The Mid-Infrared View of Star Formation in Collisional Ring Galaxies

Abstract

We present mid-infrared images and spectra of Arp 10 and Arp 118, two collisional ring galaxies observed as part of the ISOCAM GT program CAMACTIV (P.I.: I.F. Mirabel). The observations reveal the distribution of hot dust in the galaxies and enable us to probe the mechanisms responsible for the heating of the ISM. Unlike the peculiar mid-infrared colours recently discovered in the Cartwheel, the prime example of a collisional ring, Arp 10 has colours typical of those found inspiral arms of late type spirals. Similarly for Arp 118 (NGC 1144),the mid-infrared emission is associated with the regions of star formation in the ring. Moreover, a hot continuum in the 5.1–6.7 μmrange, which is a typical mid-infrared signature of an AGN, is clearly detected from the Seyfert 2 nucleus of the galaxy.