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Register a new userMapping the core of the Tarantula Nebula with VLT-MUSE: I. Spectral and nebular content around R136
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Norberto Castro Rodriguez
Publication date
2018
fields
Physics
and research's language is
English
Authors
N. Castro
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We introduce VLT-MUSE observations of the central 2$times2$ (30$times$30 pc) of the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The observations provide an unprecedented spectroscopic census of the massive stars and ionised gas in the vicinity of R136, the young, dense star cluster located in NGC 2070, at the heart of the richest star-forming region in the Local Group. Spectrophotometry and radial-velocity estimates of the nebular gas (superimposed on the stellar spectra) are provided for 2255 point sources extracted from the MUSE datacubes, and we present estimates of stellar radial velocities for 270 early-type stars (finding an average systemic velocity of 271$pm$41 km/s). We present an extinction map constructed from the nebular Balmer lines, with electron densities and temperatures estimated from intensity ratios of the [SII], [NII], and [SIII] lines. The interstellar medium, as traced by H$alpha$ and [NII] $lambda$6583, provides new insights in regions where stars are probably forming. The gas kinematics are complex, but with a clear bi-modal, blue- and red-shifted distribution compared to the systemic velocity of the gas centred on R136. Interesting point-like sources are also seen in the eastern cavity, western shell, and around R136; these might be related to phenomena such as runaway stars, jets, formation of new stars, or the interaction of the gas with the population of Wolf--Rayet stars. Closer inspection of the core reveals red-shifted material surrounding the strongest X-ray sources, although we are unable to investigate the kinematics in detail as the stars are spatially unresolved in the MUSE data. Further papers in this series will discuss the detailed stellar content of NGC 2070 and its integrated stellar and nebular properties.
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We present the spectroscopic analysis of 333 OB-type stars extracted from VLT-MUSE observations of the central 30 x 30 pc of NGC 2070 in the Tarantula Nebula on the Large Magellanic Cloud, the majority of which are analysed for the the first time. The distribution of stars in the spectroscopic Hertzsprung-Russell diagram (sHRD) shows 281 stars in the main sequence. We find two groups in the main sequence, with estimated ages of 2.1$pm$0.8 and 6.2$pm$2 Myr. A subgroup of 52 stars is apparently beyond the main sequence phase, which we consider to be due to emission-type objects and/or significant nebular contamination affecting the analysis. As in previous studies, stellar masses derived from the sHRD are systematically larger than those obtained from the conventional HRD, with the differences being largest for the most massive stars. Additionally, we do not find any trend between the estimated projected rotational velocity and evolution in the sHRD. The projected rotational velocity distribution presents a tail of fast rotators that resembles findings in the wider population of 30 Doradus. We use published spectral types to calibrate the HeI$lambda$4921/HeII$lambda$5411 equivalent-width ratio as a classification diagnostic for early-type main sequence stars when the classical blue-visible region is not observed. Our model-atmosphere analyses demonstrate that the resulting calibration is well correlated with effective temperature.
The evolution of the most massive stars is a puzzle with many missing pieces. Statistical analyses are the key to provide anchors to calibrate theory, however performing these studies is an arduous job. The state-of-the-art integral field spectrograph MUSE has stirred up stellar astrophysicists who are excited about the capability to take spectra of up to a thousand stars in a single exposure. The excitement was even higher with the commissioning of the MUSE narrow-field-mode (NFM) that has demonstrated angular resolutions akin to the Hubble Space Telescope. We present the first mapping of the dense stellar core R136 in the Tarantula nebula based on a MUSE-NFM mosaic. We aim to deliver the first homogeneous analysis of the most massive stars in the local Universe and to explore the impact of these peculiar objects to the interstellar medium.
Detailed studies of resolved young massive star clusters are necessary to determine their dynamical state and evaluate the importance of gas expulsion and early cluster evolution. In an effort to gain insight into the dynamical state of the young massive cluster R136 and obtain the first measurement of its velocity dispersion, we analyse multi-epoch spectroscopic data of the inner regions of 30 Doradus in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) obtained as part of the VLT-FLAMES Tarantula Survey. Following a quantitative assessment of the variability, we use the radial velocities of non-variable sources to place an upper limit of 6 km/s on the line-of-sight velocity dispersion of stars within a projected distance of 5 pc from the centre of the cluster. After accounting for the contributions of undetected binaries and measurement errors through Monte Carlo simulations, we conclude that the true velocity dispersion is likely between 4 and 5 km/s given a range of standard assumptions about the binary distribution. This result is consistent with what is expected if the cluster is in virial equilibrium, suggesting that gas expulsion has not altered its dynamics. We find that the velocity dispersion would be ~25 km/s if binaries were not identified and rejected, confirming the importance of the multi-epoch strategy and the risk of interpreting velocity dispersion measurements of unresolved extragalactic young massive clusters.
Studies of the kinematics of NGC 1407 have revealed complex kinematical structure, consisting of the outer galaxy, an embedded disc within a radius of $sim60$ arcsec, and a kinematically decoupled core (KDC) with a radius of less than 30arcsec. However, the size of the KDC and the amplitude of the kinematic misalignment it induces have not yet been determined. In this paper, we explore the properties of the KDC using observations from the MUSE Integral Field Spectrograph to map out the kinematics in the central arcminute of NGC 1407. Velocity and kinemetry maps of the galaxy reveal a twist of $sim$148 degree in the central $10$ arcseconds of the galaxy, and the higher-order moments of the kinematics reveal that within the same region, this slowly-rotating galaxy displays no net rotation. Analysis of the stellar populations across the galaxy found no evidence of younger stellar populations in the region of the KDC, instead finding uniform age and super-solar $alpha$-enhancement across the galaxy, and a smoothly decreasing metallicity gradient with radius. We therefore conclude that NGC 1407 contains a triaxial, kiloparsec-scale KDC with distinct kinematics relative to the rest of the galaxy, and which is likely to have formed through either a major merger or a series of minor mergers early in the lifetime of the galaxy. With a radius of $sim$5 arcseconds or $sim0.6$ kpc, NGC 1407 contains the smallest KDC mapped by MUSE to date in terms of both its physical and angular size.
The VLT-FLAMES Tarantula Survey (VFTS) is an ESO Large Programme that has obtained multi-epoch optical spectroscopy of over 800 massive stars in the 30 Doradus region of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). Here we introduce our scientific motivations and give an overview of the survey targets, including optical and near-infrared photometry and comprehensive details of the data reduction. One of the principal objectives was to detect massive binary systems via variations in their radial velocities, thus shaping the multi-epoch observing strategy. Spectral classifications are given for the massive emission-line stars observed by the survey, including the discovery of a new Wolf-Rayet star (VFTS 682, classified as WN5h), 2 to the northeast of R136. To illustrate the diversity of objects encompassed by the survey, we investigate the spectral properties of sixteen targets identified by Gruendl & Chu from Spitzer photometry as candidate young stellar objects or stars with notable mid-infrared excesses. Detailed spectral classification and quantitative analysis of the O- and B-type stars in the VFTS sample, paying particular attention to the effects of rotational mixing and binarity, will be presented in a series of future articles to address fundamental questions in both stellar and cluster evolution.
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