JWST MIRI Detections of Hα and [O iii] and a Direct Metallicity Measurement of the z = 10.17 Lensed Galaxy MACS0647-JD

Tiger Yu Yang Hsiao, Javier Álvarez-Márquez, Dan Coe, Alejandro Crespo Gómez, Abdurro’uf, Pratika Dayal, Rebecca L. Larson, Arjan Bik, Carmen Blanco-Prieto, Luis Colina, Pablo Guillermo Pérez-González, Luca Costantin, Carlota Prieto-Jiménez, Angela Adamo, Larry D. Bradley, Christopher J. Conselice, Seiji Fujimoto, Lukas J. Furtak, Taylor A. Hutchison, Bethan L. JamesYolanda Jiménez-Teja, Intae Jung, Vasily Kokorev, Matilde Mingozzi, Colin Norman, Massimo Ricotti, Jane R. Rigby, Keren Sharon, Eros Vanzella, Brian Welch, Xinfeng Xu, Erik Zackrisson, Adi Zitrin

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

JWST spectroscopy has revolutionized our understanding of galaxies in the early Universe. Covering wavelengths up to 5.3 μm, NIRSpec can detect rest-frame optical Hα emission lines out to z = 7 and [O iii] to z = 9.5. Observing these lines in more distant galaxies requires longer wavelength spectroscopy with MIRI. Here we present MIRI Medium Resolution Spectrograph integral field unit observations of the lensed galaxy merger MACS0647-JD at z = 10.165. With exposure times of 4.2 hr in each of two bands (SHORT and LONG), we detect Hα at 9σ, [O iii] λ5008 at 11σ, and [O iii] λ4960 at 3σ. Combined with previously reported NIRSpec spectroscopy that yielded seven emission lines including the auroral line [O iii] λ4363, we present the first direct metallicity measurement of a z > 10 galaxy: 12 + log ( O / H ) = 7.79 ± 0.09 , or 0.13 − 0.03 + 0.02 Z ⊙ . This is similar to galaxies at z ∼ 4-9 with direct metallicity measurements, though higher than expected given the high specific star formation rate log(sSFR/yr−1) = −7.4 ± 0.3. We further constrain the ionization parameter log ( U ) = −1.9 ± 0.1, ionizing photon production efficiency log(ξion) = 25.3 ± 0.1, and SFR = 5.0 ± 0.6 M yr−1 within the past 10 Myr. These observations demonstrate the combined power of JWST NIRSpec and MIRI for studying galaxies in the first 500 million years.

Original languageAmerican English
Article number81
JournalAstrophysical Journal
Volume973
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Oct 2024

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Space and Planetary Science

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