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ALMA observations of massive molecular gas reservoirs in dusty early-type galaxies

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Abstract
Unresolved gas and dust observations show a surprising diversity in the amount of interstellar matter in early-type galaxies. Using Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations we resolve the ISM in z similar to 0.05 early-type galaxies. From a large sample of early-type galaxies detected in the Herschel Astrophysical Terahertz Large Area Survey (H-ATLAS), we selected five of the dustiest cases, with dust masses M-d similar to several x 10(7) M-circle dot, with the aim of mapping their submillimetre continuum and (CO)-C-12(2-1) line emission distributions. These observations reveal molecular gas discs. There is a lack of associated, extended continuum emission in these ALMA observations, most likely because it is resolved out or surface brightness limited, if the dust distribution is as extended as the CO gas. However, two galaxies have central continuum ALMA detections. An additional, slightly offset, continuum source is revealed in one case, which may have contributed to confusion in the Herschel fluxes. Serendipitous continuum detections further away in the ALMA field are found in another case. Large and massive rotating molecular gas discs are mapped in three of our targets, reaching a few x10(9) M-circle dot. One of these shows evidence of kinematic deviations from a pure rotating disc. The fields of our two remaining targets contain only smaller, weak CO sources, slightly offset from the optical galaxy centres. These may be companion galaxies seen in ALMA observations or background objects. These heterogeneous findings in a small sample of dusty early-type galaxies reveal the need for more such high spatial resolution studies to understand statistically how dust and gas are related in early-type galaxies.
Keywords
ISM: evolution, galaxies: elliptical and lenticular, cD, galaxies: ISM, submillimetre: galaxies, BLACK-HOLE MASS, ATLAS(3D) PROJECT, ELLIPTIC GALAXIES, STAR-FORMATION, IONIZED-GAS, RADIATION-FIELDS, WISDOM PROJECT, COLD, ATLAS/GAMA, MORPHOLOGY

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MLA
Sansom, AE, et al. “ALMA Observations of Massive Molecular Gas Reservoirs in Dusty Early-Type Galaxies.” MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, vol. 482, no. 4, 2019, pp. 4617–29, doi:10.1093/mnras/sty3021.
APA
Sansom, A., Glass, D., Bendo, G., Davis, T., Rowlands, K., Bourne, N., … Viaene, S. (2019). ALMA observations of massive molecular gas reservoirs in dusty early-type galaxies. MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, 482(4), 4617–4629. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty3021
Chicago author-date
Sansom, AE, DHW Glass, GJ Bendo, TA Davis, K Rowlands, N Bourne, L Dunne, et al. 2019. “ALMA Observations of Massive Molecular Gas Reservoirs in Dusty Early-Type Galaxies.” MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY 482 (4): 4617–29. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty3021.
Chicago author-date (all authors)
Sansom, AE, DHW Glass, GJ Bendo, TA Davis, K Rowlands, N Bourne, L Dunne, S Eales, S Kaviraj, C Popescu, M Smith, and Sébastien Viaene. 2019. “ALMA Observations of Massive Molecular Gas Reservoirs in Dusty Early-Type Galaxies.” MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY 482 (4): 4617–4629. doi:10.1093/mnras/sty3021.
Vancouver
1.
Sansom A, Glass D, Bendo G, Davis T, Rowlands K, Bourne N, et al. ALMA observations of massive molecular gas reservoirs in dusty early-type galaxies. MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY. 2019;482(4):4617–29.
IEEE
[1]
A. Sansom et al., “ALMA observations of massive molecular gas reservoirs in dusty early-type galaxies,” MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, vol. 482, no. 4, pp. 4617–4629, 2019.
@article{8641754,
  abstract     = {{Unresolved gas and dust observations show a surprising diversity in the amount of interstellar matter in early-type galaxies. Using Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations we resolve the ISM in z similar to 0.05 early-type galaxies. From a large sample of early-type galaxies detected in the Herschel Astrophysical Terahertz Large Area Survey (H-ATLAS), we selected five of the dustiest cases, with dust masses M-d similar to several x 10(7) M-circle dot, with the aim of mapping their submillimetre continuum and (CO)-C-12(2-1) line emission distributions. These observations reveal molecular gas discs. There is a lack of associated, extended continuum emission in these ALMA observations, most likely because it is resolved out or surface brightness limited, if the dust distribution is as extended as the CO gas. However, two galaxies have central continuum ALMA detections. An additional, slightly offset, continuum source is revealed in one case, which may have contributed to confusion in the Herschel fluxes. Serendipitous continuum detections further away in the ALMA field are found in another case. Large and massive rotating molecular gas discs are mapped in three of our targets, reaching a few x10(9) M-circle dot. One of these shows evidence of kinematic deviations from a pure rotating disc. The fields of our two remaining targets contain only smaller, weak CO sources, slightly offset from the optical galaxy centres. These may be companion galaxies seen in ALMA observations or background objects. These heterogeneous findings in a small sample of dusty early-type galaxies reveal the need for more such high spatial resolution studies to understand statistically how dust and gas are related in early-type galaxies.}},
  author       = {{Sansom, AE and Glass, DHW and Bendo, GJ and Davis, TA and Rowlands, K and Bourne, N and Dunne, L and Eales, S and Kaviraj, S and Popescu, C and Smith, M and Viaene, Sébastien}},
  issn         = {{0035-8711}},
  journal      = {{MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY}},
  keywords     = {{ISM: evolution,galaxies: elliptical and lenticular,cD,galaxies: ISM,submillimetre: galaxies,BLACK-HOLE MASS,ATLAS(3D) PROJECT,ELLIPTIC GALAXIES,STAR-FORMATION,IONIZED-GAS,RADIATION-FIELDS,WISDOM PROJECT,COLD,ATLAS/GAMA,MORPHOLOGY}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{4}},
  pages        = {{4617--4629}},
  title        = {{ALMA observations of massive molecular gas reservoirs in dusty early-type galaxies}},
  url          = {{http://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty3021}},
  volume       = {{482}},
  year         = {{2019}},
}

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