Optical Extinctions of Inter-Arm Molecular Clouds in M31: A Pilot Study for the Upcoming CSST Observations

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Chen, Cailing, Zheng, Zheng, Tsai, Chao-Wei, Jiao, Sihan, Tang, Jing, Wu, Jingwen, Li, Di, Zheng, Yun, Feng, Linjing, Yang, Yujiao, Liang, Yuan
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Chen, Cailing
Zheng, Zheng
Tsai, Chao-Wei
Jiao, Sihan
Tang, Jing
Wu, Jingwen
Li, Di
Zheng, Yun
Feng, Linjing
Yang, Yujiao
Liang, Yuan
author_facet Chen, Cailing
Zheng, Zheng
Tsai, Chao-Wei
Jiao, Sihan
Tang, Jing
Wu, Jingwen
Li, Di
Zheng, Yun
Feng, Linjing
Yang, Yujiao
Liang, Yuan
contents Recent sub-millimeter dust thermal emission observations have unveiled a significant number of inter-arm massive molecular clouds in M31.However,the effectiveness of this technique is limited to its sensitivity,making it challenging to study more distant galaxies.This study introduces an alternative approach,utilizing optical extinctions derived from space-based telescopes,with a focus on the forthcoming China Space Station Telescope(CSST).We first demonstrate the capability of this method by constructing dust extinction maps for 17 inter-arm massive molecular clouds in M31 using the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury(PHAT) data.Our analysis reveals that inter-arm massive molecular clouds with an optical extinction(AV) greater than 1.6 mag exhibit a notable AV excess,facilitating their identification.The majority of these inter-arm massive molecular clouds show an AV around 1 mag,aligning with measurements from our JCMT data.Further validation using a mock CSST RGB star catalog confirms the method's effectiveness.We show that the derived AV values using CSST z and y photometries align more closely with the input values.Molecular clouds with AV>1.6 mag can also be identified using the CSST mock data.We thus claim that future CSST observation could provide an effective way for the detection of inter-arm massive molecular clouds with significant optical extinction in nearby galaxies.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2405_19710
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Optical Extinctions of Inter-Arm Molecular Clouds in M31: A Pilot Study for the Upcoming CSST Observations
Chen, Cailing
Zheng, Zheng
Tsai, Chao-Wei
Jiao, Sihan
Tang, Jing
Wu, Jingwen
Li, Di
Zheng, Yun
Feng, Linjing
Yang, Yujiao
Liang, Yuan
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Recent sub-millimeter dust thermal emission observations have unveiled a significant number of inter-arm massive molecular clouds in M31.However,the effectiveness of this technique is limited to its sensitivity,making it challenging to study more distant galaxies.This study introduces an alternative approach,utilizing optical extinctions derived from space-based telescopes,with a focus on the forthcoming China Space Station Telescope(CSST).We first demonstrate the capability of this method by constructing dust extinction maps for 17 inter-arm massive molecular clouds in M31 using the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury(PHAT) data.Our analysis reveals that inter-arm massive molecular clouds with an optical extinction(AV) greater than 1.6 mag exhibit a notable AV excess,facilitating their identification.The majority of these inter-arm massive molecular clouds show an AV around 1 mag,aligning with measurements from our JCMT data.Further validation using a mock CSST RGB star catalog confirms the method's effectiveness.We show that the derived AV values using CSST z and y photometries align more closely with the input values.Molecular clouds with AV>1.6 mag can also be identified using the CSST mock data.We thus claim that future CSST observation could provide an effective way for the detection of inter-arm massive molecular clouds with significant optical extinction in nearby galaxies.
title Optical Extinctions of Inter-Arm Molecular Clouds in M31: A Pilot Study for the Upcoming CSST Observations
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2405.19710