NGC 628 in SIGNALS: Explaining the Abundance-ionization Correlation in H ii Regions

Ray Garner III; Robert Kennicutt Jr.; Laurie Rousseau-Nepton; Grace M. Olivier; David Fernández-Arenas; Carmelle Robert; René Pierre Martin; Philippe Amram

doi:10.3847/1538-4357/ad96b2

The Astrophysical Journal (Jan 2024)

NGC 628 in SIGNALS: Explaining the Abundance-ionization Correlation in H ii Regions

Ray Garner III,
Robert Kennicutt Jr.,
Laurie Rousseau-Nepton,
Grace M. Olivier,
David Fernández-Arenas,
Carmelle Robert,
René Pierre Martin,
Philippe Amram

Affiliations

Ray Garner III: ORCiD; Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , 578 University Drive, College Station, TX 77843, USA ; [email protected]; George P. and Cynthia W. Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics & Astronomy, Texas A&M University , 578 University Drive, College Station, TX 77843, USA
Robert Kennicutt Jr.: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , 578 University Drive, College Station, TX 77843, USA ; [email protected]; George P. and Cynthia W. Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics & Astronomy, Texas A&M University , 578 University Drive, College Station, TX 77843, USA; Department of Astronomy and Steward Observatory, University of Arizona , 933 N. Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Laurie Rousseau-Nepton: Dunlap Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3H4, Canada; Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3H4, Canada; Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope , 65-1238 Mamalahoa Highway, Kamuela, HI 96743, USA
Grace M. Olivier: ORCiD; Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , 578 University Drive, College Station, TX 77843, USA ; [email protected]; George P. and Cynthia W. Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics & Astronomy, Texas A&M University , 578 University Drive, College Station, TX 77843, USA
David Fernández-Arenas: ORCiD; Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope , 65-1238 Mamalahoa Highway, Kamuela, HI 96743, USA
Carmelle Robert: Département de physique, de génie physique et d’optique, Université Laval , Québec City, QC G1V 0A6, Canada; Centre de recherche en astrophysique du Québec, Université de Montréal , Montréal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada
René Pierre Martin: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Hawaii at Hilo , Hilo, HI 96720, USA
Philippe Amram: Aix Marseille University , CNRS, CNES, Laboratoire d’astrophysique de Marseille, 38 Rue Frédéric Joliot Curie, Marseille 13013, France

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad96b2
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 978, no. 1
p. 70

Abstract

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The variations of oxygen abundance and ionization parameter in H ii regions are usually thought to be the dominant factors that produced variations seen in observed emission-line spectra. However, if and how these two quantities are physically related is hotly debated in the literature. Using emission line data of NGC 628 observed with SITELLE as part of the Star formation, Ionized Gas, and Nebular Abundances Legacy Survey (SIGNALS), we use a suite of photoionization models to constrain the abundance and ionization parameters for over 1500 H ii regions throughout its disk. We measure an anticorrelation between these two properties, consistent with expectations, although with considerable scatter. Secondary trends with dust extinction and star formation rate surface density potentially explain the large scatter observed. We raise concerns throughout regarding various modeling assumptions and their impact on the observed correlations presented in the literature.

Published in The Astrophysical Journal

ISSN: 1538-4357 (Online)
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Science: Astronomy: Astrophysics
Website: https://iopscience.iop.org/journal/0004-637X

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