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M 83 Chandra X-Ray Binary Classifications Using HST

Metadata Updated: September 19, 2025

Building on recent work by Chandar+ (2020, J/ApJ/890/150), the authors constructed X-ray luminosity functions (XLFs) for different classes of X-ray binary (XRB) donors in the nearby star-forming galaxy M 83. Rather than classifying low-versus high-mass XRBs based on the scaling of the number of X-ray sources with stellar mass and star formation rate, respectively, this catalog utilized multi-band Hubble Space Telescope imaging data to classify each Chandra-detected compact X-ray source as a low-mass (i.e., donor mass < ~3M<sub>sun</sub>), high-mass (donor mass > ~8M<sub>sun</sub>), or intermediate-mass XRB based on either the location of its candidate counterpart on optical color-magnitude diagrams or the age of its host star cluster. In addition to the standard (single and/or truncated) power-law functional shape, the authors approximated the resulting XLFs with a Schechter function. They identified a marginally significant (at the 1-sigma to 2-sigma level) exponential downturn for the high-mass XRB XLF, at l~38.48<sub>-0.33</sub><sup>+0.52</sup> (in log CGS units). In contrast, the low- and intermediate-mass XRB XLFs, as well as the total XLF of M 83, are formally consistent with sampling statistics from a single power law. This method suggests a non-negligible contribution from low- and possibly intermediate-mass XRBs to the total XRB XLF of M 83, i.e., between 20% and 50%, in broad agreement with X-ray-based XLFs. More generally, the authors caution against considerable contamination from X-ray emitting supernova remnants to the published, X-ray-based XLFs of M 83, and possibly all actively star-forming galaxies. This table presents a fully classified catalog of X-ray sources in M 83 that builds upon the deep Chandra ACIS imaging data published in Lehmer+ 2019 (J/ApJS/243/3). Out of a total of 456 point-like sources brighter than 10<sup>35</sup>erg/s, this work restricts the analysis to the 325 objects that fall within the M 83 HST footprint. HST observations of M 83 were taken with the WFC3/UVIS instrument, spanning seven fields that each cover approximately 162" x 162" for a total mosaic area of ~43 arcmin<sup>2</sup>. All observations were obtained between 2009 August and 2012 September by R. O'Connell (Prop ID. 11360) and W. Blair (Prop ID. 12513), with exposure times ranging from ~1.2 to 2.7 ks for each image. Images were downloaded from the Hubble Legacy Archive (HLA). In general, BVI images are created using the F438W, F547M, and F814W filters. The central field, which includes the galaxy nucleus, uses the broader F555W V-band filter, rather than F547M. The authors also use U-band images (F336W) to help calculate cluster ages. This table was created by the HEASARC in March 2023 based upon the <a href="https://cdsarc.cds.unistra.fr/ftp/cats/J/ApJ/912/31">CDS Catalog J/ApJ/912/31</a> file tablea2.dat. This is a service provided by NASA HEASARC .

Access & Use Information

Public: This dataset is intended for public access and use. License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

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Dates

Metadata Created Date April 11, 2025
Metadata Updated Date September 19, 2025

Metadata Source

Harvested from NASA Data.json

Additional Metadata

Resource Type Dataset
Metadata Created Date April 11, 2025
Metadata Updated Date September 19, 2025
Publisher High Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center
Maintainer
Identifier ivo://nasa.heasarc/m83xrbcxo
Data Last Modified 2025-09-10
Category Astrophysics
Public Access Level public
Bureau Code 026:00
Metadata Context https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.jsonld
Schema Version https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
Catalog Describedby https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.json
Harvest Object Id 286e6410-6a2f-4222-9843-6ffe0129d3ce
Harvest Source Id 58f92550-7a01-4f00-b1b2-8dc953bd598f
Harvest Source Title NASA Data.json
Homepage URL https://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/W3Browse/all/m83xrbcxo.html
Program Code 026:000
Source Datajson Identifier True
Source Hash 339f7ab92603bece1088b7184b61132ddaceb46753aed98f02225602f77eebb6
Source Schema Version 1.1

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