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We report sub-parsec-scale observations of the 321 GHz H2O emission line in the radio galaxy NGC 1052. The H2O line emitter size is constrained in <0.6 mas distributed on the continuum core component. The brightness temperature exceeding 106 K and the intensity variation indicate certain evidence for maser emission. The maser spectrum consists of redshifted and blueshifted velocity components spanning ∼400 km s−1, separated by a local minimum around the systemic velocity of the galaxy. The spatial distribution of maser components shows a velocity gradient along the jet direction, implying that the population-inverted gas is driven by the jets interacting with the molecular torus. We identified a significant change of the maser spectra between two sessions separated by 14 days. The maser profile showed a radial velocity drift of 127 ± 13 km s−1 yr−1 implying inward gravitational acceleration at 5000 Schwarzschild radii. The results demonstrate the feasibility of future very long baseline interferometry observations to resolve the jet–torus interacting region.

 

We present morphologies of galaxies atz≳ 9 resolved by JWST/NIRCam 2–5μm imaging. Our sample consists of 22 galaxy candidates identified by stringent dropout and photo-zcriteria in GLASS, CEERS, SMACS J0723, and Stephan’s Quintet flanking fields, one of which has been spectroscopically identified atz= 11.44. We perform surface brightness (SB) profile fitting with GALFIT for six bright galaxies with a signal-to-noise ratio = 10–40 on an individual basis and for stacked faint galaxies with secure point-spread functions (PSFs) of the NIRCam real data, carefully evaluating systematics by Monte Carlo simulations. We compare our results with those of previous JWST studies, and confirm that the effective radiir_eof our measurements are consistent with those of previous measurements atz∼ 9. We obtainr_e≃ 200–300 pc with the exponential-like profiles, Sérsic indexes ofn≃ 1–1.5, for galaxies atz∼ 12–16, indicating that the relation ofr_e∝ (1 +z)^sfor$s=-{1.22}_{-0.16}^{+0.17}$explains cosmic evolution overz∼ 0–16 for$\sim L_{z=3}^{*}$galaxies. One bright (M_UV= −21 mag) galaxy atz∼ 12, GL-z12-1, has an extremely compact profile withr_e= 39 ± 11 pc that is surely extended over the PSF. Even in the case that the GL-z12-1 SB is fit by active galactic nuclei + galaxy composite profiles, the best-fit galaxy component is again compact,$r_{\mathrm{e}}={48}_{-15}^{+38}$pc, which is significantly (>5σ) smaller than the typicalr_evalue atz∼ 12. Compared with numerical simulations, we find that such a compact galaxy naturally forms atz≳ 10, and that frequent mergers at the early epoch produce more extended galaxies following ther_e∝ (1 +z)^srelation.

 

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) serendipitously detected H2O $J_{K_{\rm a}, K_{\rm c}} = 10_{2,9}$–93, 6 emission at 321 GHz in NGC 1052. This is the first submillimeter maser detection in a radio galaxy and the most luminous 321 GHz H2O maser known to-date with the isotropic luminosity of $1090\, L_{\odot }$. The line profile consists of a broad velocity component with FWHM = 208 ± 12 km s−1 straddling the systemic velocity and a narrow component with FWHM = 44 ± 3 km s−1 blueshifted by 160 km s−1. The profile is significantly different from the known 22 GHz 61, 6–52, 3 maser which shows a broad profile redshifted by 193 km s−1. The submillimeter maser is spatially unresolved with a synthesized beam of ${0{^{\prime \prime}_{.}}68} \times {0{^{\prime \prime}_{.}}56}$ and coincides with the continuum core position within 12 pc. These results indicate amplification of the continuum emission through high-temperature (>1000 K) and dense [n(H2O) > 104 cm−3] molecular gas in front of the core.

 

We present the first detection of the [N ii] 122 $\mu$m and [O iii] 52 $\mu$m lines for a reionization-epoch galaxy. Based on these lines and previous [C ii] 158 $\mu$m and [O iii] 88 $\mu$m measurements, using two different radiative transfer models of the interstellar medium, we estimate an upper limit on electron density of ≲500 cm−3 and an approximate gas-phase metallicity of Z/Z⊙ ∼ 1.1 ± 0.2 for A1689-zD1, a gravitationally lensed dusty galaxy at z = 7.133. Other measurements or indicators of metallicity so far in galaxy interstellar media at z ≳ 6 are typically an order of magnitude lower than this. The unusually high metallicity makes A1689-zD1 inconsistent with the fundamental metallicity relation, although there is likely significant dust obscuration of the stellar mass, which may partly resolve the inconsistency. Given a solar metallicity, the dust-to-metals ratio is a factor of several lower than expected, hinting that galaxies beyond z ∼ 7 may have lower dust formation efficiency. Finally, the inferred nitrogen enrichment compared to oxygen, on which the metallicity measurement depends, indicates that star formation in the system is older than about 250 Myr, pushing the beginnings of this galaxy to z > 10.

 

We investigate the stellar mass–black hole mass (${\mathit{}}_{*}–{\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}$) relation with type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) down to${\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}={10}^7{M}_{\odot }$, corresponding to a ≃ −21 absolute magnitude in rest-frame ultraviolet, atz= 2–2.5. Exploiting the deep and large-area spectroscopic survey of the Hobby–Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX), we identify 66 type 1 AGNs with${\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}$ranging from 10⁷–10¹⁰M_⊙that are measured with single-epoch virial method using Civemission lines detected in the HETDEX spectra.${\mathit{}}_{*}$of the host galaxies are estimated from optical to near-infrared photometric data taken with Spitzer, the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, and ground-based 4–8 m class telescopes byCIGALEspectral energy distribution (SED) fitting. We further assess the validity of SED fitting in two cases by host-nuclear decomposition performed through surface brightness profile fitting on spatially resolved host galaxies with the James Webb Space Telescope/NIRCam CEERS data. We obtain the${\mathit{}}_{*}–{\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}$relation covering the unexplored low-mass ranges of${\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}\sim {10}^7–{10}^8{M}_{\odot }$, and conduct forward modeling to fully account for the selection biases and observational uncertainties. The intrinsic${\mathit{}}_{*}–{\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}$relation atz∼ 2 has a moderate positive offset of 0.52 ± 0.14 dex from the local relation, suggestive of more efficient black hole growth at higher redshift even in the low-mass regime of${\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}\sim {10}^7–{10}^8{M}_{\odot }$. Our${\mathit{}}_{*}–{\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}$relation is inconsistent with the${\mathit{}}_{\mathrm{BH}}$suppression at the low-${\mathit{}}_{*}$regime predicted by recent hydrodynamic simulations at a 98% confidence level, suggesting that feedback in the low-mass systems may be weaker than those produced in hydrodynamic simulations.

 

We  present the demography of the dynamics and gas mass fraction of 33 extremely metal-poor galaxies (EMPGs) with metallicities of 0.015–0.195Z_⊙and low stellar masses of 10⁴–10⁸M_⊙in the local universe. We conduct deep optical integral field spectroscopy (IFS) for the low-mass EMPGs with the medium-high resolution (R= 7500) grism of the 8 m Subaru FOCAS IFU instrument by the EMPRESS 3D survey, and investigate the Hαemission of the EMPGs. Exploiting the resolution high enough for the low-mass galaxies, we derive gas dynamics with the Hαlines by the fitting of three-dimensional disk models. We obtain an average maximum rotation velocity (v_rot) of 15 ± 3 km s⁻¹and an average intrinsic velocity dispersion (σ₀) of 27 ± 10 km s⁻¹for 15 spatially resolved EMPGs out of 33 EMPGs, and find that all 15 EMPGs havev_rot/σ₀< 1 suggesting dispersion-dominated systems. There is a clear decreasing trend ofv_rot/σ₀with the decreasing stellar mass and metallicity. We derive the gas mass fraction (f_gas) for all 33 EMPGs, and find no clear dependence on stellar mass and metallicity. Thesev_rot/σ₀andf_gastrends should be compared with young high-zgalaxies observed by the forthcoming JWST IFS programs to understand the physical origins of the EMPGs in the local universe.

 

We perform a super-resolution analysis of the Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) images to estimate the major merger fractions of z ∼ 4–7 dropout galaxies at the bright end of galaxy UV luminosity functions (LFs). Our super-resolution technique improves the spatial resolution of the ground-based HSC images, from ∼1″ to $\lesssim \!\!{0{^{\prime \prime }_{.}}1}$, which is comparable to that of the Hubble Space Telescope, allowing us to identify z ∼ 4–7 bright major mergers at a high completeness value of $\gtrsim \!\!90\%$. We apply the super-resolution technique to 6412, 16, 94, and 13 very bright dropout galaxies at z ∼ 4, 5, 6, and 7, respectively, in a UV luminosity range of LUV ∼ 3–$15\, L_{\rm UV}^*$ corresponding to −24 ≲ MUV ≲ −22. The major merger fractions are estimated to be $f_{\rm merger}\sim 10\%$–$20\%$ at z ∼ 4 and $\sim 50\%$–$70\%$ at z ∼ 5–7, which shows no fmerger difference compared to those of a control faint galaxy sample. Based on the fmerger estimates, we verify contributions of source blending effects and major mergers to the bright-end of double power-law (DPL) shape of z ∼ 4–7 galaxy UV LFs. While these two effects partly explain the DPL shape at LUV ∼ 3–$10\, L_{\rm UV}^*$, the DPL shape cannot be explained at the very bright end of $L_{\rm UV}\gtrsim 10\, L_{\rm UV}^*$, even after the AGN contribution is subtracted. The results support scenarios in which other additional mechanisms such as insignificant mass quenching and low dust obscuration contribute to the DPL shape of galaxy UV LFs.

 

Physical properties of galaxies at z>7 are of interest for understanding both the early phases of star formation and the process of cosmic reionization. Chemical abundance measurements offer valuable information on the integrated star formation history, and hence ionizing photon production, as well as the rapid gas accretion expected at such high redshifts. We use reported measurements of [O III] 88μm emission and star formation rate to estimate gas-phase oxygen abundances in five galaxies at z=7.1-9.1 using the direct T_e method. We find typical abundances 12+log(O/H) = 7.9 (∼0.2 times the solar value) and an evolution of 0.9±0.5 dex in oxygen abundance at fixed stellar mass from z≃8 to 0. These results are compatible with theoretical predictions, albeit with large (conservative) uncertainties in both mass and metallicity. We assess both statistical and systematic uncertainties to identify promising means of improvement with the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). In particular we highlight [O III] 52μm as a valuable feature for robust metallicity measurements. Precision of 0.1-0.2 dex in T_e-based O/H abundance can be reasonably achieved for galaxies at z≈5-8 by combining [O III] 52μm with rest-frame optical strong lines. It will also be possible to probe gas mixing and mergers via resolved T_e-based abundances on kpc scales. With ALMA and JWST, direct metallicity measurements will thus be remarkably accessible in the reionization epoch. 

Abstract We present Ly α and ultraviolet (UV)-continuum luminosity functions (LFs) of galaxies and active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at z = 2.0–3.5 determined by the untargeted optical spectroscopic survey of the Hobby–Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX). We combine deep Subaru imaging with HETDEX spectra resulting in 11.4 deg 2 of fiber spectra sky coverage, obtaining 18,320 galaxies spectroscopically identified with Ly α emission, 2126 of which host type 1 AGNs showing broad (FWHM > 1000 km s −1 ) Ly α emission lines. We derive the Ly α (UV) LF over 2 orders of magnitude covering bright galaxies and AGNs in log L Ly α / [ erg s − 1 ] = 43.3 – 45.5 (−27 < M UV < −20) by the 1/ V max estimator. Our results reveal that the bright-end hump of the Ly α LF is composed of type 1 AGNs. In conjunction with previous spectroscopic results at the faint end, we measure a slope of the best-fit Schechter function to be α Sch = − 1.70 − 0.14 + 0.13 , which indicates that α Sch steepens from z = 2–3 toward high redshift. Our UV LF agrees well with previous AGN UV LFs and extends to faint-AGN and bright-galaxy regimes. The number fraction of Ly α -emitting objects ( X LAE ) increases from M UV * ∼ − 21 to bright magnitude due to the contribution of type 1 AGNs, while previous studies claim that X Ly α decreases from faint magnitudes to M UV * , suggesting a valley in the X Ly α –magnitude relation at M UV * . Comparing our UV LF of type 1 AGNs at z = 2–3 with those at z = 0, we find that the number density of faint ( M UV > −21) type 1 AGNs increases from z ∼ 2 to 0, as opposed to the evolution of bright ( M UV < −21) type 1 AGNs, suggesting AGN downsizing in the rest-frame UV luminosity. 

We present kinematics of six local extremely metal-poor galaxies (EMPGs) with low metallicities (0.016–0.098Z_⊙) and low stellar masses (10^4.7–10^7.6M_⊙). Taking deep medium/high-resolution (R∼ 7500) integral-field spectra with 8.2 m Subaru, we resolve the small inner velocity gradients and dispersions of the EMPGs with Hαemission. Carefully masking out substructures originating by inflow and/or outflow, we fit three-dimensional disk models to the observed Hαflux, velocity, and velocity dispersion maps. All the EMPGs show rotational velocities (v_rot) of 5–23 km s⁻¹smaller than the velocity dispersions (σ₀) of 17–31 km s⁻¹, indicating dispersion-dominated (v_rot/σ₀= 0.29–0.80 < 1) systems affected by inflow and/or outflow. Except for two EMPGs with large uncertainties, we find that the EMPGs have very large gas-mass fractions off_gas≃ 0.9–1.0. Comparing our results with other Hαkinematics studies, we find thatv_rot/σ₀decreases andf_gasincreases with decreasing metallicity, decreasing stellar mass, and increasing specific star formation rate. We also find that simulated high-z(z∼ 7) forming galaxies have gas fractions and dynamics similar to the observed EMPGs. Our EMPG observations and the simulations suggest that primordial galaxies are gas-rich dispersion-dominated systems, which would be identified by the forthcoming James Webb Space Telescope observations atz∼ 7.