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。一个星系的成长可能受到星系本身和/或其环境的影响。这种增长是通过新恒星形成的速度来衡量的。星系可以在被称为细丝的巨大物质聚集体中找到；或者，它们可以彼此隔离。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理解为什么细丝会熄灭恒星的形成。这个项目将把星系中为恒星形成提供燃料的气体的成像与揭示最终恒星形成的观测相结合。研究人员将比较两种环境下的星系，以确定恒星形成淬火的方法。他们的研究结果将挑战理论模型。该项目还将继续在当地一所高中开展成功的推广活动。将增加同伴指导以增加影响，而无需额外资金。其中一名研究人员所在的堪萨斯州，正处于全国范围内关于科学在课堂中的作用的辩论的前沿。因此，这种扩大科学参与的努力尤其及时和相关。该项目将结合h - α的大型成像调查和中性氢（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长丝星系中可用于最终形成恒星的中性气体和/或分子气体的数量是否明显低于那些在野外、群体或星团环境中的气体。第二个目标集中在每个星系中恒星形成的空间分布。这一目标将确定冲压压力剥离、饥饿和/或合并是否是淬火恒星形成的重要机制。第三个目标使用前两个目标的结果来对抗宇宙结构增长背景下恒星形成淬火的理论模型。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。辅助和原始数据将在出版和存档后发布。

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.