Spitzer Observations of Centaurus A Infrared Synchrotron Emission from the Northern Lobe.pdf

a r X i v : a s t r o - p h / 0 6 0 1 4 1 3 v 2 1 7 A u g 2 0 0 6 1 Draft version February 5, 2008 Preprint typeset using LATEX style emulateapj v. 6/22/04 SPITZER OBSERVATIONS OF CENTAURUS A: INFRARED SYNCHROTRON EMISSION FROM THE NORTHERN LOBE M. H. Brookes1, C. R. Lawrence1, J. Keene1, D. Stern1, V. Gorijan1, M. Werner1 and V. Charmandaris2,3 Draft version February 5, 2008 ABSTRACT We present measurements obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope in five bands from 3.6–24μm of the northern inner radio lobe of Centaurus A, the nearest powerful radio galaxy. We show that this emission is synchrotron in origin. Comparison with ultraviolet observations from GALEX shows that diffuse ultraviolet emission exists in a smaller region than the infrared but also coincides with the radio jet. We discuss the possibility, that synchrotron emission is responsible for the ultraviolet emission and conclude that further data are required to confirm this. Subject headings: galaxies: active, individual(Centaurus A) — radio continuum: galaxies — radiation mechanisms: non-thermal 1. INTRODUCTION The radio source Centaurus A and its host galaxy, NGC5128, provide a rare opportunity to observe the de- tailed behaviour of a recently merged system supporting a powerful active nucleus with jets and extended radio emission. At a distance of 3.4Mpc (Israel 1998), such that 1′′= 16.5pc, Centaurus A is the nearest powerful radio galaxy, and its activity, merger remnants, and star- formation may be resolved and studied in detail . The host galaxy is believed to be a giant ellipti- cal galaxy that recently merged (～200Myrs ago) with a small spiral galaxy, producing the prominent dust lanes seen in optical images (Baade Minkowski 1954; Quillen et al. 1993). The active nucleus gives rise to a jet and counter-jet in the inner arcminute (1′ ≈ 1 kpc) about the nucleus (Feigelson et al. 1981; Hardcastle et al. 2003). On larger scales, giant radio lobes extend over ～6? on the sky, with inner radio