionized component of Galactic halo gas at temperatures 10^4.0 K to 10^4.5 K indicative of a cooling flow. Photoionization models suggest that typical Si III absorbers with 12.5 < log N(Si III) < 13.5 have total hydrogen column densities N(H) = 10^18 to 10^19 cm^-2 for gas of hydrogen density n(H) = 0.1 cm^(-3) and 10% solar metallicity. With typical neutral fractions N(HI)/N(H) = 0.01, these HVCs may elude even long duration 21-cm observations at Arecibo, the EVLA, and other radio facilities. However, if Si III is associated with higher density gas, n(H) > 1 cm^(-3), the corresponding neutral hydrogen could be visible in deep observations. This reservoir of ionized gas may contain 10^8 M_sun and produce a mass infall rate of 1 M_sun/yr to the Galactic disk.

A peculiar H i cloud near the distant globular cluster Pal 4

We present 21-cm observations of four Galactic globular clusters, as part of the on-going Galactic Arecibo L-band Feed Array (GALFA) H i survey at Arecibo. We discovered a peculiar H i cloud in the vicinity of the distant (109 kpc) cluster Pal 4, and discuss its properties and likelihood of association with the cluster. We conclude that an association of the H i cloud and Pal 4 is possible, but that a chance coincidence between Pal 4 and a nearby compact high-velocity cloud cannot be ruled out altogether. New, more stringent upper limits were derived for the other three clusters: M 3, NGC 5466, and Pal 13. We briefly discuss the fate of globular cluster gas and the interaction of compact clouds with the Galactic halo gas.

Metal-enriched plasma in protogalactic halos

We continue our recent work to characterize the plasma content of high-redshift damped and sub-damped Lyman-alpha systems (DLAs/sub-DLAs), which represent multi-phase gaseous (proto)galactic disks and halos seen toward a background source. We survey N V absorption in a sample of 91 DLAs and 18 sub-DLAs in the redshift range 1.67<z<4.28 with unblended coverage of the N V doublet, using data from VLT/UVES, Keck/HIRES, and Keck/ESI. In DLAs, we find eight secure N V detections, four marginal detections, and 79 non-detections. The detection rate of N V in DLAs is therefore 13^{+5}_{-4}%. Two sub-DLA N V detections are found among a sample of 18, at a similar detection rate of 11^{+15}_{-7}%. We show that the N V detection rate is a strong function of metallicity, increasing by a factor of ~4 at [N/H]=[NI/HI]>-2.3. The N V and CIV component b-value distributions in DLAs are statistically similar, but the median b(N V) of 18 km/s is lower than the median b(O VI) of 25 km/s. Some ~20% of the N V components have b<10 km/s and thus arise in warm photoionized plasma at log (T/K)<4.92; local sources of ionizing radiation (as opposed to the extragalactic background) are required to keep the cloud sizes physically reasonable. The nature of the remaining ~80% of (broad) N V components is unclear; models of radiatively-cooling collisionally-ionized plasma at log(T/K)=5.2-5.4 are fairly successful in reproducing the observed integrated high-ion column density ratios and the component line widths, but we cannot rule out photoionization by local sources. Finally, we identify several unusual DLAs with extremely low metallicity (<0.01 solar) but strong high-ion absorption [log N(N V)>14 or log N(O VI)>14.2] that present challenges to either galactic inflow or outflow models.

Ram pressure stripping the hot gaseous haloes of galaxies in groups and clusters

We use a large suite of carefully controlled full hydrodynamic simulations to study the ram pressure stripping of the hot gaseous haloes of galaxies as they fall into massive groups and clusters. The sensitivity of the results to the orbit, total galaxy mass, and galaxy structural properties is explored. For typical structural and orbital parameters, we find that ∼30 per cent of the initial hot galactic halo gas can remain in place after 10 Gyr. We propose a physically simple analytic model that describes the stripping seen in the simulations remarkably well. The model is analogous to the original formulation of Gunn & Gott, except that it is appropriate for the case of a spherical (hot) gas distribution (as opposed to a face-on cold disc) and takes into account that stripping is not instantaneous but occurs on a characteristic time-scale. The model reproduces the results of the simulations to within ≈10 per cent at almost all times for all the orbits, mass ratios, and galaxy structural properties we have explored. The one exception involves unlikely systems where the orbit of the galaxy is highly non-radial and its mass exceeds about 10 per cent of the group or cluster into which it is falling (in which case the model underpredicts the stripping following pericentric passage). The proposed model has several interesting applications, including modelling the ram pressure stripping of both observed and cosmologically simulated galaxies and as a way to improve present semi-analytic models of galaxy formation. One immediate consequence is that the colours and morphologies of satellite galaxies in groups and clusters will differ significantly from those predicted with the standard assumption of complete stripping of the hot coronae.

Limits on Hot Galactic Halo Gas from X-Ray Absorption Lines

United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory) (Contract Number SV3- 73016)

X‐Ray Absorption from the Milky Way Halo and the Local Group

Million degree gas is present at near-zero redshift and is due to either a gaseous Galactic halo or a more diffuse but very massive Local Group medium. We can discriminate between these models because the column densities should depend on location in the sky, either relative to the Galaxy bulge or to the M31-Milky Way axis. To search for these signatures, we measured the O VII Kα absorption-line strength toward 25 bright active galactic nuclei (AGNs), plus LMC X-3, using XMM-Newton RGS archival data. The data are in conflict with a purely Local Group model, but support the Galactic halo model. The strongest correlation is between the O VII equivalent widths and the ROSAT background emission measurement in the R45 band (0.4-1 keV), for which O VII emission makes the largest single contribution. This suggests that much of the O VII emission and absorption are cospatial, from which the radius of a uniform halo appears to lie the range 15-110 kpc. The present data do not constrain the type of halo gas model, and an equally good fit is obtained in a model where the gas density decreases as a power law, such as r-3/2. For a uniform halo with a radius of 20 kpc, the electron density would be 9 × 10-4 cm-3, and the gas mass is 4 × 108 M☉. The redshift of the four highest signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) O VII measurements is consistent with a Milky Way origin rather than a Local Group origin.

The Search for the Missing Baryons at Low Redshift

At low redshift, only about one-tenth of the known baryons lie in galaxies or the hot gas seen in galaxy clusters and groups. Models posit that these “missing baryons” are in gaseous form in overdense filaments that connect the much denser virialized groups and clusters. About 30% is cool (&lt;105 K) and is detected in Lyα absorption studies, but about half is predicted to lie in the 105–107 K regime. Gas is detected in the 2–5 × 105 K range through OVI absorption studies (7% of the baryons) and possibly near 105 K from broad Lyα absorption (20% of the baryons). Hotter gas (0.5–2 × 106 K) is detected at zero redshift by OVII and OVIII Kα X-ray absorption, and the OVII line strengths seem to correlate with the Galactic soft X-ray background, so it is probably produced by Galactic halo gas, rather than a Local Group medium. There are no compelling detections of the intergalactic hot gas (0.5–10 × 106 K) either in absorption or emission and these upper limits are consistent with theoretical models. Claimed X-ray absorption lines are not confirmed, while most of the claims of soft emission are attributable to artifacts of background subtraction and field-flattening. The missing baryons should become detectable with moderate improvements in instrumental sensitivity.

The Density Profiles of Hot Galactic Halo Gas

Extended gas haloes around galaxies are a ubiquitous prediction of galaxy formation scenarios. However, the density profiles of this hot halo gas is virtually unknown, although various profiles have been suggested on theoretical grounds. In order to quantitatively address the gas profile, we compare galaxies from direct cosmological simulations with analytical solutions of the underlying gas equations. We find remarkable agreement between simulations and theoretical predictions. We present an expression for this gas profile with a non-trivial dependence on the total mass profile. This expression is useful when setting up equilibrium galaxy models for numerical experiments.

A Method for Deriving Accurate Gas‐Phase Abundances for the Multiphase Interstellar Galactic Halo

We describe a new method for accurately determining total gas-phase abundances for the Galactic halo interstellar medium with minimal ionization uncertainties. For sight lines toward globular clusters containing both ultraviolet-bright stars and radio pulsars, it is possible to measure column densities of H I and several ionization states of selected metals using ultraviolet absorption line measurements and of H II using radio dispersion measurements. By measuring the ionized hydrogen column, we minimize ionization uncertainties that plague abundance measurements of Galactic halo gas. We apply this method for the first time to the sight line toward the globular cluster Messier 3 [(l,b) = (422, + 787), d = 10.2 kpc, z = 10.0 kpc] using Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer and Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet spectroscopy of the post-asymptotic giant branch star von Zeipel 1128 and radio observations by Ransom et al. of recently discovered millisecond pulsars. The fraction of hydrogen associated with ionized gas along this sight line is 45% ± 5%, with the warm (T ~ 104 K) and hot (T 105 K) ionized phases present in roughly a 5 : 1 ratio. This is the highest measured fraction of ionized hydrogen along a high-latitude pulsar sight line. We derive total gas-phase abundances log N(S)/N(H) = -4.87 ± 0.03 and log N(Fe)/N(H) = -5.27 ± 0.05. Our derived sulfur abundance is in excellent agreement with recent solar system determinations of Asplund, Grevesse, & Sauval. However, it is -0.14 dex below the solar system abundance typically adopted in studies of the interstellar medium. The iron abundance is ~-0.7 dex below the solar system abundance, consistent with the significant incorporation of iron into interstellar grains. Abundance estimates derived by simply comparing S II and Fe II to H I are +0.17 and +0.11 dex higher, respectively, than the abundance estimates derived from our refined approach. Ionization corrections to the gas-phase abundances measured in the standard way are, therefore, significant compared with the measurement uncertainties along this sight line. The systematic uncertainties associated with the uncertain contribution to the electron column density from ionized helium could raise these abundances by +0.03 dex (+7%). Uncertainties in the amount of very hot gas (T ~ 106 K) along the line of sight could also affect these determinations.

The dynamics and high-energy emission of conductive gas clouds in supernova-driven galactic superwinds

Superwinds from starburst galaxies are multiphase outflows that sweep up and incorporate ambient galactic disc and halo gas. The interaction of this denser material with the more diffuse hot wind gas is thought to give rise to the O vi emission and absorption in the far ultraviolet (FUV) and the soft thermal X-ray emission observed in superwinds. In this paper, we present high-resolution hydrodynamical models of warm ionized clouds embedded in a superwind, and compare the O vi and soft X-ray properties to the existing observational data. These models include thermal conduction, which we show plays an important role in shaping both the dynamics and radiative properties of the resulting wind/cloud interaction. Heat conduction stabilizes the cloud by inhibiting the growth of Kelvin–Helmholtz and Rayleigh–Taylor instabilities, and also generates a shock wave at the cloud's surface that compresses the cloud. This dynamical behaviour influences the observable properties. We find that while O vi emission and absorption always arises in cloud material at the periphery of the cloud, most of the soft X-ray arises in the region between the wind bow shock and the cloud surface, and probes either wind or cloud material depending on the strength of conduction and the relative abundances of the wind with respect to the cloud. In general, only a small fraction (≲1 per cent) of the wind mechanical energy intersecting a cloud is radiated away at ultraviolet (UV) and X-ray wavelengths, with more wind energy going into accelerating the cloud. Clouds in relatively slow cool winds radiate a larger fraction of their energy, which are inconsistent with observational constraints. Models with heat conduction at Spitzer-levels are found to produce observational properties closer to those observed in superwinds than models with no thermal conduction, in particular, in terms of the O vi to X-ray luminosity ratio, but cloud life times are uncomfortably short (≲1 Myr) compared to the dynamical ages of real winds. We experimented with reducing the thermal conductivity for one set of model parameters, and found that even when we reduced conduction by a factor of 25 that the simulations retained the beneficial hydrodynamical stability and low O vi to X-ray luminosity ratio found in the Spitzer-level conductive models, while also having reduced evaporation rates. Although more work is required to simulate clouds for longer times and to investigate cloud acceleration and thermal conduction at sub-Spitzer levels in a wider range of models, we conclude that thermal conduction can no longer be ignored in superwinds.

The Angular Momentum Distribution of Gas and Dark Matter in Galactic Halos

(Abridged) We report results of a series of non radiative N-body/SPH simulations in a LCDM cosmology. We find that the spin of the baryonic component is on average larger than that of the dark matter (DM) component and we find this effect to be more pronounced at lower redshifts. A significant fraction f of gas has negative angular momentum and this fraction is found to increase with redshift. We describe a toy model in which the tangential velocities of particles are smeared by Gaussian random motions. This model is successful in explaining some of the angular momentum properties. We compare and contrast various techniques to determine the angular momentum distributions (AMDs). We show that broadening of velocity dispersions is unsuitable for making comparisons between gas and DM. We smooth the angular momentum of the particles over a fixed number of neighbors. We find that an analytical function based on gamma distribution can be used to describe a wide variety of profiles, with just one parameter \alpha. The distribution of the shape parameter $\alpha$ for both gas and DM follows roughly a log-normal distribution. The mean and standard deviation of log(\alpha) for gas is -0.04 and 0.11 respectively. About 90-95% of halos have \alpha =1.09 \pm 0.2. \alpha_Gas is also biased towards slightly higher values compared to \alpha_DM.