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| Paper: |
3C236: Radio Source, Interrupted? |
| Volume: |
249, The Central Kiloparsec of Starbursts and AGN: the La Palma Connection |
| Page: |
550 |
| Authors: |
O'Dea, C. P.; Koekemoer, A. M.; Baum, S. A.; Sparks, W. B. |
| Abstract: |
We present highlights of the results of new HST STIS/MAMA near-UV images and archival WFPC2 V- and R-band images which reveal the presence of four apparently star forming regions in an arc along the edge of the dust lane in the giant (4 Mpc) radio galaxy 3C236. Two of the star forming regions are relatively young with ages of order ~107 yr, while the other two are older with ages of order ~108 -- 109 yr, which is comparable to the estimated age of the giant radio source. Based on dynamical and spectral aging arguments, we suggest that the fuel supply to the AGN was interrupted for ~107 yr and has now been restored, resulting in the formation of the inner 2 kpc scale radio source. This time scale is similar to that of the age of the youngest of the star forming regions. We suggest that the transport of gas in the disk is non-steady and that this produces both the multiple episodes of star formation in the disk as well as the multiple epochs of radio source activity. If the inner radio source and the youngest star forming region are related by the same event of gas transport, the gas must be transported from the hundreds of pc scale to the sub-parsec scale on a time scale of ~107 yr, which is similar to the dynamical timescale of the gas on the hundreds of pc scales. |
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