MIGHTEE-H I : the first MeerKAT H I mass function from an untargeted interferometric survey

A. A. Ponomareva, M. J. Jarvis, H. Pan, N. Maddox, M. G. Jones, B. S. Frank, S. H. A. Rajohnson, W. Mulaudzi, M. Meyer, E. A. K. Adams, M. Baes, K. M. Hess, S. Kurapati, I. Prandoni, F. Sinigaglia, K. Spekkens, M. Tudorache, I. Heywood, Jordan D. Collier, S. Sekhar

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We present the first measurement of the H I mass function (HIMF) using data from MeerKAT, based on 276 direct detections from the MeerKAT International GigaHertz Tiered Extragalactic Exploration (MIGHTEE) Survey Early Science data covering a period of approximately a billion years (0 ≤ z ≤ 0.084). This is the first HIMF measured using interferometric data over non-group or cluster field, i.e. a deep blank field. We constrain the parameters of the Schechter function that describes the HIMF with two different methods: 1/Vmax and modified maximum likelihood (MML). We find a low-mass slope α = −1.29+0.37−0.26, 'knee' mass log10(M/M⊙) = 10.07+0.24−0.24 and normalization log10/Mpc−3) = −2.34+0.32−0.36 (H0 = 67.4 km s−1 Mpc−1) for 1/Vmax, and α = −1.44+0.13−0.10, 'knee' mass log10(M/M⊙) = 10.22+0.10−0.13 and normalization log10/Mpc−3) = −2.52+0.1−0.14 for MML. When using 1/Vmax we find both the low-mass slope and 'knee' mass to be consistent within 1σ with previous studies based on single-dish surveys. The cosmological mass density of H I is found to be slightly larger than previously reported: ΩH I = 5.46+0.94−0.99 × 10−4 h−167.4 from 1/Vmax and ΩH I = 6.31+0.31−0.31 × 10−4 h−167.4 from MML but consistent within the uncertainties. We find no evidence for evolution of the HIMF over the last billion years.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)5308-5319
Number of pages12
JournalMonthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Volume522
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jul 2023

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'MIGHTEE-H I : the first MeerKAT H I mass function from an untargeted interferometric survey'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this