Discovery of an Enormous Ly$\alpha$ nebula in a massive galaxy overdensity at $z=2.3$

Abstract

Enormous Ly$\alpha$ Nebulae (ELANe), unique tracers of galaxy density peaks, are predicted to lie at the nodes and intersections of cosmic filamentary structures. Previous successful searches for ELANe have focused on wide-field narrowband surveys, or have targeted known sources such as ultraluminous quasi-stellar-objects (QSOs) or radio galaxies. Utilizing groups of coherently strong Ly$\alpha$ absorptions (CoSLAs), we have developed a new method to identify high-redshift galaxy overdensities and have identified an extremely massive overdensity, BOSS1441, at $z=2-3$ (Cai et al. 2016a). In its density peak, we discover an ELAN that is associated with a relatively faint continuum. To date, this object has the highest diffuse Ly$\alpha$ nebular luminosity of $L_{\mathrm{nebula}}=5.1\pm 0.1\times 10^{44}$ erg s${}^{-1}$. Above the 2$\sigma$ surface brightness limit of SB${}_{\mathrm{Ly}\alpha }=4.8\times 10^{-18}$ erg s${}^{-1}$ cm${}^{-2}$ arcsec${}^{-2}$, this nebula has an end-to-end spatial extent of 442 kpc. This radio-quiet source also has extended \civ\ $\lambda 1549$ and \heii\ $\lambda 1640$ emission on $\gtrsim 30$ kpc scales. Note that the Ly$\alpha$, \heii\ and \civ\ emission all have double-peaked line profiles. Each velocity component has a full-width-half-maximum (FWHM) of $\approx 700-1000$ km s${}^{-1}$. We argue that this Ly$\alpha$ nebula could be powered by shocks due to an AGN-driven outflow or/and photoionization by a strongly obscured source.

corrected a typo of a coordinate in the last published version; and also updated Fig.2

References in corpus (14)

• The MAPPINGS III Library of Fast Radiative Shock Models
• Kiloparsec-scale outflows are prevalent among luminous AGN: outflows and feedback in the context of the overall AGN population
• Distant Radio Galaxies and their Environments
• Wind from the black-hole accretion disk driving a molecular outflow in an active galaxy
• Evidence for powerful AGN winds at high redshift: Dynamics of galactic outflows in radio galaxies during the "Quasar Era"
• Extreme gas kinematics in the z=2.2 powerful radio galaxy MRC1138-262: Evidence for efficient AGN feedback in the early Universe?
• Quasar Quartet Embedded in Giant Nebula Reveals Rare Massive Structure in Distant Universe
• The SAMI Galaxy Survey: Shocks and Outflows in a normal star-forming galaxy
• The Chandra Deep Protocluster Survey: Ly-alpha Blobs are powered by heating, not cooling
• VIMOS-VLT spectroscopy of the giant Ly-alpha nebulae associated with three z~2.5 radio galaxies
• A Deep Narrowband Imaging Search for CIV and He II Emission from Ly$\alpha$ Blobs
• The Properties of Lyman Alpha Nebulae: Gas Kinematics from Non-resonant Lines
• ALMA observations of Lyman-alpha Blob 1: halo sub-structure illuminated from within
• Constraining Very High Mass Population III Stars through He II Emission in Galaxy BDF-521 at z = 7.01

Cited by in corpus (107)

• The Quest for Dual and Binary Supermassive Black Holes: A Multi-Messenger View
• A Characteristic Scale for Cold Gas
• Observations of the Lyman-$\alpha$ Universe
• An extreme proto-cluster of luminous dusty starbursts in the early Universe
• QSO MUSEUM I: A sample of 61 extended Ly$\alpha$-emission nebulae surrounding $z\sim 3$ quasars
• The large and small scale properties of the intergalactic gas in the Slug Ly-alpha nebula revealed by MUSE HeII emission observations
• Evolution of the Cool Gas in the Circumgalactic Medium (CGM) of Massive Halos -- A Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI) Survey of Ly$\alpha$ Emission around QSOs at $z\approx 2$
• MApping the Most Massive Overdensities (MAMMOTH) II -- Discovery of an Extremely Massive Overdensity BOSS1441 at $z=2.32$
• Inspiraling Halo Accretion Mapped in Lyman-$\alpha$ Emission around a $z\sim 3$ Quasar
• The REQUIEM Survey I: A Search for Extended Ly-Alpha Nebular Emission Around 31 z>5.7 Quasars
• MusE GAs FLOw and Wind (MEGAFLOW) VIII. Discovery of a MgII emission halo probed by a quasar sightline
• Resonant line transfer in a fog: Using Lyman-alpha to probe tiny structures in atomic gas
• First Spectroscopic Study of a Young Quasar
• Keck/Palomar Cosmic Web Imagers (KCWI/PCWI) Reveal an Enormous Ly$\alpha$ Nebula in an Extremely Overdense QSO Pair Field at $z=2.45$
• Direct evidence of AGN-feedback: a post starburst galaxy stripped of its gas by AGN-driven winds
• Witnessing galaxy assembly in an extended z~3 structure
• On the model of the circumgalactic mist: the implications of cloud sizes in galactic winds and halos
• SILVERRUSH. II. First Catalogs and Properties of ~2,000 Lya Emitters and Blobs at z~6-7 Identified over the 14-21 deg2 Sky
• Metal enrichment in the circumgalactic medium and Lyα haloes around quasars at z $\sim$3
• Ionised gas structure of 100 kpc in an over-dense region of the galaxy group COSMOS-Gr30 at z ~ 0.7
• Discovery of a Proto-cluster Associated with a Ly-$\alpha$ Blob Pair at z=2.3
• The MUSE Ultra Deep Field (MUDF). I. Discovery of a group of Ly$\alpha$ nebulae associated with a bright $z\approx 3.23$ quasar pair
• Jet-driven galaxy-scale gas outflows in the hyper-luminous quasar 3C273
• The mass-metallicity relation at cosmic noon in overdense environments: first results from the MAMMOTH-Grism HST slitless spectroscopic survey
• Overdensity of submillimeter galaxies around the $z\simeq 2.3$ MAMMOTH-1 nebula
• Deciphering Lyman $\alpha$ blob 1 with deep MUSE observations
• Discovery of a dual AGN at z~3.3 with 20kpc separation
• Inspiraling streams of enriched gas observed around a massive galaxy 11 billion years ago
• Surface Brightness Profile of Lyman-$\alpha$ Halos out to 320 kpc in HETDEX
• J-PLUS: Unveiling the brightest-end of the Lyα luminosity function at 2.0<z<3.3 over 1000 deg^2
• Accelerated galaxy growth and environmental quenching in a protocluster at z=3.24
• From large-scale environment to CGM angular momentum to star forming activities -- I: star-forming galaxies
• ODIN: Where Do Lyman-alpha Blobs Live? Contextualizing Blob Environments within the Large-Scale Structure
• Evaluating Lya Emission as a Tracer of the Largest Cosmic Structure at z~2.47
• A detailed study of massive galaxies in a protocluster at z=3.13
• A census of galaxy constituents in a Coma Progenitor observed at z>3
• Discovery of intergalactic bridges connecting two faint $z\sim 3$ quasars
• Spectroscopic Confirmation of two Extremely Massive Protoclusters BOSS1244 and BOSS1542 at $z=2.24$
• Statistical correlation between the distribution of Ly$\alpha$ emitters and IGM HI at $z\sim 2.2$ mapped by Subaru/Hyper Suprime-Cam
• Unlocking the Full Potential of Extragalactic Ly$\alpha$ through Its Polarization Properties
• Revisiting the Gas Kinematics in SSA22 Lyman-$\alpha$ Blob 1 with Radiative Transfer Modeling in a Multiphase, Clumpy Medium
• What boost galaxy mergers in two massive galaxy protoclusters at z = 2.24
• The cold circumgalactic environment of MAMMOTH-I: dynamically cold gas in the core of an Enormous Ly-alpha Nebula
• A hidden active galactic nucleus powering bright [O III] nebulae in a protocluster at $z=4.5$ revealed by JWST
• Dating individual quasars with the HeII proximity effect
• Probing the AGN Unification Model at redshift z $\sim$ 3 with MUSE observations of giant Ly$\alpha$ nebulae
• The Detection of Intergalactic Halpha Emission from the Slug Nebula at z~2.3
• TARDIS Paper II: Synergistic Density Reconstruction from Lyman-alpha Forest and Spectroscopic Galaxy Surveys with Applications to Protoclusters and the Cosmic Web
• Probing the Inner Circumgalactic Medium and Quasar Illumination around the Reddest `Extremely Red Quasar' (ERQ)
• A Multiwavelength Study of ELAN Environments (AMUSE${}^2$): Detection of a dusty star-forming galaxy within the enormous Lyman $\alpha$ nebula at $z=2.3$ sheds light on its origin
• A Multiwavelength Study of ELAN Environments (AMUSE${}^2$). Mass budget, satellites spin alignment and gas infall in a massive $z\sim 3$ quasar host halo
• The MUSE 3D view of feedback in a high-metallicity radio galaxy at z = 2.9
• Radiative Transfer in Lyα Nebulae: I. Modeling a Continuous or Clumpy Spherical Halo with a Central Source
• Mapping the "invisible" circumgalactic medium around a z $\sim$ 4.5 radio galaxy with MUSE
• Mapping the Morphology and Kinematics of a Lyman-alpha-selected Nebula at z=3.15 with MUSE
• A Multiwavelength Study of ELAN Environments (AMUSE${}^2$): Ubiquitous dusty star-forming galaxies associated with enormous Ly$\alpha$ nebulae on megaparsec scales
• Where Outflows Meet Inflows: Gas Kinematics in SSA22 Lyman-$\alpha$ Blob 2 Decoded by Advanced Radiative Transfer Modelling
• Unveiling Luminous Ly$\alpha$ Emitters at $z\approx 6$ through JWST/NIRCam Imaging in the COSMOS Field
• An investigation of the circumgalactic medium around z~2.2 AGN with ACA and ALMA
• ALMA Observations of Lyman-alpha Blob 1: Multiple major-mergers and widely distributed interstellar media
• Median Surface Brightness Profiles of Lyman-$\alpha$ Haloes in the MUSE Extremely Deep Field
• Where infall meets outflows: turbulent dissipation probed by CH${}^{+}$ and Ly$\alpha$ in the starburst/AGN galaxy group SMM J02399$-$0136 at z$\sim$2.8
• 3D Distribution Map of HI Gas and Galaxies Around an Enormous Ly$\alpha$ Nebula and Three QSOs at $z=2.3$ Revealed by the HI Tomographic Mapping Technique
• Tentative Detection of the Circumgalactic Medium of the Isolated Low-Mass Dwarf Galaxy WLM
• On The Effect of Environment on Line Emission from the Circumgalactic Medium
• Discovery of a Lya emitting dark-cloud within z ~ 2.8 SMMJ02399-0136 system
• Searching for the shadows of giants: characterising protoclusters with line of sight Lyman-α absorption
• Cold Mode Gas Accretion on Two Galaxy Groups at z$\sim$2
• APEX at the QSO MUSEUM: molecular gas reservoirs associated with $z\sim$3 quasars and their link to the extended Ly$\alpha$ emission
• Characterizing the Circumgalactic Medium of Quasars at z $\sim$ 2.2 through H$\alpha$ and Ly$\alpha$ Emission
• Prospects for Observing the low-density Cosmic Web in Lyman-alpha Emission
• Discovery of a giant and luminous Lya+CIV+HeII nebula at z=3.326 with extreme emission line ratios
• The Anisotropic Circumgalactic Medium of Massive Early-Type Galaxies
• A high dust emissivity index beta for a CO-faint galaxy in a filamentary Lyman-alpha nebula at z=3.1
• Discovery of a protocluster core associated with an enormous Ly$\alpha$ Nebula at $z=2.3$
• The density distribution of accreting cosmic filaments as shaped by Kelvin-Helmholtz instability
• A search for dust and molecular gas in enormous Ly$\alpha$ nebulae at $z\approx 2$
• A Spectroscopic Survey of Ly$\alpha$ Emitters at $z\approx 3.1$ over $\sim$1.2 Deg${}^2$
• JCMT/SCUBA-2 uncovers an excess of $850\mu$m counts on megaparsec scales around high-redshift quasars. Characterization of the overdensities and their alignment with the quasars' Ly$\alpha$ nebulae
• The Ly$\alpha$, CIV, and HeII nebulae around J1000+0234: a galaxy pair at the center of a galaxy overdensity at $z=4.5$
• The circumgalactic medium in Lyman-alpha: a new constraint on galactic outflow models
• An Empirical Determination of the Dependence of the Circumgalactic Mass Cooling Rate and Feedback Mass Loading Factor on Galactic Stellar Mass
• Resolved galactic superwinds reconstructed around their host galaxies at z>3
• Observing the Effects of Galaxy Interactions on the Circumgalactic Medium
• The WISSH quasars project VII. Outflows and metals in the circumgalactic medium around the hyper-luminous z~3.6 quasar J1538+08
• Possible evolution of the circum-galactic medium around QSOs with QSO age and cosmic time revealed by Ly$\alpha$ halos
• Revealing the Gas Recycling in the Circumgalactic Medium (CGM) Utilizing a Luminous Ly$\alpha$ Nebula Around a Type-II Quasar at z=2.6 with the Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI)
• Detection of large scale Ly$\alpha$ absorbers at large angles to the radio axis of high-redshift radio galaxies using SOAR
• SDSS-IV MaNGA: the physical origin of off-galaxy H$\alpha$ blobs in the local Universe
• The miniJPAS Survey: Detection of double-core Lyα morphology of two high-redshift (z>3) QSOs
• Lyman-$\alpha$ emission from a WISE-selected optically faint powerful radio galaxy M151304.72-252439.7 at $z$ = 3.132
• Prospects for detecting cosmic filaments in Lyman-alpha emission across redshifts $z=2-5$
• Probing the cosmic web in Ly$\alpha$ emission over large scales: an Intensity Mapping forecast for DECaLS/BASS and DESI
• Search for extended Lyman-$\alpha$ emission around 9k quasars at z=2-3
• Circumgalactic Ly$\alpha$ Nebulae in Overdense Quasar Pair Regions Observed with the Palomar Cosmic Web Imager
• MAMMOTH-MOSFIRE: Environmental Effects on Galaxy Interstellar Medium at $z\sim 2$
• The Active Galactic Nuclei in the Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment Survey (HETDEX) III. A red quasar with extremely high equivalent widths showing powerful outflows
• A Ringed Dwarf LINER 1 Galaxy Hosting an Intermediate-mass Black Hole with Large-scale Rotation-like Hα Emission
• Revealing the Warm and Hot Halo Baryons via Thomson Scattering of Quasar Light
• A Ly-alpha nebula at z~3.3
• Brighter and More Massive Galaxies in the Vicinity of Lyman-alpha Nebulae
• Carbon-loud SDSS BOSS QSO2s at z > 2: High density gas or secondary production of Carbon?
• Submillimeter galaxy overdensities around physically associated quasar pairs
• J-PAS: Discovery of RaJav, a bright spatially extended Ly$\alpha$ Nebula at z=2.25
• ODIN: A New Lyman Alpha Blob Selection Method, Sample, and Statistical Analysis at $z\sim 3.1$
• Oxyster: A Circumgalactic Low-ionization Oxygen Nebula next to a Starburst Galaxy at $z\sim 1$
• GA-NIFS: AGN activity in a Lyα emitter within a triple-AGN system anchored by a passive galaxy at z=3