MAGAZ3NE: Far-IR and Radio Insights into the Nature and Properties of Ultramassive Galaxies at <i>z</i> ≳ 3
Abstract Deep and wide-field near-infrared (NIR) surveys have recently discovered and confirmed ultramassive galaxies (UMGs; <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:mi>log</mml:mi> <mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>M</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>⋆</mml:mo> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> <mml:mo>/</mml:mo> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>M</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>⊙</mml:mo> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> <mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo> </mml:math> > 11) spectroscopically at z ≳ 3. However, most are characterized using only ultraviolet (UV)-to-NIR photometry, offering limited insight into obscured star formation and active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity. In this work, we add 10 far-infrared (FIR)-to-radio passbands to the existing UV-to-NIR catalogs for two spectroscopically confirmed UMGs from the MAGAZ3NE survey, COS-DR3-195616 ( z spec = 3.255) and COS-DR1-209435 ( z spec = 2.481). Utilizing the full UV-to-radio photometry, we revise our earlier UV-NIR-based interpretation of the nature of these galaxies. While both were previously identified as quiescent, our analysis reveals that 195616 is an unobscured galaxy undergoing quenching, and 209435 is a heavily obscured, actively star-forming UMG. We find that 195616 has already depleted most of its molecular gas and is expected to experience minimal future stellar mass growth. In contrast, 209435 contains a substantial molecular gas reservoir and has a prolonged depletion timescale. It is anticipated to increase 0.34 dex in stellar mass, reaching a stellar mass of <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:mi>log</mml:mi> <mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>M</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>⋆</mml:mo> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> <mml:mo>/</mml:mo> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>M</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>⊙</mml:mo> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> <mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo> </mml:math> = 11.72 over the next 0.72 Gyr. We present multipronged evidence for AGN activity in both UMGs. Our findings suggest a scenario where AGN feedback in 195616 may have contributed to gas depletion during quenching, while 209435 remains actively star-forming despite hosting an obscured AGN. Our work shows the importance of FIR-to-radio observations for accurately inferring the nature and properties of galaxies at z ≳ 3.
Authors
- Ian McConachie (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2446-8770)
- Aurélien Henry (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9466-2763)
- Danilo Marchesini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9002-3502)
- Allison Noble (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1832-4137)
- Stephanie M. Urbano Stawinski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8169-7249)
- Michael C. Cooper (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1371-6019)
- Gillian Wilson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6572-7089)
- Gabriela Canalizo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4693-6157)
- Percy Gómez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0408-9850)
- Wenjun Chang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2144-2943)
- Andrew Battisti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4569-2285)
- A. Muzzin
- M. E. Wisz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6505-9981)
- Ben Forrest
- Tracy Webb
Institutions
- University of California, Riverside (US)
- Australian National University (AU)
- Tufts University (US)
- University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
- University of California, Merced (US)
- The University of Western Australia (AU)
- York University (CA)
- University of California, Irvine (US)
- W.M. Keck Observatory (US)
- International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (AU)
- McGill University (CA)
- Arizona State University (US)
- University of California, Davis (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- The Astrophysical Journal
- Published
- 2026-04-10
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ae4ede
- Primary Topic
- Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00