Collaborative Research: The Effect of Filaments on the Gas in Galaxies

天文学家试图了解星系是如何形成和演化的。星系的生长可能受到星系内部过程和/或其环境的影响。这样的增长是通过新星形成的速度来衡量的。星系可以在巨大的物质聚集体中被发现，这些物质被称为细丝；或者，它们可能彼此孤立。在细丝中发现的星系通常比孤立的星系生长得慢。芬恩和他的合作者试图解释为什么细丝会熄灭恒星的形成。这个项目将结合对星系中形成恒星的气体的成像和揭示恒星形成的观测。研究人员将比较两种环境下的星系，以确定恒星形成猝灭的方法。他们的结果将挑战理论模型。该项目还将继续对当地一所高中进行成功的持续推广。将增加同行指导，以利用Impact，而不需要额外资金。其中一名调查人员所在的堪萨斯州是全国范围内关于科学在课堂上的作用辩论的前线。因此，这种扩大科学参与度的努力是特别及时和相关的。这个项目将结合H-α的大型成像观测和对中性氢(HI)和分子气体(CO)的观测。该项目有三个具体目标。第一个目标是直接测量丝状星系中可用于最终形成恒星的中性和/或分子气体的量是否明显低于场、群或星系团环境中的那些。第二个目标集中在每个星系内恒星形成的空间分布。这一目标将决定冲压剥离、饥饿和/或合并是否是熄灭恒星形成的重要机制。第三个目标利用前两个目标的结果，在宇宙结构增长的背景下对抗恒星形成猝灭的理论模型。数据管理计划包括发布主要数据产品：200个星系的H-α连续图以及HI和CO测量。辅助数据和原始数据将在发布时发布并存档。

Astronomers seek to understand how galaxies form and evolve. A galaxy's growth may be affected by processes within the galaxy itself and/or by its environment. Such growth is measured by the rate of new star formation. Galaxies can be found among vast aggregates of matter which are called filaments; alternatively, they may be isolated from one another. Galaxies found in filaments typically grow more slowly than isolated galaxies. Finn and collaborators seek to understand why filaments quench star formation. This project will combine imaging of the gas that fuels star formation in galaxies with observations that reveal the resulting star formation. Investigators will compare galaxies in both types of environment to determine the method of star formation quenching. Their results will challenge theoretical models. The project will also continue a successful, ongoing outreach to a local high school. Peer instruction will be added to leverage impact without additional funds. Kansas, the state where one of the investigators is located, is on the front-lines of the nationwide debate on the role of science in the classroom. Therefore, this effort to broaden participation in science is especially timely and relevant.This project will combine a large imaging survey in H-alpha and observations of neutral Hydrogen (HI) and molecular gas (CO). The project has three specific aims. The first aim is to directly measure whether the amount of neutral and/or molecular gas available to eventually form stars is measurably lower in filament galaxies compared to those in the field, group, or cluster environment. The second aim focuses on the spatial distribution of star formation within each galaxy. This aim will determine whether ram pressure stripping, starvation, and/or mergers are significant mechanisms for quenching star formation. The third aim uses the results of the first two aims to confront theoretical models of star formation quenching in the context of cosmological structure growth. The Data Management Plan includes release of the main data products: H-alpha + continuum maps of 200 galaxies and HI and CO measurements. Ancillary and raw data will be released upon publication and archived.