Full disc [CII] mapping of nearby star-forming galaxies: SOFIA FIFI/LS observations of NGC 3627, NGC 4321, and NGC 6946

TL;DR

This study maps [CII] emission in three nearby star-forming galaxies using SOFIA to understand its complex relationship with star formation, revealing significant variations and the need for more detailed, multi-tracer analyses.

Contribution

First resolved [CII] maps of NGC 3627, NGC 4321, and NGC 6946 at sub-kiloparsec scales, analyzing the diverse origins of [CII] emission in different galactic environments.

Findings

[CII]-SFR relation varies across galaxies and environments

[CII] emission complexity is influenced by local ISM conditions

Resolved observations show more tangled [CII] origins than previously assumed

Abstract

As a major cooling line of interstellar gas, the far-infrared 158 {\mu}m line from singly ionised carbon [CII] is an important tracer of various components of the interstellar medium in galaxies across all spatial and morphological scales. Yet, there is still not a strong constraint on the origins of [CII] emission. In this work, we derive the resolved [CII] star formation rate relation and aim to unravel the complexity of the origin of [CII]. We used the Field-Imaging Far-Infrared Line Spectrometer on board the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy to map [CII] in three nearby star-forming galaxies at sub-kiloparsec scales, namely, NGC 3627, NGC 4321, and NGC 6946, and we compared these [CII] observations to the galactic properties derived from complementary data from the literature. We find that the relationship between the [CII] fine structure line and star formation rate shows variations between the galaxies as well as between different environments within each galaxy. Our results show that the use of [CII] as a tracer for star formation is much more tangled than has previously been suggested within the extragalactic literature, which typically focuses on small regions of galaxies and/or uses large-aperture sampling of many different physical environments. As found within resolved observations of the Milky Way, the picture obtained from [CII] observations is complicated by its local interstellar medium conditions. Future studies will require a larger sample and additional observational tracers, obtained on spatial scales within galaxies, in order to accurately disentangle the origin of [CII] and calibrate its use as a star formation tracer.