Extragalactic abstracts - IRSA - California Institute of Technology

Spitzer_Approved_Extragalactic
Mar 25, 10 16:24 Page 741/742
Spitzer Space Telescope − Archive Research Proposal #40341
Opening the Window on Warm Dust in Starburst− and AGN−Driven Superwinds
Principal Investigator: Sylvain Veilleux
Institution: University of Maryland
Technical Contact: David Rupke, University of Maryland
Co−Investigators:
David Rupke, University of Maryland
Charles Engelbracht, University of Arizona
Michael Regan, Space Telescope Science Institute
Joss Bland−Hawthorn, Anglo−Australian Observatory
Jackie Cooper, Australian National University
Geoffrey Bicknell, Australian National University
Ralph Sutherland, Australian National University
Science Category: starburst galaxies
Dollars Approved: 97921.0
Abstract:
We propose an archival imaging survey to study galactic winds from starbursts
and active galactic nuclei. We will use all IRAC channels to map the detailed
distribution of warm (T~500−1000 K) dust and PAH molecules in a sample of
galaxies that are known to host outflows. These data will be compared to
state−of−the−art, 3D numerical simulations of superwinds and predicted IRAC
fluxes. Direct and indirect evidence shows that dust is present on large
(kiloparsec) scales in outflows in some starburst and active galaxies. However,
this dust has never been mapped at wavelengths of 1−20 micron, and its geometry,
mass, and energy are almost completely unknown. Recent spectacular IRAC results
on M82, as well as preliminary IRAC color maps made with archival data, suggest
that this survey will yield exciting new insights on the warm dust and PAH
emission in these outflows. We will ascertain the significance of dusty
superwinds in the context of outflow physics and the impact of the outflows on
the host galaxies and the intergalactic medium. We will compare the
distribution, mass, and energy of the warm dust to optical emission−line and
absorption−line, X−ray, and radio data compiled by us and other groups. Using
new numerical simulations, we will also compare to the distribution and quantity
of dust predicted by theory. Our archival survey will use observations of
outflowing warm dust from various Spitzer programs that are focused on other
science and combine them into a coherent program to study outflows. No such
comprehensive program currently exists, but one is necessary to take full
advantage of Spitzer in this field. The proposed IRAC survey is complementary to
a MIPS survey of cold (T