H i imaging of galaxies in X-ray bright groups

Environment plays an important role in the evolution of the gas contents of galaxies. Gas deficiency of cluster spirals and the role of the hot intracluster medium in stripping gas from these galaxies is a well-studied subject. Loose groups with diffuse X-ray emission from the intragroup medium (IGM) offer an intermediate environment between clusters and groups without a hot IGM. These X-ray bright groups have smaller velocity dispersion and lower temperature than clusters, but higher IGM density than loose groups without diffuse X-ray emission. A single-dish comparative study of loose groups with and without diffuse X-ray emission from the IGM, showed that the galaxies in X-ray bright groups have lost more gas on average than the galaxies in non X-ray bright groups. In this paper we present GMRT H  i observations of 13 galaxies from four X-ray bright groups: NGC 5044, 720, 1550 and IC1459. The aim of this work is to study the morphology of H  i in these galaxies and to see if the hot IGM has in any way affected their H  i content or distribution. In addition to disturbed H  i morphology, we find that most galaxies have shrunken H  i discs compared to the field spirals. This indicates that IGM-assisted stripping processes like ram pressure may have stripped gas from the outer edges of the galaxies.     

H i and CO observations of Arp 104: a spiral–elliptical interacting pair

We present data probing the spatial and kinematical distribution of both the atomic (H  i ) and molecular (CO) gas in NGC 5218, the late-type barred spiral galaxy in the spiral–elliptical interacting pair, Arp 104. We consider these data in conjunction with far-infrared and radio-continuum data, and N -body simulations, to study the galaxies interactions, and the star formation properties of NGC 5218. We use these data to assess the importance of the bar and tidal interaction on the evolution of NGC 5218, and the extent to which the tidal interaction may have been important in triggering the bar. The molecular gas distribution of NGC 5218 appears to have been strongly affected by the bar; the distribution is centrally condensed with a very large surface density in the central region. The N -body simulations indicate a time-scale since perigalacticon of  ∼3 × 10⁸ yr  , which is consistent with the interaction having triggered or enhanced the bar potential in NGC 5218, leading to inflow and the large central molecular gas density observed. Whilst NGC 5218 appears to be undergoing active star formation, its star formation efficiency is comparable to a 'normal' SBb galaxy. We propose that this system may be on the brink of a more active phase of star formation.     

The Arecibo Galaxy Environment Survey – II. A H i view of the Abell cluster 1367 and its outskirts

We present 21 cm H  i line observations of 5 × 1 deg² centred on the local Abell cluster 1367 obtained as part of the Arecibo Galaxy Environment Survey. One hundred sources are detected (79 new H  i measurements and 50 new redshifts), more than half belonging to the cluster core and its infalling region. Combining the H  i data with Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) optical imaging, we show that our H  i selected sample follows scaling relations similar to the ones usually observed in optically selected samples. Interestingly, all galaxies in our sample appear to have nearly the same baryon fraction independently of their size, surface brightness and luminosity. The most striking difference between H  i and optically selected samples resides in their large-scale distribution: whereas optical and X-ray observations trace the cluster core very well, in H  i there is almost no evidence of the presence of the cluster. Some implications on the determination of the cluster luminosity function and H  i distribution for samples selected at different wavelength are also discussed.     

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey monitor telescope pipeline

The photometric calibration of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) is a multi‐step process which involves data from three different telescopes: the 1.0‐m telescope at the US Naval Observatory (USNO), Flagstaff Station, Arizona (which was used to establish the SDSS standard star network); the SDSS 0.5‐m Photometric Telescope (PT) at the Apache Point Observatory (APO), NewMexico (which calculates nightly extinctions and calibrates secondary patch transfer fields); and the SDSS 2.5‐m telescope at APO (which obtains the imaging data for the SDSS proper). In this paper, we describe the Monitor Telescope Pipeline, MTPIPE, the software pipeline used in processing the data from the single‐CCD telescopes used in the photometric calibration of the SDSS (i.e., the USNO 1.0‐m and the PT). We also describe transformation equations that convert photometry on the USNO‐1.0m u ′g ′r ′i ′z ′ system to photometry the SDSS 2.5m ugriz system and the results of various validation tests of the MTPIPE software. Further, we discuss the semi‐automated PT factory, which runs MTPIPE in the day‐to‐day standard SDSS operations at Fermilab. Finally, we discuss the use of MTPIPE in current SDSS‐related projects, including the Southern u ′g ′r ′i ′z ′ Standard Star project, the u ′g ′r ′i ′z ′ Open Star Clusters project, and the SDSS extension (SDSS‐II). (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

H i content and star formation in the interacting galaxy Arp86

We present the results of Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) observations of the interacting system Arp86 in both neutral atomic hydrogen, H  i , and in radio continuum at 240 606 and 1394 MHz. In addition to H  i emission from the two dominant galaxies, NGC 7752 and NGC 7753, these observations show a complex distribution of H  i tails and bridges due to tidal interactions. The regions of highest column density appear related to the recent sites of intense star formation. H  i column densities  ∼1–1.5 × 10²¹ cm⁻²  have been detected in the tidal bridge which is bright in Spitzer image as well. We also detect H  i emission from the galaxy 2MASX J23470758+2926531, which is shown to be a part of this system. We discuss the possibility that this could be a tidal dwarf galaxy. The radio continuum observations show evidence of a non-thermal bridge between NGC 7752 and NGC 7753, and a radio source in the nuclear region of NGC 7753 consistent with it having a low-ionization nuclear emission region nucleus.     

HARP/ACSIS: a submillimetre spectral imaging system on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope

This paper describes a new Heterodyne Array Receiver Program (HARP) and Auto-Correlation Spectral Imaging System (ACSIS) that have recently been installed and commissioned on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. The 16-element focal-plane array receiver, operating in the submillimetre from 325 to 375 GHz, offers high (three-dimensional) mapping speeds, along with significant improvements over single-detector counterparts in calibration and image quality. Receiver temperatures are ∼120 K across the whole band, and system temperatures of ∼300 K are reached routinely under good weather conditions. The system includes a single-sideband (SSB) filter so these are SSB values. Used in conjunction with ACSIS, the system can produce large-scale maps rapidly, in one or more frequency settings, at high spatial and spectral resolution. Fully sampled maps of     size can be observed in under 1 h.
The scientific need for array receivers arises from the requirement for programmes to study samples of objects of statistically significant size, in large-scale unbiased surveys of galactic and extra-galactic regions. Along with morphological information, the new spectral imaging system can be used to study the physical and chemical properties of regions of interest. Its three-dimensional imaging capabilities are critical for research into turbulence and dynamics. In addition, HARP/ACSIS will provide highly complementary science programmes to wide-field continuum studies and produce the essential preparatory work for submillimetre interferometers such as the Submillimeter Array (SMA) and Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA).     

The Parkes Southern Pulsar Survey — III. Timing of long-period pulsars

The Parkes survey of the entire southern sky for millisecond and other low-luminosity pulsars has now been completed. The survey system and initial results were described by Manchester et al. and the final results and population studies are described by Lyne et al. A total of 298 pulsars were detected, including 101 new discoveries of which 17 were millisecond pulsars. Here we report on timing observations at Parkes and Jodrell Bank of the 84 long-period (non-millisecond) pulsars discovered in the survey, including timing solutions for 78 of them. Pulse profiles and arrival times were obtained at several different frequencies over intervals of more than a year, yielding a position, period, period derivative and dispersion measure for each pulsar. Pulse profiles at frequencies near 400 MHz and 600 or 1400 MHz are presented for most of the observed pulsars. Significant timing noise was detected for five pulsars and a glitch was observed in the period of PSR J1123–6259.