The Excitation of the Galactic Wind in M82: HST and Keck Observations

Details The Excitation of the Galactic Wind in M82: HST and Keck Observations The Excitation of the Galactic Wind in M82: HST and Keck Observations

Jan 1998

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1998baas...30..767s&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society Meeting, 191, #129.12

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

We present preliminary results from an optical emission-line study of the ionized gas in the nearby starburst galaxy M82. HST WFPC2 narrow-band imagery at Hα 6563 Angstroms and [NII] 6583 Angstroms wavelengths has been combined with deep Keck spectra in the 4000 Angstroms-7000 Angstroms range, in order to parameterize the excitation, composition, density, and kinematics of the ionized gas component. The HST imagery reveal a low [NII]/Hα ratio ( ~ 0.3) in the inner regions of the outflow, suggesting that the optical filaments may be ionized, at least in part, by energetic photons from the starburst nucleus. The importance of shock excitation of the wind gas at small radii is not yet clear. We also observe a high [NII]/Hα ratio ( ~ 1.0) in the extended disk of the galaxy, indicating the presence of a diffuse ionized medium (DIM) in this system. The presence of such a component is not unexpected, given the chaotic nature of this galaxy, however some effort must be made to explain its presence, in light of the relatively low star formation rate outside the nuclear starburst region. Analysis of the [SII] doublet in the Keck spectra reveals ionized gas densities as high as 500 cm(-3) in the inner optical filaments. The kinematics of the ionized gas correlate well with previously published longslit and Fabry-Perot observations.

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