\HI 21-cm Line Properties of the Nearby LIRG IRAS 04296+2923

Abstract

We present an analysis of archival Very Large Array (VLA) and Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) \HI\ 21 cm data, together with archival multi-band radio continuum observations, of the nearby luminous infrared galaxy IRAS~04296+2923. The system, located behind the Taurus dark cloud at a distance of $\sim$29 Mpc, forms a small galaxy group consisting of five members as revealed by the \HI\ imaging. IRAS~04296+2923 has a close companion, HI~0432+2926, with a projected separation of $\sim$40 kpc, a small line-of-sight velocity difference of $\Delta$ v = 26 km s${}^{-1}$, and comparable total \HI\ masses of order $10^9$~$M_{\odot }$. Both galaxies exhibit regular \HI\ velocity fields and characteristic double-horn profiles in the VLA and FAST data, accompanied by only subtle asymmetries and extended \HI\ structures, indicating rotation-dominated kinematics with early signs of weak tidal interaction. Radio continuum emission is detected only from IRAS~04296+2923 and is confined to its nuclear region, consistent with previous studies. Modeling of its multi-band radio spectrum reveals a significant contribution from free--free emission at high frequencies ($>$30 GHz) and a high FIR-to-radio flux ratio ($q_{8.4}\simeq 3.2$), implying a young, dust-obscured nuclear starburst. Taken together, the regular \HI\ kinematics, the small velocity offset, and the group-scale environment favor an interpretation in which IRAS~04296+2923 and HI~0432+2926 form a gravitationally bound, orbiting galaxy pair embedded in a small group, rather than an advanced merger. In this context, the luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG) nature of IRAS~04296+2923 is more plausibly driven by internal processes, such as bar-induced gas inflow, possibly modulated by long-timescale, low-level tidal interactions with nearby group companions.

22 pages, 19 figures, Accepted by A&A