CHANG-ES. XXIV. First Detection of A Radio Nuclear Ring and Potential LLAGN in NGC 5792

TL;DR

This paper reports the first detection of a radio nuclear ring and a potential low luminosity active galactic nucleus in NGC 5792, revealing insights into the galaxy's nuclear activity and star formation history.

Contribution

The discovery of a nuclear ring and LLAGN in NGC 5792 using VLA radio observations is a novel finding in this galaxy.

Findings

Nuclear ring diameter ~1.5 kpc with dominant non-thermal emission.

Star formation rate in the ring is low, indicating past intense activity.

Detection of a faint radio core suggesting an LLAGN with very low Eddington ratio.

Abstract

We report the discoveries of a nuclear ring of diameter 10$\arcsec$ ($\sim$1.5 kpc) and a potential low luminosity active galactic nucleus (LLAGN) in the radio continuum emission map of the edge-on barred spiral galaxy NGC~5792. These discoveries are based on the Continuum Halos in Nearby Galaxies - an Expanded Very Large Array (VLA) Survey, as well as subsequent VLA observations of sub-arcsecond resolution. Using a mixture of H$\alpha$ and 24 $\mu$m calibration, we disentangle the thermal and non-thermal radio emission of the nuclear region, and derive a star formation rate (SFR) of $\sim 0.4~M_{\sun}$ yr$^{-1}$. We find that the nuclear ring is dominated by non-thermal synchrotron emission. The synchrotron-based SFR is about three times of the mixture-based SFR. This result indicates that the nuclear ring underwent more intense star-forming activity in the past, and now its star formation is in the low state. The sub-arcsecond VLA images resolve six individual knots on the nuclear ring. The equipartition magnetic field strength $B_{\rm eq}$ of the knots varies from 77 to 88 $\mu$G. The radio ring surrounds a point-like faint radio core of $S_{\rm 6GHz}=(16\pm4)$ $\mu$Jy with polarized lobes at the center of NGC~5792, which suggests an LLAGN with an Eddington ratio $\sim10^{-5}$. This radio nuclear ring is reminiscent of the Central Molecular Zone (CMZ) of the Galaxy. Both of them consist of a nuclear ring and LLAGN.