A Bare Molecular Cloud at z~0.45

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of an extremely dense, cold, and molecular-rich 'bare' molecular cloud at z~0.45, likely outside galaxy disks, with implications for understanding intergalactic gas and cloud evolution.

Contribution

It provides detailed physical characterization of a unique molecular cloud at intermediate redshift, combining observations with photoionization modeling to reveal its extreme conditions.

Findings

The cloud is extremely dense (~100-1000/cm^3) and cold (<100 K).

It has a high molecular content (~72-94%).

Unusual cloud possibly outside galaxy disks, with potential for in situ star formation.

Abstract

Several neutral species (MgI, SiI, CaI, FeI) have been detected in a weak MgII absorption line system (W_r(2796)~0.15 Angstroms) at z~0.45 along the sightline toward HE0001-2340. These observations require extreme physical conditions, as noted in D'Odorico (2007). We place further constraints on the properties of this system by running a wide grid of photoionization models, determining that the absorbing cloud that produces the neutral absorption is extremely dense (~100-1000/cm^3), cold (<100 K), and has significant molecular content (~72-94%). Structures of this size and temperature have been detected in Milky Way CO surveys, and have been predicted in hydrodynamic simulations of turbulent gas. In order to explain the observed line profiles in all neutral and singly ionized chemical transitions, the lines must suffer from unresolved saturation and/or the absorber must partially cover the broad emission line region of the background quasar. In addition to this highly unusual cloud, three other ordinary weak MgII clouds (within densities of ~0.005/cm^3 and temperatures of ~10000K) lie within 500 km/s along the same sightline. We suggest that the "bare molecular cloud", which appears to reside outside of a galaxy disk, may have had in situ star formation and may evolve into an ordinary weak MgII absorbing cloud.