Browsing by Subject "stellar dynamics"

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Gemini And Hubble Space Telescope Evidence For An Intermediate-Mass Black Hole In Omega Centauri
(2008-04) Noyola, Eva; Gebhardt, Karl; Bergmann, Marcel; Noyola, Eva; Gebhardt, Karl
The globular cluster omega Centauri is one of the largest and most massive members of the galactic system. However, its classification as a globular cluster has been challenged making it a candidate for being the stripped core of an accreted dwarf galaxy; this together with the fact that it has one of the largest velocity dispersions for star clusters in our galaxy makes it an interesting candidate for harboring an intermediate-mass black hole. We measure the surface brightness profile from integrated light on an HSTACS image of the center, and find a central power-law cusp of logarithmic slope -0.08. We also analyze Gemini GMOS-IFU kinematic data for a 5 '' x 5 '' field centered on the nucleus of the cluster, as well as for a field 1400 away. We detect a clear rise in the velocity dispersion from 18.6 km s(-1) at 1400 to 23 km s(-1) in the center. A rise in the velocity dispersion could be due to a central black hole, a central concentration of stellar remnants, or a central orbital structure that is radially biased. We discuss each of these possibilities. An isotropic, spherical dynamical model implies a black hole mass of 4.0(-1.0)(+0.75) x 10(4) M-circle dot, and excludes the no black hole case at greater than 99% significance. We have also run flattened, orbit-based models and find similar results. While our preferred model is the existence of a central black hole, detailed numerical simulations are required to confidently rule out the other possibilities.
Kinematics At the Edge of the Galactic Bulge: Evidence for Cylindrical Rotation
(2009-09) Howard, Christian D.; Rich, R. Michael; Clarkson, Will; Mallery, Ryan; Kormendy, John; De Propris, Roberto; Robin, Anne C.; Fux, Roger; Reitzel, David B.; Zhao, HongSheng; Kuijken, Konrad; Koch, Andreas; Kormendy, John
We present new results from BRAVA, a large-scale radial velocity survey of the Galactic bulge, using M giant stars selected from the Two Micron All Sky Survey catalog as targets for the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory 4 m Hydra multi-object spectrograph. The purpose of this survey is to construct a new generation of self-consistent bar models that conform to these observations. We report the dynamics for fields at the edge of the Galactic bulge at latitudes b = -8 degrees and compare to the dynamics at b = -4 degrees. We find that the rotation curve V (r) is the same at b = -8 degrees as at b = -4 degrees. That is, the Galactic boxy bulge rotates cylindrically, as do boxy bulges of other galaxies. The summed line-of-sight velocity distribution at b = -8 degrees is Gaussian, and the binned longitude-velocity plot shows no evidence for either a (disk) population with cold dynamics or for a (classical bulge) population with hot dynamics. The observed kinematics are well modeled by an edge-on N-body bar, in agreement with published structural evidence. Our kinematic observations indicate that the Galactic bulge is a prototypical product of secular evolution in galaxy disks, in contrast with stellar population results that are most easily understood if major mergers were the dominant Formation process.
The M-Sigma And M-L Relations In Galactic Bulges, And Determinations Of Their Intrinsic Scatter
(2009-06) Gultekin, Kayhan; Richstone, Douglas O.; Gebhardt, Karl; Lauer, Tod R.; Tremaine, Scott; Aller, Monique C.; Bender, Ralf; Dressler, Alan; Faber, S. M.; Filippenko, Alexei V.; Green, Richard; Ho, Luis C.; Kormendy, John; Magorrian, John; Pinkney, Jason; Siopis, Christos; Gebhardt, Karl; Kormendy, John
We derive improved versions of the relations between supermassive black hole mass (MBH) and host-galaxy bulge velocity dispersion (sigma) and luminosity (L; the M-sigma and M-L relations), based on 49 M-BH measurements and 19 upper limits. Particular attention is paid to recovery of the intrinsic scatter (epsilon(0)) in both relations. We find log(M-BH/M-circle dot) = alpha + beta log(sigma/ 200 km s(-1)) with (alpha, beta, epsilon(0)) = (8.12 +/- 0.08, 4.24 +/- 0.41, 0.44 +/- 0.06) for all galaxies and (alpha, beta, epsilon(0)) = (8.23 +/- 0.08, 3.96 +/- 0.42, 0.31 +/- 0.06) for ellipticals. The results for ellipticals are consistent with previous studies, but the intrinsic scatter recovered for spirals is significantly larger. The scatter inferred reinforces the need for its consideration when calculating local black hole mass function based on the M-sigma relation, and further implies that there may be substantial selection bias in studies of the evolution of the M-sigma relation. We estimate the M-L relationship as log(M-BH/M-circle dot) = alpha + beta log(L-V/10(11) L-circle dot,L- V) of (alpha, beta, epsilon(0)) = (8.95 +/- 0.11, 1.11 +/- 0.18, 0.38 +/- 0.09); using only early-type galaxies. These results appear to be insensitive to a wide range of assumptions about the measurement errors and the distribution of intrinsic scatter. We show that culling the sample according to the resolution of the black hole's sphere of influence biases the relations to larger mean masses, larger slopes, and incorrect intrinsic residuals.
Observable Properties Of Double-Barred Galaxies In N-Body Simulations
(2009-01) Shen, Juntai T.; Debattista, Victor P.; Shen, Juntai T.
Although at least one quarter of early-type barred galaxies host secondary stellar bars embedded in their large-scale primary counterparts, the dynamics of such double-barred galaxies are still not well understood. Recently we reported success at simulating such systems in a repeatable way in collisionless systems. In order to further our understanding of double-barred galaxies, here we characterize the density and kinematics of the N-body simulations of these galaxies. This will facilitate comparison with observations and lead to a better understanding of the observed double-barred galaxies. We find the shape and size of our simulated secondary bars are quite reasonable compared to the observed ones. We demonstrate that an authentic decoupled secondary bar may produce only a weak twist of the kinematic minor axis in the stellar velocity field, due to the relatively large random motion of stars in the central region. We also find that the edge-on nuclear bars are probably not related to boxy peanut-shaped bulges which are most likely to be edge-on primary large-scale bars. Another kinematic feature often present in our double-barred models is a ring-like feature in the fourth-order Gauss-Hermite moment h(4) maps. Finally, we demonstrate that the non-rigid rotation of the secondary bar causes its pattern speed to not be derived with great accuracy using the Tremaine-Weinberg method. We also compare with observations of NGC 2950, a prototypical double-barred early-type galaxy, which suggest that the nuclear bar may be rotating in the opposite sense as the primary.
Very Large Telescope Kinematics for Omega Centauri: Further Support for A Central Black Hole
(2010-08) Noyola, Eva; Gebhardt, Karl; Kissler-Patig, Markus; Lutzgendorf, Nora; Jalali, Behrang; de Zeeuw, P. T.; Baumgardt, Holger; Gebhardt, Karl
The Galactic globular cluster. Centauri is a prime candidate for hosting an intermediate- mass black hole. Recent measurements lead to contradictory conclusions on this issue. We use VLT- FLAMES to obtain new integrated spectra for the central region of. Centauri. We combine these data with existing measurements of the radial velocity dispersion profile taking into account a new derived center from kinematics and two different centers from the literature. The data support previous measurements performed for a smaller field of view and show a discrepancy with the results from a large proper motion data set. We see a rise in the radial velocity dispersion in the central region to 22.8 +/- 1.2 km s(-1), which provides a strong sign for a central black hole. Isotropic dynamical models for. Centauri imply black hole masses ranging from 3.0 x 10(4) to 5.2 x 10(4) M(circle dot) depending on the center. The best-fitted mass is (4.7 +/- 1.0) x 10(4) M(circle dot).