Bibcode
DOI
Arribas, Santiago; Colina, Luis
Referencia bibliográfica
The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 573, Issue 2, pp. 576-583.
Fecha de publicación:
7
2002
Revista
Número de citas
14
Número de citas referidas
14
Descripción
Integral field optical spectroscopy using the INTEGRAL system
(complemented with Hubble Space Telescope WFPC2 imaging) is used to
characterize the kinematic and ionization properties of the warm ionized
gas in the ultraluminous infrared galaxy IRAS 15206+3342. These data
present kinematic and morphological evidence for a tidal tail connecting
the nuclear star-forming regions with a remnant stellar system located
at a projected distance of 20 kpc away from the nucleus. The velocity
field and the velocity dispersion map indicate the presence of gas
flowing inward along the tidal tail, feeding the nuclear regions where
the previously detected arc-shaped chain of young stellar clusters is
forming stars at a rate of about 150 Msolar yr-1.
According to theoretical models by Mihos & Hernquist, these
characteristics (e.g., large gas inflows and massive starbursts) are
expected during the final coalescence phase of two disk galaxies with
bulges. No kinematic evidence for a second nucleus, nor for the presence
of young star-forming regions located along the external parts of the
tidal tail, is found, further supporting the conclusion that this system
is an advanced merger of two galaxies. Furthermore, photometric and
geometrical arguments indicate that the progenitors of this
ultraluminous infrared system were two low-luminosity
(