SBS 0335-052W: The Lowest-Metallicity Star-Forming Galaxy Known

Details SBS 0335-052W: The Lowest-Metallicity Star-Forming Galaxy Known SBS 0335-052W: The Lowest-Metallicity Star-Forming Galaxy Known

2005-06-21

arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0506498v1

Astrophys.J.632:210-216,2005

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

13 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal

Scientific paper

10.1086/432874

We present 4-meter Kitt Peak telescope and 6.5-meter MMT spectrophotometry of the extremely low-metallicity galaxy SBS 0335-052W, the western companion of the blue compact dwarf galaxy SBS 0335-052E. These observations have been combined with published 10-meter Keck data to derive for the brightest region of SBS 0335-052W an oxygen abundance 12+logO/H=7.12+/-0.03. This makes SBS 0335-052W the lowest metallicity star-forming galaxy known in the local universe. Using a Monte Carlo technique, we fit the spectral energy distribution of SBS 0335-052W to derive the age of the oldest stars contributing to its optical light. We find that star formation in SBS 0335-052W began less than 500 Myr ago, making it a likely nearby young dwarf galaxy.

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