PROBING THE INTERGALACTIC MEDIUM/GALAXY CONNECTION. V. ON THE ORIGIN OF Lyα AND O VI ABSORPTION ATz< 0.2

2011/03/09 by J. Xavier Prochaska, B. Weiner, H.-W. Chen +5 · 18 citations
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Baryon #Equivalent width #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Galaxy #Halo #Intergalactic medium #Intergalactic travel #Luminosity #Quasar #Space Technology and Applications #astro-ph.CO #astro-ph.GA

paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/0004-637x/740/2/91

Submitted to the Astrophysical Journal; 26 pages, 9 figures. See http://www.ucolick.org/~xavier/WFCCDOVI/index.html for more

arxiv created 2011/03/09 · openalex publication_date 2011/10/03 · arxiv updated 2015/05/27 · openalex created_date 2019/06/27 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

We analyze the association of galaxies with Lyα and O vi absorption, the most commonly detected transitions of the low- z intergalactic medium (IGM), in the fields of 14 quasars with z em = 0.06–0.57. Confirming previous studies, we observe a high covering fraction for Lyα absorption to impact parameter ρ = 300 h −1 72 kpc: 33/37 of our L > 0.01 L * galaxies show Lyα equivalent width W Lyα ⩾ 50 mÅ. Galaxies of all luminosity L > 0.01 L * and spectral type are surrounded by a diffuse and ionized circumgalactic medium (CGM), whose baryonic mass is estimated at ∼10 10.5 ± 0.3 M ☉ for a constant N H = 10 19 cm −2 . The virialized halos and extended CGM of present-day galaxies are responsible for most strong Lyα absorbers ( W Lyα > 300 mÅ) but cannot reproduce the majority of observed lines in the Lyα forest. We conclude that the majority of Lyα absorption with W Lyα = 30–300 mÅ occurs in the cosmic web predicted by cosmological simulations and estimate a characteristic width for these filaments of ≈400 h −1 72 kpc. Regarding O vi , we observe a near unity covering fraction to ρ = 200 h −1 72 kpc for L > 0.1 L * galaxies and to ρ = 300 h −1 72 kpc for sub- L * (0.1 L * < L < L *) galaxies. Similar to our Lyα results, stronger O vi systems ( W 1031 > 70 mÅ) arise in the virialized halos of L > 0.1 L * galaxies. Unlike Lyα, the weaker O vi systems ( W 1031 ≈ 30 mÅ) arise in the extended CGM of sub- L * galaxies. The majority of O vi gas observed in the low- z IGM is associated with a diffuse medium surrounding individual galaxies with L ≈ 0.3 L * and rarely originates in the so-called warm-hot IGM (predicted by cosmological simulations.

Citations

• PROBING THE IGM/GALAXY CONNECTION. IV. THE LCO/WFCCD GALAXY SURVEY OF 20 FIELDS SURROUNDING UV-BRIGHT QUASARS
• Correlations between O vi Absorbers and Galaxies at Low Redshift
• THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INTERGALACTIC H I/O VI AND NEARBY ( z < 0.017) GALAXIES
• The association between gas and galaxies - II. The two-point correlation function
• Mass, metal, and energy feedback in cosmological simulations
• The Local Lyα Forest. IV. Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph G140M Spectra and Results on the Distribution and Baryon Content of H i Absorbers
• Cosmological and astrophysical constraints from the Lyman α forest flux probability distribution function
• Detection of Neviiiin the Low‐Redshift Warm‐Hot Intergalactic Medium
• Discovery of a Primitive Damped Lyα Absorber near an X‐Ray–bright Galaxy Group in the Virgo Cluster
• The Gaseous Extent of Galaxies and the Origin of Lyα Absorption Systems. V. Optical and Near‐Infrared Photometry of Lyα‐absorbing Galaxies atz < 1
• The Broadband Optical Properties of Galaxies with Redshifts 0.02 < z < 0.22
• The nature and origin of low-redshift O vi absorbers
• Multiphase galaxy formation: high-velocity clouds and the missing baryon problem
• Where Are the Baryons?
• Scaling Relations of Spiral Galaxies

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• WARM GAS IN THE VIRGO CLUSTER. I. DISTRIBUTION OF Lyα ABSORBERS
• NEUTRAL HYDROGEN OPTICAL DEPTH NEAR STAR-FORMING GALAXIES ATz≈ 2.4 IN THE KECK BARYONIC STRUCTURE SURVEY
• On the connection between the metal-enriched intergalactic medium and galaxies: an O vi–galaxy cross-correlation study atz< 1
• Implications of the Large O vi Columns around Low-redshift L∗ Galaxies
• AN ULTRAVIOLET SPECTRUM OF THE TIDAL DISRUPTION FLARE ASASSN-14li
• A complete census of circumgalactic Mg ii at redshift z ≲ 0.5
• Efficient cold outflows driven by cosmic rays in high-redshift galaxies and their global effects on the IGM
• Effect of screening on spectroscopic properties of Li-like ions in a plasma environment
• Evidence for galaxy quenching in the green valley caused by a lack of a circumgalactic medium
• Effects of the radial inflow of gas and galactic fountains on the chemical evolution of M 31
• Relationship between the Metallicity of the Circumgalactic Medium and Galaxy Orientation
• A comparison of observed and simulated absorption from H i, C iv, and Si ivaroundz ≈ 2 star-forming galaxies suggests redshift–space distortions are due to inflows
• Baryon content and dynamic state of galaxy clusters:XMM–Newtonobservations of A1095 and A1926
• The COS Absorption Survey of Baryon Harbors (CASBaH): Warm–Hot Circumgalactic Gas Reservoirs Traced by Ne viii Absorption
• The Sources of Extreme Ultraviolet and Soft X-Ray Backgrounds
• A census of baryons in the Universe from localized fast radio bursts
• Trident: A Universal Tool for Generating Synthetic Absorption Spectra from Astrophysical Simulations
• The Intergalactic Medium