Bipolar hypershell models of the extended hot interstellar medium in spiral galaxies

Abstract

We simulated the million degree interstellar medium and its soft X-ray images in the disk and halo of spiral galaxies using the bipolar hypershell (BHS) model. In this model hourglass-shaped expanding shells of several kpc radii are produced by a sudden energy release in the central region. We then applied our model to a mini-sample of starburst galaxies seen under different inclinations suhc as the nearly edge-on galaxies NGC 253. Our results reproduce the X-ray characteristics observed in the 0.1--2.4 keV ROSAT energy band: The bipolar hypershell morphology, the spectral energy distribution of the diffuse disk and halo emission as well as absorption gaps in the diffuse X-ray emission caused by a shadowing of soft X-rays due to cold intervening gas in the disks of the galaxies. The required total energy for the starburst is estimated to be of the order of $10^{55}$ ergs, corresponding to the overall kinetic energy generated in $\sim 10^4$ type-II supernova explosions. The expansion velocity of the shells is estimated to be $\sim 200$ \kms, which is necessary to heat the gas to $\sim 0.2$ keV (2.3 million K), and the age to be of the order of $3\times 10^7$ years. In the case of the very nearby galaxy NGC 253 all characteristics of the BHS model can be studied with high spatial resolution. Using the property that the shell morphology is sensitive to the ambient density distribution, we propose using soft X-ray data to probe the gas distributions in the disk, halo and intergalactic space. The application of our model to images at higher spatial and spectral resolution, as provided by Chandra and XMM, will help us to further disentangle the ISM density distributions and will lead to a better understanding of the disk halo interface.

To appear in Astron. Astrophys, Latex 9 pages, 6 figures in gif

References in corpus (2)

• Very Extended X-ray and H-alpha Emission in M82: Implications for the Superwind Phenomenon
• Bipolar-Hyper-Shell Galactic Center Statrburst Model: Further Evidence from ROSAT Data and New Radio and X-ray Simulations

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• AKARI infrared observations of edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 3079
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• Superwind evolution: the young starburst-driven wind galaxy NGC 2782
• On the Hα faintness of the North Polar Spur