The Great Laboratory M51: Probing the Physics of Star Formation and Radio Emission on the 100pc-Scale

• Applicant: Dr. Eva Schinnerer
• Subject Area: Astrophysics and Astronomy
• Term: from 2007 to 2011
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 41960361

• Final Report Year: 2012

Final Report Abstract

Although first empirically established the relation between radio and infrared continuum emission has provided critical insight in ISM (interstellar Medium) properties and their dependencies on magnetic fields, star formation and nuclear activity, density waves, and others. Only recent improvements in radio and infrared instrumentation allow us to use this important tool on local scales to gain new insight into the ISM properties on sub-kpc scales. Our SPP study of the local radio-IR relation in M51 reveals two interesting regimes within M51’s disk: a) the radio-IR relation is sub-linear in the inter-arm and outer disk regions (seen for the first time), and b) the supposed interaction region between the two galaxies shows enhanced radio continuum without corresponding IR emission. In addition, motivated by these findings we defined and started the radio follow-up of the KINGFISH sample of nearby galaxies that will provide new insights into the global and local radio-IR relation.

Publications

• 2010, ApJL, 709, L108: The Detection of Anomalous Dust Emission in the Nearby Galaxy NGC 6946
  Murphy, E. J., incl. Schinnerer, E., Beck, R., et al.
  
• 2011, AJ, 141, 41: The Local Radio-IR Relation in M51
  Dumas, G., Schinnerer, E., incl. Beck, R., et al.