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The physical properties of galactic winds are one of the keys to understand galaxy formation and evolution. These properties can be constrained thanks to background quasar lines of sight (LOS) passing near star-forming galaxies (SFGs). We present the first results of the MusE GAs FLOw and Wind survey obtained from two quasar fields, which have eight Mg ii absorbers of which three have rest equivalent width greater than 0.8 Å. With the new Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) spectrograph on the Very Large Telescope (VLT), we detect six (75%) Mg ii host galaxy candidates within a radius of 30″ from the quasar LOS. Out of these six galaxy–quasar pairs, from geometrical argument, one is likely probing galactic outflows, where two are classified as “ambiguous,” two are likely probing extended gaseous disks and one pair seems to be a merger. We focus on the wind-pair and constrain the outflow using a high-resolution quasar spectra from the Ultraviolet and Visual Echelle Spectrograph. Assuming the metal absorption to be due to ga;s flowing out of the detected galaxy through a cone along the minor axis, we find outflow velocities in the order of ≈150 (i.e., smaller than the escape velocity) with a loading factor, , of ≈0.7. We see evidence for an open conical flow, with a low-density inner core. In the future, MUSE will provide us with about 80 multiple galaxy−quasar pairs in two dozen fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most frequently proposed model for the origin of quasars holds that the high accretion rates seen in luminous active galactic nuclei (AGN) are primarily triggered during major mergers between gas-rich galaxies. While plausible for decades, this model has only begun to be tested with statistical rigor in the past few years. Here, we report on a Hubble Space Telescope study to test this hypothesis for z = 2 quasars with high supermassive black hole masses ( ), which dominate cosmic black hole growth at this redshift. We compare Wide Field Camera 3 (rest-frame V-band) imaging of 19 point source-subtracted quasar hosts to a matched sample of 84 inactive galaxies, testing whether the quasar hosts have greater evidence for strong gravitational interactions. Using an expert ranking procedure, we find that the quasar hosts are uniformly distributed within the merger sequence of inactive galaxies, with no preference for quasars in high-distortion hosts. Using a merger/non-merger cutoff approach, we recover distortion fractions of for quasar hosts and for inactive galaxies (distribution modes, 68% confidence intervals), with both measurements subjected to the same observational conditions and limitations. The slight enhancement in distorted fraction for quasar hosts over inactive galaxies is not significant, with a probability that the quasar fraction is higher (), in line with results for lower mass and lower z AGN. We find no evidence that major mergers are the primary triggering mechanism for the massive quasars that dominate accretion at the peak of cosmic quasar activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use a background quasar to detect the presence of circumgalactic gas around a low-mass star-forming galaxy. Data from the new Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) on the Very Large Telescope show that the galaxy has a dust-corrected star formation rate (SFR) of 4.7 ± 2.0 M⊙ yr−1, with no companion down to 0.22 M⊙ yr−1 (5σ) within 240 kpc (“30”). Using a high-resolution spectrum of the background quasar, which is fortuitously aligned with the galaxy major axis (with an azimuth angle α of only 15°), we find, in the gas kinematics traced by low-ionization lines, distinct signatures consistent with those expected for a “cold-flow disk” extending at least 12 kpc (). We estimate the mass accretion rate to be at least two to three times larger than the SFR, using the geometric constraints from the IFU data and the H i column density of log / ≃ 20.4 obtained from a Hubble Space Telescope/COS near-UV spectrum. From a detailed analysis of the low-ionization lines (e.g., Zn ii, Cr ii, Ti ii, Mn ii, Si ii), the accreting material appears to be enriched to about 0.4 (albeit with large uncertainties: ), which is comparable to the galaxy metallicity (12 + log O/H = 8.7 ± 0.2), implying a large recycling fraction from past outflows. Blueshifted Mg ii and Fe ii absorptions in the galaxy spectrum from the MUSE data reveal the presence of an outflow. The Mg ii and Fe ii absorption line ratios indicate emission infilling due to scattering processes, but the MUSE data do not show any signs of fluorescent Fe ii* emission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]