JWST Observations of Starbursts: Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Emission at the Base of the M82 Galactic Wind

• DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ad33c8
• Publication Date: 2024-05-17T15:18:41Z
• Authors: Alberto D. Bolatto; Rebecca C. Levy; Elizabeth Tarantino; Martha L. Boyer; Deanne B. Fisher; Serena A. Cronin; Adam K. Leroy; Ralf S. Klessen; J. D. Smith; Danielle A. Berg; Torsten Böker; Leindert A. Boogaard; Eve C. Ostriker; Todd A. Thompson; Juergen Ott; Laura Lenkić; Laura A. Lopez; Daniel A. Dale; Sylvain Veilleux; Paul P. van der Werf; Simon C. O. Glover; Karin M. Sandstrom; Evan D. Skillman; John Chisholm; Vicente Villanueva; Thomas S.-Y. Lai; Sebastian Lopez; Elisabeth A. C. M...; Kimberly L. Emig; Lee Armus; Divakara Mayya; David S. Meier; Ilse De Looze; Rodrigo Herrera-C...; Fabian Walter; Mónica Relaño; Hannah B. Koziol; Joshua Marvil; María J. Jiménez-...; Paul Martini
• Keywords: QB460-466; Interstellar medium; Galaxy winds; Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA); 500; FOS: Physical sciences; Starburst galaxies; Dust physics; Astrophysics; Astrophysics - Astrophysics of Galaxies; 520; Luminous infrared galaxies

Abstract We present new observations of the central 1 kpc of the M82 starburst obtained with the James Webb Space Telescope near-infrared camera instrument at a resolution θ ∼ 0.″05–0.″1 (∼1–2 pc). The data comprises images in three mostly continuum filters (F140M, F250M, and F360M), and filters that contain [Fe ii] (F164N), H2 v = 1 → 0 (F212N), and the 3.3 μm polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) feature (F335M). We find prominent plumes of PAH emission extending outward from the central starburst region, together with a network of complex filamentary substructures and edge-brightened bubble-like features. The structure of the PAH emission closely resembles that of the ionized gas, as revealed in Paschen α and free–free radio emission. We discuss the origin of the structure, and suggest the PAHs are embedded in a combination of neutral, molecular, and photoionized gas.