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Abstract
We present a first-look analysis of the JWST ERO data in the SMACS J0723.3-7327 cluster field. We begin by reporting 10 new spectroscopic redshifts from λobs = 1.8–5.2 μm NIRSpec medium-resolution (R = λ/Δλ = 1000) data. These are determined via multiple high-SNR emission line detections with five objects at 1 < z < 3 displaying multiple rest-frame near-infrared Hydrogen Paschen lines, and five objects at 5 < z
< 9 displaying rest-frame optical Oxygen and Hydrogen Balmer lines.
For the five higher-redshift galaxies we extract fluxes in six NIRCam
bands spanning λobs = 0.8–5 μm and perform spectral energy distribution fitting in combination with existing HST photometry. The 7 < z < 9 objects exhibit a U-shaped pattern across the F277W, F356W, and F444W bands, indicating a Balmer break seen in emission (Balmer jump) and high-equivalent-width [O iii]
emission. This indicates an extremely young stellar population with the
bulk of the current mass having formed within the past 10 Myr. We
report robust stellar masses and mean stellar ages from our spectral
fitting with the four z > 6 galaxies exhibiting low-stellar masses from log10 (M*/M⊙) =
7.1–8.2, and correspondingly young mean stellar ages of only a few Myr.
This work highlights the critical importance of combining large
upcoming NIRCam surveys with NIRSpec follow-up to measure the
spectroscopic redshifts necessary to robustly constrain physical
parameters.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | L45-L50 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |
Volume | 518 |
Issue number | 1 |
Early online date | 28 Nov 2022 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2023 |
Keywords
- astro-ph.GA
- Galaxies: star formation
- Galaxies: high-redshift
- Galaxies: distances and redshifts
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