Karl D. Gordon

Bio: Karl D. Gordon is an academic researcher from Space Telescope Science Institute. The author has contributed to research in topics: Galaxy & Star formation. The author has an hindex of 115, co-authored 599 publications receiving 51952 citations. Previous affiliations of Karl D. Gordon include University of Arizona & Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.

The Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS)

Abstract: The Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS) provides long-wavelength capability for the mission in imaging bands at 24, 70, and 160 ?m and measurements of spectral energy distributions between 52 and 100 ?m at a spectral resolution of about 7%. By using true detector arrays in each band, it provides both critical sampling of the Spitzer point-spread function and relatively large imaging fields of view, allowing for substantial advances in sensitivity, angular resolution, and efficiency of areal coverage compared with previous space far-infrared capabilities. The 24 ?m array has excellent photometric properties, and measurements with rms relative errors of about 1% can be obtained. The two longer-wavelength arrays use detectors with poor photometric stability, but a system of onboard stimulators used for relative calibration, combined with a unique data pipeline, produce good photometry with rms relative errors of less than 10%.

SINGS: The SIRTF Nearby Galaxies Survey

Abstract: The SIRTF Nearby Galaxy Survey is a comprehensive infrared imaging and spectroscopic survey of 75 nearby galaxies. Its primary goal is to characterize the infrared emission of galaxies and their principal infrared-emitting components, across a broad range of galaxy properties and star formation environments. SINGS will provide new insights into the physical processes connecting star formation to the interstellar medium properties of galaxies and provide a vital foundation for understanding infrared observations of the distant universe and ultraluminous and active galaxies. The galaxy sample and observing strategy have been designed to maximize the scientific and archival value of the data set for the SIRTF user community at large. The SIRTF images and spectra will be supplemented by a comprehensive multiwavelength library of ancillary and complementary observations, including radio continuum, H i, CO, submillimeter, BVRIJHK ,H a ,P aa, ultraviolet, and X-ray data. This paper describes the main astrophysical issues to be addressed by SINGS, the galaxy sample and the observing strategy, and the SIRTF and other ancillary data products.

Dust Masses, PAH Abundances, and Starlight Intensities in the SINGS Galaxy Sample

Abstract: Physical dust models are presented for 65 galaxies in SINGS that are strongly detected in the four IRAC bands and three MIPS bands. For each galaxy we estimate (1) the total dust mass, (2) the fraction of the dust mass contributed by PAHs, and (3) the intensity of the starlight heating the dust grains. We find that spiral galaxies have dust properties resembling the dust in the local region of the Milky Way, with similar dust-to-gas ratio and similar PAH abundance. The observed SEDs, including galaxies with SCUBA photometry, can be reproduced by dust models that do not require "cold" (T ≾ 10 K) dust. The dust-to-gas ratio is observed to be dependent on metallicity. In the interstellar media of galaxies with A_O ≡ 12 + log_(10)(O/H) > 8.1, grains contain a substantial fraction of interstellar Mg, Si, and Fe. Galaxies with A_O 8.1 have a median q_(PAH) = 3.55%. The derived dust masses favor a value X_(CO) ≈ 4 × 10^(20) cm^(-2) (K km s^(-1))^(-1) for the CO-to-H_2 conversion factor. Except for some starbursting systems (Mrk 33, Tol 89, NGC 3049), dust in the diffuse ISM dominates the IR power.

A Quantitative Comparison of the Small Magellanic Cloud, Large Magellanic Cloud, and Milky Way Ultraviolet to Near-Infrared Extinction Curves

Abstract: We present an exhaustive quantitative comparison of all the known extinction curves in the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds (SMC and LMC) with our understanding of the general behavior of Milky Way extinction curves. The RV-dependent CCM relationship of Cardelli, Clayton, and Mathis and the sample of extinction curves used to derive this relationship are used to describe the general behavior of Milky Way extinction curves. The ultraviolet portion of the SMC and LMC extinction curves are derived from archival IUE data, except for one new SMC extinction curve, which was measured using Hubble Space Telescope Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph observations. The optical extinction curves are derived from new (for the SMC) and literature UBVRI photometry (for the LMC). The near-infrared extinction curves are calculated mainly from 2MASS photometry supplemented with DENIS and new JHK photometry. For each extinction curve, we give RV = A(V)/E(B - V) and N(H I) values that probe the same dust column as the extinction curve. We compare the properties of the SMC and LMC extinction curves with the CCM relationship three different ways: each curve by itself, the behavior of extinction at different wavelengths with RV, and the behavior of the extinction curve Fitzpatrick and Massa fit parameters with RV. As has been found previously, we find that a small number of LMC extinction curves are consistent with the CCM relationship, but the majority of the LMC and all the SMC curves do not follow the CCM relationship. For the first time, we find that the CCM relationship seems to form a bound on the properties of all the LMC and SMC extinction curves. This result strengthens the picture dust extinction curves exhibit of a continuum of properties between those found in the Milky Way and the SMC bar. Tentative evidence based on the behavior of the extinction curves with dust-to-gas ratio suggests that the continuum of dust extinction curves is possibly caused by the environmental stresses of nearby star formation activity.

The Calibration of Mid-Infrared Star Formation Rate Indicators

Abstract: With the goal of investigating the degree to which the MIR emission traces the SFR, we analyze Spitzer 8 and 24 μm data of star-forming regions in a sample of 33 nearby galaxies with available HST NICMOS images in the Paα (1.8756 μm) emission line. The galaxies are drawn from the SINGS sample and cover a range of morphologies and a factor ~10 in oxygen abundance. Published data on local low-metallicity starburst galaxies and LIRGs are also included in the analysis. Both the stellar continuum-subtracted 8 μm emission and the 24 μm emission correlate with the extinction-corrected Paα line emission, although neither relationship is linear. Simple models of stellar populations and dust extinction and emission are able to reproduce the observed nonlinear trend of the 24 μm emission versus number of ionizing photons, including the modest deficiency of 24 μm emission in the low-metallicity regions, which results from a combination of decreasing dust opacity and dust temperature at low luminosities. Conversely, the trend of the 8 μm emission as a function of the number of ionizing photons is not well reproduced by the same models. The 8 μm emission is contributed, in larger measure than the 24 μm emission, by dust heated by nonionizing stellar populations, in addition to the ionizing ones, in agreement with previous findings. Two SFR calibrations, one using the 24 μm emission and the other using a combination of the 24 μm and Hα luminosities (Kennicutt and coworkers), are presented. No calibration is presented for the 8 μm emission because of its significant dependence on both metallicity and environment. The calibrations presented here should be directly applicable to systems dominated by ongoing star formation.

Measurements of Omega and Lambda from 42 High-Redshift Supernovae

Abstract: We report measurements of the mass density, Omega_M, and cosmological-constant energy density, Omega_Lambda, of the universe based on the analysis of 42 Type Ia supernovae discovered by the Supernova Cosmology Project. The magnitude-redshift data for these SNe, at redshifts between 0.18 and 0.83, are fit jointly with a set of SNe from the Calan/Tololo Supernova Survey, at redshifts below 0.1, to yield values for the cosmological parameters. All SN peak magnitudes are standardized using a SN Ia lightcurve width-luminosity relation. The measurement yields a joint probability distribution of the cosmological parameters that is approximated by the relation 0.8 Omega_M - 0.6 Omega_Lambda ~= -0.2 +/- 0.1 in the region of interest (Omega_M <~ 1.5). For a flat (Omega_M + Omega_Lambda = 1) cosmology we find Omega_M = 0.28{+0.09,-0.08} (1 sigma statistical) {+0.05,-0.04} (identified systematics). The data are strongly inconsistent with a Lambda = 0 flat cosmology, the simplest inflationary universe model. An open, Lambda = 0 cosmology also does not fit the data well: the data indicate that the cosmological constant is non-zero and positive, with a confidence of P(Lambda > 0) = 99%, including the identified systematic uncertainties. The best-fit age of the universe relative to the Hubble time is t_0 = 14.9{+1.4,-1.1} (0.63/h) Gyr for a flat cosmology. The size of our sample allows us to perform a variety of statistical tests to check for possible systematic errors and biases. We find no significant differences in either the host reddening distribution or Malmquist bias between the low-redshift Calan/Tololo sample and our high-redshift sample. The conclusions are robust whether or not a width-luminosity relation is used to standardize the SN peak magnitudes.

Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning

Abstract: Probability Distributions.- Linear Models for Regression.- Linear Models for Classification.- Neural Networks.- Kernel Methods.- Sparse Kernel Machines.- Graphical Models.- Mixture Models and EM.- Approximate Inference.- Sampling Methods.- Continuous Latent Variables.- Sequential Data.- Combining Models.

emcee: The MCMC Hammer

Abstract: We introduce a stable, well tested Python implementation of the affine-invariant ensemble sampler for Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) proposed by Goodman & Weare (2010). The code is open source and has already been used in several published projects in the astrophysics literature. The algorithm behind emcee has several advantages over traditional MCMC sampling methods and it has excellent performance as measured by the autocorrelation time (or function calls per independent sample). One major advantage of the algorithm is that it requires hand-tuning of only 1 or 2 parameters compared to ~N2 for a traditional algorithm in an N-dimensional parameter space. In this document, we describe the algorithm and the details of our implementation. Exploiting the parallelism of the ensemble method, emcee permits any user to take advantage of multiple CPU cores without extra effort. The code is available online at http://dan.iel.fm/emcee under the GNU General Public License v2.

emcee: The MCMC Hammer

Abstract: We introduce a stable, well tested Python implementation of the affine-invariant ensemble sampler for Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) proposed by Goodman & Weare (2010). The code is open source and has already been used in several published projects in the astrophysics literature. The algorithm behind emcee has several advantages over traditional MCMC sampling methods and it has excellent performance as measured by the autocorrelation time (or function calls per independent sample). One major advantage of the algorithm is that it requires hand-tuning of only 1 or 2 parameters compared to $\sim N^2$ for a traditional algorithm in an N-dimensional parameter space. In this document, we describe the algorithm and the details of our implementation and API. Exploiting the parallelism of the ensemble method, emcee permits any user to take advantage of multiple CPU cores without extra effort. The code is available online at this http URL under the MIT License.

The Dust Content and Opacity of Actively Star-Forming Galaxies

Abstract: We present far-infrared (FIR) photometry at 150 and 205 micron(s) of eight low-redshift starburst galaxies obtained with the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) ISOPHOT. Five of the eight galaxies are detected in both wave bands, and these data are used, in conjunction with IRAS archival photometry, to model the dust emission at lambda approximately greater than 40 microns. The FIR spectral energy distributions (SEDs) are best fitted by a combination of two modified Planck functions, with T approx. 40 - 55 K (warm dust) and T approx. 20-23 K (cool dust) and with a dust emissivity index epsilon = 2. The cool dust can be a major contributor to the FIR emission of starburst galaxies, representing up to 60% of the total flux. This component is heated not only by the general interstellar radiation field, but also by the starburst itself. The cool dust mass is up to approx. 150 times larger than the warm dust mass, bringing the gas-to-dust ratios of the starbursts in our sample close to Milky Way values, once resealed for the appropriate metallicity. The ratio between the total dust FIR emission in the range 1-1000 microns and the IRAS FIR emission in the range 40 - 120 microns is approx. 1.75, with small variations from galaxy to galaxy. This ratio is about 40% larger than previously inferred from data at millimeter wavelengths. Although the galaxies in our sample are generally classified as "UV bright," for four of them the UV energy emerging shortward of 0.2 microns is less than 15% of the FIR energy. On average, about 30% of the bolometric flux is coming out in the UV-to-near-IR wavelength range; the rest is emitted in the FIR. Energy balance calculations show that the FIR emission predicted by the dust reddening of the UV-to-near-IR stellar emission is within a factor of approx. 2 of the observed value in individual galaxies and within 20% when averaged over a large sample. If our sample of local starbursts is representative of high-redshift (z approx. greater than 1), UV - bright star-forming galaxies, these galaxies' FIR emission will be generally undetected in submillimeter surveys, unless: (1) their bolometric luminosity is comparable to or larger than that of ultraluminous FIR galaxies and (2) their FIR SED contains a cool dust component.