Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Apr 1996
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1996apj...461..724d&link_type=abstract
Astrophysical Journal v.461, p.724
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
52
Galaxies: Halos, Galaxies: Individual Ngc Number: Ngc 3628, Radiation Mechanisms: Thermal, X-Rays: Galaxies
Scientific paper
In a 14 ks ROSAT Position Sensitive Proportional Counter pointing we detected an extended (28 x 40 kpc) halo of hot tenuous gas around NGC 3628, with a flat emission distribution and a temperature of T~2 x 10^6^ K. The soft X-ray luminosity of the halo gas in the 0.1-2.0 keV band is ~8 x 10^39^ ergs s^-1^, and the total soft X-ray luminosity of NGC 3628 is approximately 2.1 x 1040 ergs s^-1^. The most likely heating source for the halo gas are the shocks resulting from a supernova-driven outflow from the circumnuclear starburst. propagating through the halo interstellar medium. Both the morphology and the line ratios of associated optical emission-line gas are consistent with this interpretation. In many respects the soft X-ray halo of NGC 3628 resembles those of other nearby, edge-on star-burst galaxies like, e.g., M82 and NGC 253. Its size and radiative cooling time indicate that halos like that of NGC 3628 have to be considered as potentially important contributors to the population of quasi-stellar object absorption-line systems. With two exceptions, most of the compact X-ray sources seen in projection within the halo of NGC 3628 are probably background active galactic nuclei. The remaining two sources might be condensations in the shock-heated halo gas. The soft X-ray properties of a few sources in the disk of NGC 3628 are consistent with those of high-mass X-ray binaries or powerful young supernova remnants. The PSPC spectrum of NGC 3627, which was within the field of view during our observations, also exhibits the typical characteristics of a starburst galaxy. It can be approximated_by a power law + Raymond-Smith model with a total soft X-ray luminosity of L_x_ = 1.1 x 10^40^ ergs s^- 1^.
Dahlem Michael
Fabbiano Giuseppina
Gilmore Diane
Heckman Timothy M.
Lehnert Matthew D.
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