Other
Scientific paper
Oct 1989
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1989apj...345..163p&link_type=abstract
Astrophysical Journal, Part 1 (ISSN 0004-637X), vol. 345, Oct. 1, 1989, p. 163-168.
Other
53
Emission Spectra, Interstellar Matter, Irregular Galaxies, Star Formation, Electron Energy, Far Infrared Radiation, Forbidden Bands, Ionization, Recombination Reactions, Stellar Mass
Scientific paper
Emission in the hydrogen recombination line H53-alpha has been detected, for the first time, in another galaxy: the nearby 'starburst' system M82. This line is produced primarily by spontaneous emission and provides the most direct, extinction-independent estimate of the ionization rate in the star-forming complex. The line strength implies an ionization rate of 1.1 x 10 to the 54th/s, approximately five times larger than that inferred from Br-alpha observations, and indicates a dust extinction at 4 microns of more than 1 mag. Comparison of the 3.3 mm free-free continuum and H53-alpha fluxes implies an average electron temperature of about 5000 K. Analysis of the line excitation conditions, using the H53-alpha emission in conjunction with that in the far-IR O(2+) and N(2+) forbidden lines, together with the IR luminosity, suggests that only a very restricted range of stellar masses are formed.
Brand Peter W. J. L.
Moore Justin Tatch
Mountain Charles M.
Nakai Noriyuki
Puxley Phil J.
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