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Journal Articles Science Year : 2018

The multiple merger assembly of a hyperluminous obscured quasar at redshift 4.6

T. Díaz-Santos
  • Function : Author
R. J. Assef
  • Function : Author
A. W. Blain
  • Function : Author
M. Aravena
  • Function : Author
D. Stern
  • Function : Author
C. -W. Tsai
  • Function : Author
P. Eisenhardt
  • Function : Author
J. Wu
  • Function : Author
H. D. Jun
  • Function : Author
K. Dibert
  • Function : Author
G. Lansbury
  • Function : Author

Abstract

Galaxy mergers and gas accretion from the cosmic web drove the growth of galaxies and their central black holes at early epochs. We report spectroscopic imaging of a multiple merger event in the most luminous known galaxy, WISE J224607.56-052634.9 (W2246-0526), a dust-obscured quasar at redshift 4.6, 1.3 billion years after the Big Bang. Far-infrared dust continuum observations show three galaxy companions around W2246-0526 with disturbed morphologies, connected by streams of dust likely produced by the dynamical interaction. The detection of tidal dusty bridges shows that W2246-0526 is accreting its neighbors, suggesting that merger activity may be a dominant mechanism through which the most luminous galaxies simultaneously obscure and feed their central supermassive black holes.

Dates and versions

insu-03711202 , version 1 (01-07-2022)

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T. Díaz-Santos, R. J. Assef, A. W. Blain, M. Aravena, D. Stern, et al.. The multiple merger assembly of a hyperluminous obscured quasar at redshift 4.6. Science, 2018, 362, pp.1034-1036. ⟨10.1126/science.aap7605⟩. ⟨insu-03711202⟩
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