CH3-Terminated Carbon Chains in the GOTHAM Survey of TMC-1: Evidence of Interstellar CH3C7N

We report a systematic study of all known methyl carbon chains toward TMC-1 using the second data release of the GOTHAM survey, as well as a search for larger species. Using Markov Chain Monte Carlo simulations and spectral line stacking of over 30 rotational transitions, we report statistically significant emission from methylcyanotriacetylene (CH3C7N) at a confidence level of 4.6σ, and use it to derive a column density of ∼1011 cm−2. We also searched for the related species, methyltetraacetylene (CH3C8H), and place upper limits on the column density of this molecule. By carrying out the above statistical analyses for all other previously detected methyl-terminated carbon chains that have emission lines in our survey, we assess the abundances, excitation conditions, and formation chemistry of methylpolyynes (CH3C2n H) and methylcyanopolyynes (CH3C2n-1N) in TMC-1, and compare those with predictions from a chemical model. Based on our observed trends in column density and relative populations of the A and E nuclear spin isomers, we find that the methylpolyyne and methylcyanopolyyne families exhibit stark differences from one another, pointing to separate interstellar formation pathways, which is confirmed through gas–grain chemical modeling with nautilus.

Deep XMM-Newton Observations of an X-ray Weak Broad Absorption Line Quasar at z = 6.5

We report X-ray observations of the most distant known gravitationally lensed quasar, J0439+1634 at z = 6.52, which is also a broad absorption line (BAL) quasar, using the XMM-Newton Observatory. With a 130 ks exposure, the quasar is significantly detected as a point source at the optical position with a total of 358 − 19 + 19 net counts using the EPIC instrument. By fitting a power law plus Galactic absorption model to the observed spectra, we obtain a spectral slope of Γ = 1.45 − 0.09 + 0.10 . The derived optical-to-X-ray spectral slope α ox is − 2.07 − 0.01 + 0.01 , suggesting that the X-ray emission of J0439+1634 is weaker by a factor of 18 than the expectation based on its 2500 Å luminosity and the average α ox versus luminosity relationship. This is the first time that an X-ray weak BAL quasar at z > 6 has been observed spectroscopically. Its X-ray weakness is consistent with the properties of BAL quasars at lower redshift. By fitting a model including an intrinsic absorption component, we obtain intrinsic column densities of N H = 2.8 − 0.6 + 0.7 × 10 23 cm − 2 and N H = 4.3 − 1.5 + 1.8 × 10 23 cm − 2 , assuming a fixed Γ of 1.9 and a free Γ, respectively. The intrinsic rest-frame 2–10 keV luminosity is derived as (9.4–15.1) × 1043 erg s−1, after correcting for lensing magnification (μ = 51.3). The absorbed power-law model fitting indicates that J0439+1634 is the highest redshift obscured quasar with a direct measurement of the absorbing column density. The intrinsic high column density absorption can reduce the X-ray luminosity by a factor of 3–7, which also indicates that this quasar could be a candidate intrinsically X-ray weak quasar.

Study of SO2 and NO2 behaviour during the ozone-hole event at Antarctica by Brewer Spectrophotometer

Vertical column density of sulphur dioxide has been measured at Maitri (70.7°S, 11.7°E), the Indian station in the Antarctica from September, 1999 to December, 2006 by a Brewer Spectrophotometer. Simultaneously, nitrogen dioxide, ozone and the maximum value of UV-B have also been measured, we found an increase in SO2 during spring. An increase in NO2 column was also found during this period but not identical with that of SO2. These variations in SO2 and NO2 are not in phase with the increase in UV-B flux at the ground due to the decrease of ozone column in the stratosphere. The variation of SO2 column is explained by the downward shift of penetration depth of UV-B radiation during the ozone-hole event.

Multispectral Mid-Infrared Camera System for Accurate Stand-Off Temperature and Column Density Measurements on Flames

Accurate measurement of temperature in flames is a challenging problem that has been successfully addressed by hyperspectral imaging. This technique is able to provide maps of not only temperature T (K) but also of column density Q (ppm·m) of the main chemical species. Industrial applications, however, require cheaper instrumentation and faster and simpler data analysis. In this work, the feasibility and performance of multispectral imaging for the retrieval of T and QCO2 in flames are studied. Both the hyperspectral and multispectral measurement methods are described and applied to a standard flame, with known T and QCO2, and to an ordinary Bunsen flame. Hyperspectral results, based on emission spectra with 0.5 cm−1 resolution, were found in previous works to be highly accurate, and are thus considered as the ground truth to compare with multispectral measurements of a mid-IR camera (3 to 5 μm) with a six interference filter wheel. Maps of T and Q obtained by both methods show that, for regions with T ≳1300 K, the average of relative errors in multispectral measurements is ∼5% for T (and can be reduced to ∼2.5% with a correction based on a linear regression) and ∼20% for Q. Results obtained with four filters are very similar; results with two filters are also similar for T but worse for Q.

Analyzing Oxygen Ionization in the Circumgalactic Medium

Galaxies are surrounded by low-density, highly-ionized clouds of gas, called the Circumgalactic Medium (CGM), which provides insight into galaxy evolution. CGM observations are sensitive to ionization levels, which requires studying ionization types: photoionization (PI), more density-dependent and associated with cooler gas, and collisional ionization (CI), more temperature-dependent and associated with hotter gas. We analyzed PI and CI components for oxygen ionization states using cosmological galaxy simulations. For each ion, we plotted mass distributions into PI and CI phases and created 2D covering-fraction projections of column density at different thresholds. We analyzed changes for different mass-bin galaxies. Our results are: O vii and O ix are the only predominantly-CI ion states. O vi is a local minimum in both PI and CI gas. Column density distributions greatly emphasize higher ion states. Shapes of covering-fraction plots at higher thresholds resemble the 3D-plots. CI gas dominates more in higher mass galaxy simulations.

How Identifying Circumgalactic Gas by Line-of-sight Velocity instead of the Location in 3D Space Affects O vi Measurements

The high incidence rate of the O vi λλ1032, 1038 absorption around low-redshift, ∼L * star-forming galaxies has generated interest in studies of the circumgalactic medium. We use the high-resolution EAGLE cosmological simulation to analyze the circumgalactic O vi gas around z ≈ 0.3 star-forming galaxies. Motivated by the limitation that observations do not reveal where the gas lies along the line of sight, we compare the O vi measurements produced by gas within fixed distances around galaxies and by gas selected using line-of-sight velocity cuts commonly adopted by observers. We show that gas selected by a velocity cut of ±300 km s−1 or ±500 km s−1 produces a higher O vi column density, a flatter column density profile, and a higher covering fraction compared to gas within 1, 2, or 3 times the virial radius (r vir) of galaxies. The discrepancy increases with impact parameter and worsens for lower-mass galaxies. For example, compared to the gas within 2 r vir, identifying the gas using velocity cuts of 200–500 km s−1 increases the O vi column density by 0.2 dex (0.1 dex) at 1 r vir to over 0.75 dex (0.7 dex) at ≈ 2 r vir for galaxies with stellar masses of 109–109.5 M ⊙ (1010–1010.5 M ⊙). We furthermore estimate that excluding O vi outside r vir decreases the circumgalactic oxygen mass measured by Tumlinson et al. (2011) by over 50%. Our results demonstrate that gas at large line-of-sight separations but selected by conventional velocity windows has significant effects on the O vi measurements and may not be observationally distinguishable from gas near the galaxies.

SOFIA Observations of 30 Doradus. I. Far-infrared Dust Polarization and Implications for Grain Alignment and Disruption by Radiative Torques

Located in the Large Magellanic Cloud and mostly irradiated by the massive star cluster R136, 30 Doradus is an ideal target to test the leading theory of grain alignment and rotational disruption by RAdiative Torques (RATs). Here, we use publicly available polarized thermal dust emission observations of 30 Doradus at 89, 154, and 214 μm using SOFIA/HAWC+. We analyze the variation of the dust polarization degree (p) with the total emission intensity (I), the dust temperature (T d), and the gas column density (N H) constructed from Herschel data. The 30 Doradus complex is divided into two main regions relative to R136, namely North and South. In the North, we find that the polarization degree first decreases and then increases before decreasing again when the dust temperature increases toward the irradiating cluster R136. The first depolarization likely arises from the decrease in grain alignment efficiency toward the dense medium due to the attenuation of the interstellar radiation field and the increase in the gas density. The second trend (the increase of p with T d) is consistent with the RAT alignment theory. The final trend (the decrease of p with T d) is consistent with the RAT alignment theory only when the grain rotational disruption by RATs is taken into account. In the South, we find that the polarization degree is nearly independent of the dust temperature, while the grain alignment efficiency is higher around the peak of the gas column density and decreases toward the radiation source. The latter feature is also consistent with the prediction of rotational disruption by RATs.

The Robustness of Synthetic Observations in Producing Observed Core Properties: Predictions for the TolTEC Clouds to Cores Legacy Survey

We use hydrodynamical simulations of star-forming gas with stellar feedback and sink particles—proxies for young stellar objects (YSOs)—to produce and analyze synthetic 1.1 mm continuum observations at different distances (150–1000 pc) and ages (0.49–1.27 Myr). We characterize how the inferred core properties, including mass, size, and clustering with respect to diffuse natal gas structure, change with distance, cloud evolution, and the presence of YSOs. We find that atmospheric filtering and core segmentation treatments have distance-dependent impacts on the resulting core properties for d < 300 pc and 500 pc, respectively, which dominate over evolutionary differences. Concentrating on synthetic observations at further distances (650–1000 pc), we find a growing separation between the inferred sizes and masses of cores with and without YSOs in the simulations, which is not seen in recent observations of the Monoceros R2 (Mon R2) cloud at 860 pc. We find that the synthetic cores cluster in smaller groups, and that their mass densities are correlated with gas column density over a much narrower range, than those in the Mon R2 observations. Such differences limit the applicability of the evolutionary predictions we report here, but will motivate our future efforts to adapt our synthetic observation and analysis framework to next generation simulations, such as Star Formation in Gaseous Environments (STARFORGE). These predictions and systematic characterizations will help to guide the analysis of cores on the upcoming TolTEC Clouds to Cores Legacy Survey on the Large Millimeter Telescope Alfonso Serrano.

VLA and NOEMA Views of Bok Globule CB 17: The Starless Nature of a Proposed First Hydrostatic Core Candidate

We use 3 mm continuum NOrthern Extended Millimeter Array and NH3 Very Large Array observations toward the First Hydrostatic Core (FHSC) candidate CB 17 MMS in order to reveal the dust structure and gas properties to 600–1100 au scales and to constrain its evolutionary stage. We do not detect any compact source at the previously identified 1.3 mm point source, despite expecting a minimum signal-to-noise ratio of 9. The gas traced by NH3 exhibits subsonic motions, with an average temperature of 10.4 K. A fit of the radial column density profile derived from the ammonia emission finds a flat inner region of radius ∼1800 au and a central density of ∼6 × 105 cm−3. Virial and density structure analysis reveals the core is marginally bound (α vir = 0.73). The region is entirely consistent with that of a young starless core, hence ruling out CB 17 MMS as an FHSC candidate. Additionally, the core exhibits a velocity gradient aligned with the major axis, showing an arc-like structure in the position–velocity diagram and an off-center region with high velocity dispersion, caused by two distinct velocity peaks. These features could be due to interactions with the nearby outflow, which appears to deflect due to the dense gas near the NH3 column density peak. We investigate the specific angular momentum profile of the starless core, finding that it aligns closely with previous studies of similar radial profiles in Class 0 sources. This similarity to more evolved objects suggests that motions at 1000 au scales are determined by large-scale dense cloud motions, and may be preserved throughout the early stages of star formation.

The H i Column Density Distribution of the Galactic Disk and Halo

We present a census of neutral gas in the Milky Way disk and halo down to limiting column densities of N(H i) ∼ 1014 cm−2 using measurements of H i Lyman series absorption from the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer. Our results are drawn from an analysis of 25 AGN sight lines spread evenly across the sky with Galactic latitude ∣b∣ ≳ 20°. By simultaneously fitting multi-component Voigt profiles to 11 Lyman series absorption transitions covered by FUSE (Lyβ–Lyμ) plus HST measurements of Lyα, we derive the kinematics and column densities of a sample of 152 H i absorption components. While saturation prevents accurate measurements of many components with column densities 17 ≲ log N(H i) ≲ 19, we derive robust measurements at log N(H i) ≲ 17 and log N(H i) ≳ 19. We derive the first ultraviolet H i column density distribution function (CDDF) of the Milky Way, both globally and for low-velocity (ISM), intermediate-velocity clouds (IVCs), and high-velocity clouds (HVCs). We find that IVCs and HVCs show statistically indistinguishable CDDF slopes, with β IVC = − 1.01 − 0.14 + 0.15 and β HVC = − 1.05 − 0.06 + 0.07 . Overall, the CDDF of the Galactic disk and halo appears shallower than that found by comparable extragalactic surveys, suggesting a relative abundance of high column density gas in the Galactic halo. We derive the sky-covering fractions as a function of H i column density, finding an enhancement of IVC gas in the northern hemisphere compared to the south. We also find evidence for an excess of inflowing H i over outflowing H i, with −0.88 ± 0.40 M ⊙ yr−1 of HVC inflow versus ≈0.20 ± 0.10 M ⊙ yr−1 of HVC outflow, confirming an excess of inflowing HVCs seen in UV metal lines.