MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I: Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5

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MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I : Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5. / Lofthouse, Emma K.; Fumagalli, Michele; Fossati, Matteo; O'Meara, John M.; Murphy, Michael T.; Christensen, Lise; Prochaska, J. Xavier; Cantalupo, Sebastiano; Bielby, Richard M.; Cooke, Ryan J.; Lusso, Elisabeta; Morris, Simon L.

In: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 491, No. 2, 02.01.2020, p. 2057-2074.

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

Harvard

Lofthouse, EK, Fumagalli, M, Fossati, M, O'Meara, JM, Murphy, MT, Christensen, L, Prochaska, JX, Cantalupo, S, Bielby, RM, Cooke, RJ, Lusso, E & Morris, SL 2020, 'MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I: Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5', Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, vol. 491, no. 2, pp. 2057-2074. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stz3066

APA

Lofthouse, E. K., Fumagalli, M., Fossati, M., O'Meara, J. M., Murphy, M. T., Christensen, L., Prochaska, J. X., Cantalupo, S., Bielby, R. M., Cooke, R. J., Lusso, E., & Morris, S. L. (2020). MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I: Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 491(2), 2057-2074. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stz3066

Vancouver

Lofthouse EK, Fumagalli M, Fossati M, O'Meara JM, Murphy MT, Christensen L et al. MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I: Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 2020 Jan 2;491(2):2057-2074. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stz3066

Author

Lofthouse, Emma K. ; Fumagalli, Michele ; Fossati, Matteo ; O'Meara, John M. ; Murphy, Michael T. ; Christensen, Lise ; Prochaska, J. Xavier ; Cantalupo, Sebastiano ; Bielby, Richard M. ; Cooke, Ryan J. ; Lusso, Elisabeta ; Morris, Simon L. / MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I : Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5. In: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 2020 ; Vol. 491, No. 2. pp. 2057-2074.

Bibtex

@article{2e44ce9b869248f0820b11002ebdf15f,
title = "MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I: Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5",
abstract = "We present the design, methods, and first results of the MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) survey, a large programme on the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which targets 28 z > 3.2 quasars to investigate the connection between optically thick gas and galaxies at z similar to 3-4. MAGG maps the environment of 52 strong absorption line systems at z greater than or similar to 3, providing the first statistical sample of galaxies associated with gas-rich structures in the early Universe. In this paper, we study the galaxy population around a very metal poor gas cloud at z approximate to 3.53 towards the quasar J124957.23-015928.8. We detect three Ly alpha emitters within less than or similar to 200 km s(-1) of the cloud redshift, at projected separations less than or similar to 185 kpc (physical). The presence of star-forming galaxies near a very metal-poor cloud indicates that metal enrichment is still spatially inhomogeneous at this redshift. Based on its very low metallicity and the presence of nearby galaxies, we propose that the most likely scenario for this Lyman Limit System (LLS) is that it lies within a filament which may be accreting on to a nearby galaxy. Taken together with the small number of other LLSs studied with MUSE, the observations to date show a range of different environments near strong absorption systems. The full MAGG survey will significantly expand this sample and enable a statistical analysis of the link between gas and galaxies to pin down the origin of these diverse environments at z approximate to 3-4.",
keywords = "galaxies: evolution, galaxies: formation, galaxies: haloes, galaxies: high-redshift, quasars: absorption lines, LY-ALPHA-EMISSION, STAR-FORMING GALAXIES, LBG REDSHIFT SURVEY, CIRCUMGALACTIC MEDIUM, ECHELLE SPECTROGRAPH, INTERGALACTIC MEDIUM, EMITTING GALAXIES, ABSORPTION, QUASAR, ACCRETION",
author = "Lofthouse, {Emma K.} and Michele Fumagalli and Matteo Fossati and O'Meara, {John M.} and Murphy, {Michael T.} and Lise Christensen and Prochaska, {J. Xavier} and Sebastiano Cantalupo and Bielby, {Richard M.} and Cooke, {Ryan J.} and Elisabeta Lusso and Morris, {Simon L.}",
year = "2020",
month = jan,
day = "2",
doi = "10.1093/mnras/stz3066",
language = "English",
volume = "491",
pages = "2057--2074",
journal = "Royal Astronomical Society. Monthly Notices",
issn = "0035-8711",
publisher = "Oxford University Press",
number = "2",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) - I

T2 - Survey design and the environment of a near pristine gas cloud at z approximate to 3.5

AU - Lofthouse, Emma K.

AU - Fumagalli, Michele

AU - Fossati, Matteo

AU - O'Meara, John M.

AU - Murphy, Michael T.

AU - Christensen, Lise

AU - Prochaska, J. Xavier

AU - Cantalupo, Sebastiano

AU - Bielby, Richard M.

AU - Cooke, Ryan J.

AU - Lusso, Elisabeta

AU - Morris, Simon L.

PY - 2020/1/2

Y1 - 2020/1/2

N2 - We present the design, methods, and first results of the MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) survey, a large programme on the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which targets 28 z > 3.2 quasars to investigate the connection between optically thick gas and galaxies at z similar to 3-4. MAGG maps the environment of 52 strong absorption line systems at z greater than or similar to 3, providing the first statistical sample of galaxies associated with gas-rich structures in the early Universe. In this paper, we study the galaxy population around a very metal poor gas cloud at z approximate to 3.53 towards the quasar J124957.23-015928.8. We detect three Ly alpha emitters within less than or similar to 200 km s(-1) of the cloud redshift, at projected separations less than or similar to 185 kpc (physical). The presence of star-forming galaxies near a very metal-poor cloud indicates that metal enrichment is still spatially inhomogeneous at this redshift. Based on its very low metallicity and the presence of nearby galaxies, we propose that the most likely scenario for this Lyman Limit System (LLS) is that it lies within a filament which may be accreting on to a nearby galaxy. Taken together with the small number of other LLSs studied with MUSE, the observations to date show a range of different environments near strong absorption systems. The full MAGG survey will significantly expand this sample and enable a statistical analysis of the link between gas and galaxies to pin down the origin of these diverse environments at z approximate to 3-4.

AB - We present the design, methods, and first results of the MUSE Analysis of Gas around Galaxies (MAGG) survey, a large programme on the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which targets 28 z > 3.2 quasars to investigate the connection between optically thick gas and galaxies at z similar to 3-4. MAGG maps the environment of 52 strong absorption line systems at z greater than or similar to 3, providing the first statistical sample of galaxies associated with gas-rich structures in the early Universe. In this paper, we study the galaxy population around a very metal poor gas cloud at z approximate to 3.53 towards the quasar J124957.23-015928.8. We detect three Ly alpha emitters within less than or similar to 200 km s(-1) of the cloud redshift, at projected separations less than or similar to 185 kpc (physical). The presence of star-forming galaxies near a very metal-poor cloud indicates that metal enrichment is still spatially inhomogeneous at this redshift. Based on its very low metallicity and the presence of nearby galaxies, we propose that the most likely scenario for this Lyman Limit System (LLS) is that it lies within a filament which may be accreting on to a nearby galaxy. Taken together with the small number of other LLSs studied with MUSE, the observations to date show a range of different environments near strong absorption systems. The full MAGG survey will significantly expand this sample and enable a statistical analysis of the link between gas and galaxies to pin down the origin of these diverse environments at z approximate to 3-4.

KW - galaxies: evolution

KW - galaxies: formation

KW - galaxies: haloes

KW - galaxies: high-redshift

KW - quasars: absorption lines

KW - LY-ALPHA-EMISSION

KW - STAR-FORMING GALAXIES

KW - LBG REDSHIFT SURVEY

KW - CIRCUMGALACTIC MEDIUM

KW - ECHELLE SPECTROGRAPH

KW - INTERGALACTIC MEDIUM

KW - EMITTING GALAXIES

KW - ABSORPTION

KW - QUASAR

KW - ACCRETION

U2 - 10.1093/mnras/stz3066

DO - 10.1093/mnras/stz3066

M3 - Journal article

VL - 491

SP - 2057

EP - 2074

JO - Royal Astronomical Society. Monthly Notices

JF - Royal Astronomical Society. Monthly Notices

SN - 0035-8711

IS - 2

ER -

ID: 248237870