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The first James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) data on the massive colliding cluster El Gordo allow for 23 known families of multiply lensed images to be confirmed and for eight new members of these families to be identified. Based on these families, which have been confirmed spectroscopically by MUSE, we derived an initial lens model. This model guided the identification of 37 additional families of multiply lensed galaxies, among which 28 are entirely new systems, and nine were previously known. The initial lens model determined geometric redshifts for the 37 new systems. The geometric redshifts agree reasonably well with spectroscopic or photometric redshifts when those are available. The geometric redshifts enable two additional models that include all 60 families of multiply lensed galaxies spanning a redshift range 2 < z < 6. The derived dark-matter distribution confirms the double-peak configuration of mass found by earlier work with the southern and northern clumps having similar masses. We confirm that El Gordo is the most massive known cluster at z > 0:8 and has an estimated virial mass close the maximum mass allowed by standard cosmological models. The JWST images also reveal the presence of small-mass perturbers that produce small lensing distortions. The smallest of these is consistent with being a dwarf galaxy at z = 0:87 and has an estimated mass of 3:8 109 M, making it the smallest substructure found at z > 0:5. The JWST images also show several candidate caustic-crossing events. One of them is detected at high significance at the expected position of the critical curve and is likely a red supergiant star at z = 2:1878. This would be the first red supergiant found at cosmological distances. The cluster lensing should magnify background objects at z > 6, making more of them visible than in blank fields of a similar size, but there appears to be a deficiency of such objects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent analysis of strongly lensed sources in the Hubble Frontier Fields indicates that the restframe UV luminosity function of galaxies at z=6-8 rises as a power law down to MUV=-15, and possibly as faint as-12.5.We use predictions from a cosmological radiation hydrodynamic simulation to map these luminosities on to physical space, constraining the minimum dark matter halo mass and stellar mass that the Frontier Fields probe. While previously published theoretical studies have suggested or assumed that early star formation was suppressed in haloes less massive than 109-1011M, we find that recent observations demand vigorous star formation in haloes at least as massive as (3.1, 5.6, 10.5) ×109M&#8857; at z = (6, 7, 8). Likewise, we find that Frontier Fields observations probe down to stellar masses of (8.1, 18, 32) ×106M⊙: that is, they are observing the likely progenitors of analogues to Local Group dwarfs such as Pegasus and M32. Our simulations yield somewhat different constraints than two complementary models that have been invoked in similar analyses, emphasizing the need for further observational constraints on the galaxy-halo connection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent analysis of strongly lensed sources in the Hubble Frontier Fields indicates that the restframe UV luminosity function of galaxies at z=6-8 rises as a power law down to MUV=-15, and possibly as faint as-12.5.We use predictions from a cosmological radiation hydrodynamic simulation to map these luminosities on to physical space, constraining the minimum dark matter halo mass and stellar mass that the Frontier Fields probe. While previously published theoretical studies have suggested or assumed that early star formation was suppressed in haloes less massive than 109-1011M⊙, we find that recent observations demand vigorous star formation in haloes at least as massive as (3.1, 5.6, 10.5) × 109M⊙ at z = (6, 7, 8). Likewise, we find that Frontier Fields observations probe down to stellar masses of (8.1, 18, 32) × 106M⊙: that is, they are observing the likely progenitors of analogues to Local Group dwarfs such as Pegasus and M32. Our simulations yield somewhat different constraints than two complementary models that have been invoked in similar analyses, emphasizing the need for further observational constraints on the galaxy-halo connection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sources that drove cosmological reionization left clues regarding their identity in the slope and inhomogeneity of the ultraviolet ionizing background (UVB): bright quasars (QSOs) generate a hardUVBwith predominantly large-scale fluctuations while Population II stars generate a softer one with smaller scale fluctuations. Metal absorbers probe the UVB's slope because different ions are sensitive to different energies. Likewise, they probe spatial fluctuations because they originate in regions where a galaxy-driven UVB is harder and more intense. We take a first step towards studying the reionization-epoch UVB's slope and inhomogeneity by comparing observations of 12 metal absorbers at z~6 versus predictions from a cosmological hydrodynamic simulation using three different UVBs: a soft, spatially inhomogeneous 'galaxies+QSOs' UVB; a homogeneous 'galaxies+QSOs' UVB, and a 'QSOs-only' model. All UVBs reproduce the observed column density distributions of CII, Si IV, and CIV reasonably well although high-column, high-ionization absorbers are underproduced, reflecting numerical limitations. With upper limits treated as detections, only a soft, fluctuating UVB reproduces both the observed Si IV/CIV and CII/CIV distributions. The QSOs-only UVB overpredicts both CIV/CII and CIV/Si IV, indicating that it is too hard. The Haardt &Madau (2012) UVB underpredicts CIV/Si IV, suggesting that it lacks amplifications near galaxies. Hence current observations prefer a soft, fluctuating UVB as expected from a predominantly Population II background although they cannot rule out a harder one. Future observations probing a factor of 2 deeper in metal column density will distinguish between the soft, fluctuating and QSOs-only UVBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We test the predictions of spectral synthesis models based on seven different massive-star prescriptions against Legacy ExtraGalactic UV Survey (LEGUS) observations of eight young massive clusters in two local galaxies, NGC 1566 and NGC 5253, chosen because predictions of all seven models are available at the published galactic metallicities. The high angular resolution, extensive cluster inventory, and full near-ultraviolet to near-infrared photometric coverage make the LEGUS data set excellent for this study. We account for both stellar and nebular emission in the models and try two different prescriptions for attenuation by dust. From Bayesian fits of model libraries to the observations, we find remarkably low dispersion in the median E(B - V) (~0.03 mag), stellar masses (~104M⊙), and ages (~1 Myr) derived for individual clusters using different models, although maximum discrepancies in these quantities can reach 0.09 mag and factors of 2.8 and 2.5, respectively. This is for ranges in median properties of 0.05-0.54 mag, 1.8-10 ? 104M⊙, and 1.6-40 Myr spanned by the clusters in our sample. In terms of best fit, the observations are slightly better reproduced by models with interacting binaries and least well reproduced by models with single rotating stars. Our study provides a first quantitative estimate of the accuracies and uncertainties of the most recent spectral synthesis models of young stellar populations, demonstrates the good progress of models in fitting high-quality observations, and highlights the needs for a larger cluster sample and more extensive tests of the model parameter space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the prospects for constraining the ionized fraction of the intergalactic medium (IGM) at z > 6 with the next generation of large Lyα emitter surveys. We make predictions for the upcoming Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) Lyα survey and a hypothetical spectroscopic survey performed with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Considering various scenarios where the observed evolution of the Lyα luminosity function of Lyα emitters at z > 6 is explained partly by an increasingly neutral IGM and partly by intrinsic galaxy evolution, we show how clustering measurements will be able to distinguish between these scenarios. We find that the HSC survey should be able to detect the additional clustering induced by a neutral IGM if the global IGM neutral fraction is greater than ∼20 per cent at z = 6.5. If measurements of the Lyα equivalent widths (EWs) are also available, neutral fractions as small as 10 per cent may be detectable by looking for correlation between the EW and the local number density of objects. In this case, if it should turn out that the IGM is significantly neutral at z = 6.5 and the intrinsic EW distribution is relatively narrow, the observed EWs can also be used to construct a map of the locations and approximate sizes of the largest ionized regions. For the JWST survey, the results appear a bit less optimistic. Since such surveys probe a large range of redshifts, the effects of the IGM will be mixed up with any intrinsic galaxy evolution that is present, making it difficult to disentangle the effects. However, we show that a survey with the JWST will have a possibility of observing a large group of galaxies at z ∼ 7, which would be a strong indication of a partially neutral IGM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims. We present deep surface photometry of a volume-limited sample of 21 UM emission line galaxies in broadband optical UBVRI and near infrared (NIR) HKs filters. The sample comprises 19 blue compact galaxies (BCGs) and two spirals. Methods. We separated the burst and host populations for each galaxy and compared them to stellar evolutionary models with and without nebular emission contribution. We measured and analyzed the A180 asymmetry in all filters, the concentration index C, the scale length, and the central surface brightness of the host galaxy. Results. A shift in the average A180 asymmetry is detected from optical to NIR. This shift seems correlated with the morphological class of the BCGs. Using the color-asymmetry relation, we identify five BCGs in the sample as mergers, which is confirmed by their morphological class. Though clearly separated from normal galaxies in the concentration-asymmetry parameter space, we find that it is not possible to distinguish luminous starbursting BCGs from the merely star forming low luminosity BCGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims. We present deep surface photometry of a volume-limited sample of 21 UM emission line galaxies in broadband optical UBVRI and near infrared (NIR) HKs filters. The sample comprises 19 blue compact galaxies (BCGs) and two spirals. Methods. We separated the burst and host populations for each galaxy and compared them to stellar evolutionary models with and without nebular emission contribution. We measured and analyzed the A180 asymmetry in all filters, the concentration index C, the scale length, and the central surface brightness of the host galaxy. Results. A shift in the average A180 asymmetry is detected from optical to NIR. This shift seems correlated with the morphological class of the BCGs. Using the color-asymmetry relation, we identify five BCGs in the sample as mergers, which is confirmed by their morphological class. Though clearly separated from normal galaxies in the concentration-asymmetry parameter space, we find that it is not possible to distinguish luminous starbursting BCGs from the merely star forming low luminosity BCGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze the clump population of the spiral galaxy Sp 1149 at redshift 1.5. Located behind the galaxy cluster MACS J1149.5+2223, Sp 1149 has been significantly magnified allowing us to study the galaxy on physical scales down to ∼100 pc. The galaxy cluster frame is among the targets of the Cluster Lensing And Supernova survey with Hubble (CLASH), an ongoing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Multi-Cycle Treasury program. We have used the publicly available multi-band imaging data set to reconstruct the spectral energy distributions of the clumps in Sp 1149, and derive, by means of stellar evolutionary models, their physical properties. We found that 40% of the clumps observed in Sp 1149 are older than 30 Myr and can be as old as 300 Myr. These are also the more massive (luminous) clumps in the galaxy. Among the complexes in the local reference sample, the star-forming knots in luminous blue compact galaxies could be considered progenitor analogs of these long-lived clumps. The remaining 60% of clumps have colors comparable to local cluster complexes, suggesting a similar young age. We observe that the Sp 1149 clumps follow the M α R2 relation similar to local cluster complexes, suggesting similar formation mechanisms although they may have different initial conditions (e.g., higher gas surface densities). We suggest that the galaxy is experiencing a slow decline in star formation rate and a likely transitional phase toward a more quiescent star formation mode. The older clumps have survived between 6 and 20 dynamical times and are all located at projected distances smaller than 4 kpc from the center. Their current location suggests migration toward the center and the possibility of being the building blocks of the bulge. On the other hand, the dynamical timescale of the younger clumps is significantly shorter, meaning that they are quite close to their birthplace. We show that the clumps of Sp 1149 may account for the expected metal-rich globular cluster population usually associated with the bulge and thick disk components of local spirals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT We report the discovery of a ring-like cluster complex in the starburst galaxy NGC 2146. The Ruby Ring, so named due to its appearance, shows a clear ring-like distribution of star clusters around a central object. It is located in one of the tidal streams that surround the galaxy. NGC 2146 is part of the Snapshot Hubble U-band Cluster Survey (SHUCS). The WFC3/ F336 W data have added critical information to the available archival Hubble Space Telescope imaging set of NGC 2146, allowing us to determine ages, masses and extinctions of the clusters in the Ruby Ring. These properties have then been used to investigate the formation of this extraordinary system. We find evidence of a spatial and temporal correlation between the central cluster and the clusters in the ring. The latter are about 4 Myr younger than the central cluster, which has an age of 7 Myr. This result is supported by the Hα emission which is strongly coincident with the ring, and weaker at the position of the central cluster. From the derived total Hα luminosity of the system, we constrain the star formation rate density to be quite high (ΣSFR = 0.47 M⊙ yr−1 kpc−2). The Ruby Ring is the product of an intense and localized burst of star formation, similar to the extended cluster complexes observed in M 51 and the Antennae, but more impressive because it is quite isolated. The central cluster contains only 5 per cent of the total stellar mass in the clusters that are determined within the complex. The ring-like morphology, the age spread and the mass ratio support a triggering formation scenario for this complex. We discuss the formation of the Ruby Ring in a 'collect and collapse' framework. The predictions made by this model agree quite well with the estimated bubble radius and expansion velocity produced by the feedback from the central cluster, making the Ruby Ring an interesting case of triggered star formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The stellar haloes of galaxies can currently be studied either through observations of resolved halo stars or through surface photometry. Curiously, the two methods appear to give conflicting results, as a number of surface photometry measurements have revealed integrated colours that are too red to be reconciled with the halo properties inferred from the study of resolved stars. Several explanations for this anomaly have been proposed - including dust photoluminescence, extinction of extragalactic background light and a bottom-heavy stellar initial mass function. A decisive test is, however, still lacking. Here, we explain how observations of the halo of a nearby galaxy, involving a combination of both surface photometry and bright star counts, can be used to distinguish between the proposed explanations. We derive the observational requirements for this endeavour and find that star counts in filters VI and surface photometry in filters VIJ appear to be the optimal strategy. Since the required halo star counts are already available for many nearby galaxies, the most challenging part of this test is likely to be the optical surface photometry, which requires several nights of exposure time on a 4-8 m telescope, and the near-infrared surface photometry, which is most readily carried out using the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT We study the stellar cluster population in two adjacent fields in the nearby, face-on spiral galaxy M83 using multiwavelength Wide Field Camera 3/ Hubble Space Telescope imaging. After automatic detection procedures, the clusters are selected through visual inspection to be centrally concentrated, symmetric, and resolved on the images, which allows us to differentiate between clusters and likely unbound associations. We compare our sample with previous studies and show that the differences between the catalogues are largely due to the inclusion of a large numbers of diffuse associations within previous catalogues as well as the inclusion of the central starburst region, where the completeness limit is significantly worse than in the surrounding regions. We derive the size distribution of the clusters, which is well described by a lognormal distribution with a peak at ∼2.5 pc, and find evidence for an expansion in the half-light radius of clusters with age. The luminosity function of the clusters is well approximated by a power law with an index of −2 over most of the observed range; however, a steepening is seen at M V=−9.3 and −8.8 in the inner and outer fields, respectively. Additionally, we show that the cluster population is inconsistent with a pure power-law mass distribution, but instead exhibits a truncation at the high-mass end. If described as a Schechter function, the characteristic mass is 1.6 × 105 and 0.5 × 105 M⊙ for the inner and outer fields, respectively, in agreement with previous estimates of other cluster populations in spiral galaxies. Comparing the predictions of the mass-independent disruption (MID) and mass-dependent disruption (MDD) scenarios with the observed distributions, we find that both models can accurately fit the data. However, for the MID case, the fraction of clusters destroyed (or mass lost) per decade in age is dependent on the environment; hence, the age and mass distributions of clusters are not universal. In the MDD case, the disruption time-scale scales with galactocentric distance (being longer in the outer regions of the galaxy) in agreement with analytic and numerical predictions. Finally, we discuss the implications of our results on other extragalactic surveys, focusing on the fraction of stars that form in clusters and the need (or lack thereof) for infant mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The numerous and massive young star clusters in blue compact galaxies (BCGs) are used to investigate the properties of their hosts. We test whether BCGs follow claimed relations between cluster populations and their hosts, such as the fraction of the total luminosity contributed by the clusters as function of the mean star formation rate (SFR) density, the V-band luminosity of the brightest youngest cluster as related to the mean host SFR and the cluster formation efficiency (i.e. the fraction of star formation happening in star clusters) versus the density of the SFR. We find that BCGs follow the trends, supporting a scenario where cluster formation and environmental properties of the host are correlated. They occupy, in all the diagrams, the regions of higher SFRs, as expected by the extreme nature of the starbursts operating in these systems. We find that the star clusters contribute almost to the 20 per cent of the UV luminosity of the hosts. We suggest that the BCG starburst environment has most likely favoured the compression and collapse of the giant molecular clouds, enhancing the local star formation efficiency, so that massive clusters have been formed. The estimated cluster formation efficiency supports this scenario. BCGs have a cluster formation efficiency comparable to luminous IR galaxies and spiral starburst nuclei (the averaged value is ∼35 per cent) which is much higher than the 8-10 per cent reported for quiescent spirals and dwarf star-forming galaxies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Using multiwavelength imaging from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope we study the stellar cluster populations of two adjacent fields in the nearby face-on spiral galaxy, M83. The observations cover the galactic centre and reach out to ∼6 kpc, thereby spanning a large range of environmental conditions, ideal for testing empirical laws of cluster disruption. The clusters are selected by visual inspection to be centrally concentrated, symmetric and resolved on the images. We find that a large fraction of objects detected by automated algorithms (e.g. SE xtractor or daofind) are not clusters, but rather are associations. These are likely to disperse into the field on time-scales of tens of Myr due to their lower stellar densities and not due to gas expulsion (i.e. they were never gravitationally bound). We split the sample into two discrete fields (inner and outer regions of the galaxy) and search for evidence of environmentally dependent cluster disruption. Colour-colour diagrams of the clusters, when compared to simple stellar population models, already indicate that a much larger fraction of the clusters in the outer field are older by tens of Myr than in the inner field. This impression is quantified by estimating each cluster's properties (age, mass and extinction) and comparing the age/mass distributions between the two fields. Our results are inconsistent with 'universal' age and mass distributions of clusters, and instead show that the ambient environment strongly affects the observed populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT We present the analysis of the large population of star clusters in the blue compact galaxy (BCG) Mrk 930. The study has been conducted by means of a photometric analysis of multiband data obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope ( HST). We have reconstructed the spectral energy distributions of the star clusters and estimated the age, mass and extinction for a representative sample. Similar to previous studies of star clusters in BCGs, we observe a very young cluster population with 70 per cent of the systems formed less than 10 Myr ago. In Mrk 930, the peak in the star cluster age distribution at 4 Myr is corroborated by the presence of Wolf-Rayet spectral features, and by the observed optical and infrared (IR) line ratios [O iii]/Hβ and [Ne iii]/[Ne ii]. The recovered extinction in these very young clusters shows large variations, with a decrease at older ages. It is likely that our analysis is limited to the optically brightest objects (i.e. systems only partially embedded in their natal cocoons; the deeply embedded clusters being undetected). We map the extinction across the galaxy using low-resolution spectra and the Hα-to-Hβ ratio, as obtained from ground-based narrow band imaging. These results are compared with the extinction distribution recovered from the clusters. We find that the mean optical extinction derived in the starburst regions is close to the averaged value observed in the clusters [more than 80 per cent of the systems have E( B− V) ≤ 0.2 mag], but locally, do not trace the more extinguished clusters. Previous HST studies of BCGs have revealed a population of young and extremely red super star clusters. We detect a considerable fraction of clusters affected by a red excess also in Mrk 930. The nature of the red excess, which turns up at near-IR wavelengths ( I band and longwards), remains unknown. We compare the cluster formation history and the star formation history, the latter derived from the fit of spectral population synthesis models to the spectra. We find a general agreement between the two independently estimated quantities. Using the cluster properties, we perform a study of the host environmental properties. We find that the cluster formation efficiency (the fraction of star formation happening in clusters) is significantly higher, suggesting a key role of the environment for the formation of these massive objects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have investigated the starburst properties of the luminous blue compact galaxy ESO 185−IG13. The galaxy has been imaged with the high-resolution cameras onboard the Hubble Space Telescope. From the ultraviolet (UV) to the infrared (IR), the data reveal a system shaped by hundreds of young star clusters, and fine structures, like a tidal stream and a shell. The presence of numerous clusters and the perturbed morphology indicate that the galaxy has been involved in a recent merger event. Using previous simulations of shell formation in galaxy mergers we constrain potential progenitors of ESO 185−IG13. The analysis of the star cluster population is used to investigate the properties of the present starburst and to date the final merger event, which has produced hundreds of clusters younger than 100 Myr. We have found a peak of cluster formation only 3.5 Myr old. A large fraction of these clusters will not survive after 10-20 Myr due to the 'infant mortality' caused by gas expulsion. However, this sample of clusters represents a unique chance to investigate the youngest phases of cluster evolution. As already observed in the analogue blue compact galaxy Haro 11, a fraction of young clusters are affected by a flux excess at wavelengths longer than 8000 Å. Ages, masses and extinctions of clusters with this near-IR (NIR) excess are estimated from UV and optical data. We discuss similarities and differences of the observed NIR excess in ESO 185−IG13 clusters with other cases in the literature. The cluster ages and masses are used to distinguish among the potential causes of the excess. We observe, as in Haro 11, that the use of the IR and the (commonly used) band data results in overestimates of age and mass in clusters affected by the NIR excess. This has important implications for a number of related studies of star clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have used multiband imaging to investigate the nature of an extreme starburst environment in the nearby Lyman break galaxy analogue Haro 11 (ESO 350−IG038) by means of its stellar cluster population. The central starburst region has been observed in eight different high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope ( HST) wavebands, sampling the stellar and gas components from UV to near-infrared. Photometric imaging of the galaxy was also carried out at 2.16 μm by NaCo AO instrument at the ESO Very Large Telescope. We constructed integrated spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for about 200 star clusters located in the active star-forming regions and compared them with single stellar population models (suitable for physical properties of very young cluster population) in order to derive ages, masses and extinctions of the star clusters. The cluster age distribution we recover confirms that the present starburst has lasted for 40 Myr, and shows a peak of cluster formation only 3.5 Myr old. With such an extremely young cluster population, Haro 11 represents a unique opportunity to investigate the youngest phase of the cluster formation process and evolution in starburst systems. We looked for possible relations between cluster ages, extinctions and masses. Extinction tends to diminish as a function of the cluster age, but the spread is large and reaches the highest dispersion for clusters in partial embedded phases (<5 Myr). A fraction of low-mass (below ), very young (1–3 Myr) clusters is missing, either because they are embedded in the parental molecular cloud and heavily extinguished, or because of blending with neighbouring clusters. The range of the cluster masses is wide; we observe that more than 30 per cent of the clusters have masses above , qualifying them as super star clusters. Almost half of the cluster sample is affected by flux excesses at wavelengths >8000 Å which cannot be explained by simple stellar evolutionary models. Fitting SED models over all wavebands leads to systematic overestimates of cluster ages and incorrect masses for the stellar population supplying the light in these clusters. We show that the red excess affects also the HST filter, which is typically used to constrain cluster physical properties. The clusters which show the red excess are younger than 40 Myr; we discuss possible physical explanations for the phenomenon. Finally, we estimate that Haro 11 has produced bound clusters at a rate almost a factor of 10 higher than the massive and regular spirals, like the Milky Way. The present cluster formation efficiency is ∼38 per cent of the galactic star formation rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The faint regions of galaxies, groups and clusters hold important clues about how these objects formed, and surface photometry at optical and near-infrared wavelengths represents a powerful tool for studying such structures. Here, we identify a hitherto unrecognized problem with this technique, related to how the night sky flux is typically measured and subtracted from astronomical images. While most of the sky flux comes from regions between the observer and the target object, a small fraction – the extragalactic background light (EBL) – comes from behind. We argue that since this part of the sky flux can be subjected to extinction by dust present in the galaxy/group/cluster studied, standard reduction procedures may lead to a systematic oversubtraction of the EBL. Even very small amounts of extinction can lead to spurious features in radial surface brightness profiles and colour maps of extended objects. We assess the likely impact of this effect on a number of topics in extragalactic astronomy where very deep surface photometry is currently attempted, including studies of stellar haloes, starburst host galaxies, disc truncations and diffuse intragroup/intracluster light. We argue that EBL extinction may provide at least a partial explanation for the anomalously red colours reported for the haloes of disc galaxies and for the hosts of local starburst galaxies. EBL extinction effects also mimic truncations in discs with unusually high dust opacities, but are unlikely to be the cause of such features in general. Failure to account for EBL extinction can also give rise to a non-negligible underestimate of intragroup and intracluster light at the faintest surface brightness levels currently probed. Finally, we discuss how EBL extinction effects may be exploited to provide an independent constraint on the surface brightness of the EBL, using a combination of surface photometry and direct star counts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deep optical/near-IR surface photometry of galaxies outside the Local Group have revealed faint and very red halos around objects as diverse as disk galaxies and starbursting dwarf galaxies. The colours of these structures are too extreme to be reconciled with stellar populations similar to those seen in the stellar halos of the Milky Way or M31, and alternative explanations like dust reddening, high metallicities or nebular emission are also disfavoured. A stellar population obeying an extremely bottom-heavy initial mass function (IMF), is on the other hand consistent with all available data. Because of its high mass-to-light ratio, such a population would effectively behave as baryonic dark matter and could account for some of the baryons still missing in the low-redshift Universe. Here, we give an overview of current red halo detections, alternative explanations for the origin of the red colours and ongoing searches for red halos around types of galaxies for which this phenomenon has not yet been reported. A number of potential tests of the bottom-heavy IMF hypothesis are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite a general consensus in the astronomical community that all quasars are located at the distances implied by their redshifts, a number of observations still challenge this interpretation, possibly indicating that some subpopulation of quasars may harbour significant redshift components not related to the expansion of the Universe. It has been suggested that these objects may have been ejected from local galaxies and are likely to evolve into new galaxies themselves. Here, a test of such exotic scenarios is proposed, based on the spectral energy distribution of the galaxies hosting quasars with suspected ejection origin. Provided that the time-scales over which the ejected objects manifest themselves as quasars is short, one would in the framework of the ejection scenarios expect to find either no quasar host galaxy, a pseudo-host consisting of gas ionized by the quasar, or a host galaxy consisting of young stars only. It is argued that the spectral energy distributions corresponding to the last two options should differ significantly from that of most quasar host galaxies detected at low redshift so far, thus providing a potential test of the claimed existence of ejected quasars. A minimal implementation of this test, involving optical and near-infrared broad-band photometry, is suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is the first to examine a large group of children born after in-vitro fertilization (IVF) who were old enough at the time of the investigation to make it possible to draw conclusions about the outcome. The aim of the study was to assess the cognitive, behavioural and social development of the children. The study comprised 99 IVF children, 33-85 months of age, from the University Hospitals of Lund and Malmö, Sweden. The children's development was assessed with the Griffiths' scales of mental development. The children's behaviour was delineated through semi-structured interviews with their mothers, covering 50 different behaviours. The mothers also filled in Achenbach's Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL). All children were examined by a paediatric neurologist. The results were compared to Swedish population groups. Of the children born, 66% were singletons, 22% were twins, 12% were triplets and 28% were born prematurely in gestational weeks 32-36. The cognitive development of the IVF children was excellent, and their behaviour was normal when compared with two Swedish population groups. Our conclusion was that the development, behaviour and social adaptation of the children was very satisfactory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is the first to examine a large group of children born after in-vitro ferlilization (IVF) who were old enough at the time of the investigation to make it possible to draw conclusions about the outcome. The aim of the study was to assess the cognitive, behavioural and social development of the children. The study comprised 99 P/F children, 33–85 months of age, from the University Hospitals of Lund and Malmö, Sweden. The children's development was assessed with the Griffiths' scales of mental development. The children's behaviour was delineated through semistructured interviews with their mothers, covering 50 different behaviours. The mothers also filled in Achenbach's Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL). All children were examined by a paediatric neurologist. The results were compared to Swedish population groups. Of the children born, 66% were singletons, 22% were twins, 12% were triplets and 28% were born prematurely in gestational weeks 32–36. The cognitive development of the IVF children was excellent, and their behaviour was normal when compared with two Swedish population groups. Our conclusion was that the development, behaviour and social adapta tion of the children was very satisfactory. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In principle, dark galaxies in the dwarf-galaxy mass range may be detectable through additional, small-scale image splitting of quasars that are already known to be multiply-imaged on arcsecond scales. Here, we derive the image separations expected for dark galaxies with density profiles favoured by recent N-body simulations. The results are compared to the angular resolution of existing and planned telescopes at X-ray, optical, near-infrared and radio wavelengths. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Dark galaxies may in principle be detectable through strong-lensing image splitting of quasars on small angular scales (milliarcseconds or below). Here, we estimate the overall probabilities for such detections under the assumption that the quasars can be treated as point sources. Due to the very low probabilities derived, we conclude that it is currently not feasable to use this strategy to put the CDM predictions for the dark galaxy population to the test. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The cold dark matter (CDM) scenario generically predicts the existence of triaxial dark matter halos which contain notable amounts of substructure. However, analytical halo models with smooth, spherically symmetric density profiles are routinely adopted in the modelling of light propagation effects through such objects. In this paper, we report the biases introduced by this procedure by comparing the surface mass densities of actual N-body halos against the widely used analytical model suggested by Navarro, Frenk and White (1996) (NFW). We conduct our analysis in the redshift range of 0.0 − 1.5.In cluster sized halos, we find that triaxiality can cause scatter in the surface mass density of the halos up to σ+ = +60% and σ− = −70%, where the 1-σ limits are relative to the analytical NFW model given value. Subhalos can increase this scatter to σ+ = +70% and σ− = −80%. In galaxy sized halos, the triaxial scatter can be as high as σ+ = +80% and σ− = −70%, and with subhalos the values can change to σ+ = +40% and σ− = −80%.We have developed an analytical model for the surface mass density scatter as a function of distance to the halo centre, halo redshift and halo mass. The analytical description enables one to investigate the reliability of results obtained with simplified halo models. Additionally, it provides the means to add simulated surface density scatter to analytical density profiles. We have tested our model on the calculation of microlensing optical depths for MACHOs in CDM halos. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We present the detection of escaping Lyman Continuum (LyC) radiation from two local starburst galaxies, Tol 1247-232 and Tol 0440-381, using archival data from the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE). From profile fitting of metal lines, high densities of neutral gas were derived for both galaxies, implying that the LyC radiation is escaping from holes in the interstellar medium. The first results for one of the galaxies, Tol 1247-232, give an escape fraction (fesc) of 17–35%. These new detections, together with that of the blue compact galaxy Haro 11 in Bergvall et al. (2006) where fesc between 4–10% was found, will have a feedback on cosmic reionization models. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]