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Register a new userA Deep Chandra ACIS Survey of M83
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Knox S. Long
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We have obtained a series of deep X-ray images of the nearby galaxy M83 using Chandra, with a total exposure of 729 ks. Combining the new data with earlier archival observations totaling 61 ks, we find 378 point sources within the D25 contour of the galaxy. We find 80 more sources, mostly background AGN, outside of the D25 contour. Of the X-ray sources, 47 have been detected in a new radio survey of M83 obtained using the Australia Telescope Compact Array. Of the X-ray sources, at least 87 seem likely to be supernova remnants (SNRs), based on a combination of their properties in X-rays and at other wavelengths. We attempt to classify the point source population of M83 through a combination of spectral and temporal analysis. As part of this effort, we carry out an initial spectral analysis of the 29 brightest X-ray sources. The soft X-ray sources in the disk, many of which are SNRs, are associated with the spiral arms, while the harder X-ray sources, mostly X-ray binaries (XRBs), do not appear to be. After eliminating AGN, foreground stars and identified SNRs from the sample, we construct the cumulative luminosity function (CLF) of XRBs brighter than 8 10$^{35}$ ergs/s. Despite M83s relatively high star formation rate, the CLF indicates that most of the XRBs in the disk are low mass XRBs.
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We present an overview of the Chandra ACIS Survey of M33 (ChASeM33): A Deep Survey of the Nearest Face-on Spiral Galaxy. The 1.4 Ms survey covers the galaxy out to $R approx 18arcmin (approx 4$ kpc). These data provide the most intensive, high spatial resolution assessment of the X-ray source populations available for the confused inner regions of M33. Mosaic images of the ChASeM33 observations show several hundred individual X-ray sources as well as soft diffuse emission from the hot interstellar medium. Bright, extended emission surrounds the nucleus and is also seen from the giant hii regions NGC 604 and IC 131. Fainter extended emission and numerous individual sources appear to trace the inner spiral structure. The initial source catalog, arising from $sim$~2/3 of the expected survey data, includes 394 sources significant at the $3sigma$ confidence level or greater, down to a limiting luminosity (absorbed) of $sim$1.6ergs{35} (0.35 -- 8.0 keV). The hardness ratios of the sources separate those with soft, thermal spectra such as supernova remnants from those with hard, non-thermal spectra such as X-ray binaries and background active galactic nuclei. Emission extended beyond the Chandra point spread function is evident in 23 of the 394 sources. Cross-correlation of the ChASeM33 sources against previous catalogs of X-ray sources in M33 results in matches for the vast majority of the brighter sources and shows 28 ChASeM33 sources within 10arcsec of supernova remnants identified by prior optical and radio searches. This brings the total number of such associations to 31 out of 100 known supernova remnants in M33.
This study presents the final source catalog of the Chandra ACIS Survey of M33 (ChASeM33). With a total exposure time of 1.4 Ms, ChASeM33 covers ~70% of the D25 isophote (Rapprox4kpc) of M33 and provides the deepest, most complete, and detailed look at a spiral galaxy in X-rays. The source catalog includes 662 sources, reaches a limiting unabsorbed luminosity of ~2.4x10^(34) erg/s in the 0.35-8.0keV energy band, and contains source positions, source net counts, fluxes and significances in several energy bands, and information on source variability. The analysis challenges posed by ChASeM33 and the techniques adopted to address these challenges are discussed. To constrain the nature of the detected X-ray source, hardness ratios were constructed and spectra were fit for 254 sources, followup MMT spectra of 116 sources were acquired, and cross-correlations with previous X-ray catalogs and other multi-wavelength data were generated. Based on this effort, 183 of the 662 ChASeM33 sources could be identified. Finally, the luminosity function for the detected point sources as well as the one for the X-ray binaries in M33 is presented. The luminosity functions in the soft band (0.5-2.0 keV) and the hard band (2.0-8.0 keV) have a limiting luminosity at the 90% completeness limit of 4.0x10^(34) erg/s and 1.6x10^(35) erg/s (for D=817kpc), respectively, which is significantly lower than what was reported by previous X-ray binary population studies in galaxies more distant than M33. The resulting distribution is consistent with a dominant population of high mass X-ray binaries as would be expected for M33.
Even in deep X-ray surveys, Compton-thick active galactic nuclei (CT AGNs, ${rm N_H} geqslant 1.5~times~10^{24}~{rm cm}^{-2}$) are difficult to be identified due to X-ray flux suppression and their complex spectral shape. However, the study of CT AGNs is vital for understanding the rapid growth of black holes and the origin of cosmic X-ray background. In the local universe, the fraction of CT AGNs accounts for 30% of the whole AGN population. We may expect a higher fraction of CT AGNs in deep X-ray surveys, however, only 10% of AGNs have been identified as CT AGNs in the 7 Ms textit{Chandra} Deep Field-South (CDFS) survey. In this work, we select 51 AGNs with abundant multi-wavelength data. Using the method of the mid-infrared (mid-IR) excess, we select hitherto unknown 8 CT AGN candidates in our sample. Seven of these candidates can confirm as CT AGN based on the multi-wavelength identification approach, and a new CT AGN (XID 133) is identified through the mid-IR diagnostics. We also discuss the X-ray origin of these eight CT AGNs and the reason why their column densities were underestimated in previous studies. We find that the multi-wavelength approaches of selecting CT AGNs are highly efficient, provided the high quality of observational data. We also find that CT AGNs have a higher Eddington ratio than non-CT AGNs, and that both CT AGNs and non-CT AGNs show similar properties of host galaxies.
M33 contains a large number of emission nebulae identified as supernova remnants (SNRs) based on the high [S II]:Ha ratios characteristic of shocked gas. Using Chandra data from the ChASeM33 survey with a 0.35-2 keV sensitivity of about 2 x 10**34 ergs/s, we have detected 82 of 137 SNR candidates, yielding confirmation of (or at least strongly support for) their SNR identifications. This provides the largest sample of remnants detected at optical and X-ray wavelengths in any galaxy, including the Milky Way. A spectral analysis of the seven X-ray brightest SNRs reveals that two, G98-31 and G98-35, have spectra that appear to indicate enrichment by ejecta from core-collapse supernova explosions. In general, the X-ray detected SNRs have soft X-ray spectra compared to the vast majority of sources detected along the line of sight to M33. It is unlikely that there are any other undiscovered thermally dominated X-ray SNRs with luminosities in excess of about 4 x 10**35 ergs/s in the portions of M33 covered by the ChASeM33 survey. We have used a combination of new and archival optical and radio observations to attempt to better understand why some objects are detected as X-ray sources and others are not. We have also developed a morphological classification scheme for the optically-identified SNRs, and discuss the efficacy of this scheme as a predictor of X-ray detectability. Finally, we have compared the SNRs found in M33 to those that have been observed in the Galaxy and the Magellanic Clouds. There are no close analogs of Cas A, Keplers SNR, Tychos SNR or the Crab Nebula in the regions of M33 surveyed, but we have found an X-ray source with a power law spectrum coincident with a small-diameter radio source that may be the first pulsar-wind nebula recognized in M33.
We report on the discovery of 41 new pulsating sources in the data of the Chandra Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer, which is sensitive to X-ray photons in the 0.3-10 keV band. The archival data of the first 15 years of Chandra observations were retrieved and analysed by means of fast Fourier transforms, employing a peak-detection algorithm able to screen candidate signals in an automatic fashion. We carried out the search for new X-ray pulsators in light curves with more than 50 photons, for a total of about 190,000 lightcurves out of about 430,000 extracted. With these numbers, the ChAndra Timing Survey at Brera And Roma astronomical observatories (CATS@BAR) - as we called the project - represents the largest ever systematic search for coherent signals in the classic X-ray band. More than 50 per cent of the signals were confirmed by further Chandra (for those sources with two or more pointings), XMM-Newton or ROSAT data. The period distribution of the new X-ray pulsators above about 2,000s resembles that of cataclysmic variables, while there is a paucity of sources with shorter period and low fluxes. Since there is not an obvious bias against these detections, a possible interpretation is in terms of a magnetic gating mechanism in accreting neutron stars. Finally, we note that CATS@BAR is a living project and the detection algorithm will continue to be routinely applied to the new Chandra data as they become public. Based on the results obtained so far, we expect to discover about three new pulsators every year.
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