We have analyzed Hubble Space Telescope spectroscopy of 24 nearby active galactic nuclei (AGNs) to investigate spatially resolved gas kinematics in the narrow-line region ( NLR). These observations effectively isolate the nuclear line profiles on less than 100 pc scales and are used to investigate the origin of the substantial scatter between the widths of strong NLR lines and the stellar velocity dispersion sigma* of the host galaxy, a quantity that relates with substantially less scatter to the mass of the central, supermassive black hole and more generally characterize variations in the NLR velocity field with radius. We find that line widths measured with STIS at a range of spatial scales systematically underestimate both sigma(*) and the line width measured from ground- based observations, although they do have comparably large scatter to the relation between ground- based NLR line width and sigma(*). There are no obvious trends in the residuals when compared with a range of host galaxy and nuclear properties. The widths and asymmetries of [O III] lambda 5007 and [S II] lambda lambda 6716, 6731 as a function of radius exhibit a wide range of behavior. Some of the most common phenomena are substantial width increases from the STIS to the large- scale, ground- based aperture and almost no change in line profile between the unresolved nuclear spectrum and ground-based measurements. We identify asymmetries in a surprisingly large fraction of low-ionization [S II] line profiles and several examples of substantial red asymmetries in both [O III] and [S II]. These results underscore the complexity of the circumnuclear material that constitutes the NLR and suggest that the scatter in the NLR width and sigma(*) correlation cannot be substantially reduced with a simple set of empirical relations.

We present a galaxy survey of the field surrounding PKS 0405 - 123 performed with the WFCCD spectrometer at Las Campanas Observatory. The survey is comprised of two data sets: ( 1) a greater than 95% complete survey to R = 20 mag of the field centered on PKS 0405 - 123 with 10' radius (L approximate to 0.1L(*) and radius of 1 Mpc at z = 0.1); and (2) a set of four discontiguous ( i.e., nonoverlapping), flanking fields covering approximate to 1 deg(2) area with completeness approximate to 90% to R = 19.5 mag. With these data sets, one can examine the local and large-scale galactic environment of the absorption systems identified toward PKS 0405 - 123. In this paper, we focus on the O vi systems analyzed in Paper I. The results suggest that this gas arises in a diverse set of galactic environments including the halos of individual galaxies, galaxy groups, filamentary-like structures, and also regions devoid of luminous galaxies. In this small sample, there are no obvious trends between galactic environment and the physical properties of the gas. Furthermore, we find similar results for a set of absorption systems with comparable N-H I but no detectable metal lines. The observations indicate that metals are distributed throughout a wide range of environments in the local universe. Future papers in this series will address the distribution of galactic environments associated with metal-line systems and the Ly alpha forest based on data for over 10 additional fields. All of the data presented in this paper are made public at a dedicated web site.

We present a galaxy survey of the field surrounding PKS 0405 - 123 performed with the WFCCD spectrometer at Las Campanas Observatory. The survey is comprised of two data sets: ( 1) a greater than 95% complete survey to R = 20 mag of the field centered on PKS 0405 - 123 with 10' radius (L approximate to 0.1L(*) and radius of 1 Mpc at z = 0.1); and (2) a set of four discontiguous ( i.e., nonoverlapping), flanking fields covering approximate to 1 deg(2) area with completeness approximate to 90% to R = 19.5 mag. With these data sets, one can examine the local and large-scale galactic environment of the absorption systems identified toward PKS 0405 - 123. In this paper, we focus on the O vi systems analyzed in Paper I. The results suggest that this gas arises in a diverse set of galactic environments including the halos of individual galaxies, galaxy groups, filamentary-like structures, and also regions devoid of luminous galaxies. In this small sample, there are no obvious trends between galactic environment and the physical properties of the gas. Furthermore, we find similar results for a set of absorption systems with comparable N-H I but no detectable metal lines. The observations indicate that metals are distributed throughout a wide range of environments in the local universe. Future papers in this series will address the distribution of galactic environments associated with metal-line systems and the Ly alpha forest based on data for over 10 additional fields. All of the data presented in this paper are made public at a dedicated web site.

We present the results of the two-dimensional XMM-Newton Group Survey (2dXGS), an archival study of nearby galaxy groups. In this paper we consider 11 nearby systems (z < 0.012) in Mulchaey et al., which span a broad range in X-ray luminosity from 10(40) to 10(43) ergs s(-1). We measure the iron abundance and temperature distribution in these systems and derive pressure and entropy maps. We find statistically significant evidence for structure in the entropy and pressure of the gas component of seven groups on the 10% - 20% level. The XMM-Newton data for the three groups with best statistics also suggest patchy metallicity distributions within the central 20 - 50 kpc of the brightest group galaxy, probed with 2 - 10 kpc resolution. This provides insights into the processes associated with thermalization of the stellar mass loss. Analysis of the global properties of the groups reveals a subclass of X-ray-faint groups, which are characterized by both higher entropy and lower pressure. We suggest that the merger history of the central elliptical is responsible for both the source and the observed thermodynamical properties of the hot gas of the X-ray-faint groups.

We present the results of the two-dimensional XMM-Newton Group Survey (2dXGS), an archival study of nearby galaxy groups. In this paper we consider 11 nearby systems (z < 0.012) in Mulchaey et al., which span a broad range in X-ray luminosity from 10(40) to 10(43) ergs s(-1). We measure the iron abundance and temperature distribution in these systems and derive pressure and entropy maps. We find statistically significant evidence for structure in the entropy and pressure of the gas component of seven groups on the 10% - 20% level. The XMM-Newton data for the three groups with best statistics also suggest patchy metallicity distributions within the central 20 - 50 kpc of the brightest group galaxy, probed with 2 - 10 kpc resolution. This provides insights into the processes associated with thermalization of the stellar mass loss. Analysis of the global properties of the groups reveals a subclass of X-ray-faint groups, which are characterized by both higher entropy and lower pressure. We suggest that the merger history of the central elliptical is responsible for both the source and the observed thermodynamical properties of the hot gas of the X-ray-faint groups.

We present the results of the two-dimensional XMM-Newton Group Survey (2dXGS), an archival study of nearby galaxy groups. In this paper we consider 11 nearby systems (z < 0.012) in Mulchaey et al., which span a broad range in X-ray luminosity from 10(40) to 10(43) ergs s(-1). We measure the iron abundance and temperature distribution in these systems and derive pressure and entropy maps. We find statistically significant evidence for structure in the entropy and pressure of the gas component of seven groups on the 10% - 20% level. The XMM-Newton data for the three groups with best statistics also suggest patchy metallicity distributions within the central 20 - 50 kpc of the brightest group galaxy, probed with 2 - 10 kpc resolution. This provides insights into the processes associated with thermalization of the stellar mass loss. Analysis of the global properties of the groups reveals a subclass of X-ray-faint groups, which are characterized by both higher entropy and lower pressure. We suggest that the merger history of the central elliptical is responsible for both the source and the observed thermodynamical properties of the hot gas of the X-ray-faint groups.

We present spectroscopic confirmation of nine moderate-redshift galaxy groups and poor clusters selected from the ROSAT Deep Cluster Survey. The groups span the redshift range z similar to 0.23 - 0.59 and have between 4 and 20 confirmed members. The velocity dispersions of these groups range from similar to 125 to 650 km s(-1). Similar to X-ray groups at low redshift, these systems contain a significant number of early-type galaxies. Therefore, the trend for X-ray-luminous groups to have high early-type fractions is already in place by at least z similar to 0.5. In four of the nine groups, the X-ray emission is clearly peaked on themost luminous early-type galaxy in the group. However, in several cases the central galaxy is composed of multiple luminous nuclei, suggesting that the brightest group galaxy may still be undergoing major mergers. In at least three (and possibly five) of the groups in our sample, a dominant early-type galaxy is not found at the center of the group potential. This suggests that many of our groups are not dynamically evolved despite their high X-ray luminosities. While similar systems have been identified at low redshift, the X-ray luminosities of the intermediate-redshift examples are 1-3 orders of magnitude higher than those of their low-redshift counterparts. We suggest that this may be evidence for group downsizing: while massive groups are still in the process of collapsing and virializing at intermediate redshifts, only low-mass groups are in the process of forming at the present day.

We present spectroscopic confirmation of nine moderate-redshift galaxy groups and poor clusters selected from the ROSAT Deep Cluster Survey. The groups span the redshift range z similar to 0.23 - 0.59 and have between 4 and 20 confirmed members. The velocity dispersions of these groups range from similar to 125 to 650 km s(-1). Similar to X-ray groups at low redshift, these systems contain a significant number of early-type galaxies. Therefore, the trend for X-ray-luminous groups to have high early-type fractions is already in place by at least z similar to 0.5. In four of the nine groups, the X-ray emission is clearly peaked on themost luminous early-type galaxy in the group. However, in several cases the central galaxy is composed of multiple luminous nuclei, suggesting that the brightest group galaxy may still be undergoing major mergers. In at least three (and possibly five) of the groups in our sample, a dominant early-type galaxy is not found at the center of the group potential. This suggests that many of our groups are not dynamically evolved despite their high X-ray luminosities. While similar systems have been identified at low redshift, the X-ray luminosities of the intermediate-redshift examples are 1-3 orders of magnitude higher than those of their low-redshift counterparts. We suggest that this may be evidence for group downsizing: while massive groups are still in the process of collapsing and virializing at intermediate redshifts, only low-mass groups are in the process of forming at the present day.

We present spectroscopic confirmation of nine moderate-redshift galaxy groups and poor clusters selected from the ROSAT Deep Cluster Survey. The groups span the redshift range z similar to 0.23 - 0.59 and have between 4 and 20 confirmed members. The velocity dispersions of these groups range from similar to 125 to 650 km s(-1). Similar to X-ray groups at low redshift, these systems contain a significant number of early-type galaxies. Therefore, the trend for X-ray-luminous groups to have high early-type fractions is already in place by at least z similar to 0.5. In four of the nine groups, the X-ray emission is clearly peaked on themost luminous early-type galaxy in the group. However, in several cases the central galaxy is composed of multiple luminous nuclei, suggesting that the brightest group galaxy may still be undergoing major mergers. In at least three (and possibly five) of the groups in our sample, a dominant early-type galaxy is not found at the center of the group potential. This suggests that many of our groups are not dynamically evolved despite their high X-ray luminosities. While similar systems have been identified at low redshift, the X-ray luminosities of the intermediate-redshift examples are 1-3 orders of magnitude higher than those of their low-redshift counterparts. We suggest that this may be evidence for group downsizing: while massive groups are still in the process of collapsing and virializing at intermediate redshifts, only low-mass groups are in the process of forming at the present day.

Ram-pressure stripping of galactic gas is generally assumed to be inefficient in galaxy groups due to the relatively low density of the intragroup medium (IGM) and the small velocity dispersions of groups. To test this assumption, we obtained Chandra X-ray data of the starbursting spiral NGC 2276 in the NGC 2300 group of galaxies, a candidate for a strong galaxy interaction with hot intragroup gas. The data reveal a shock-like feature along the western edge of the galaxy and a low surface brightness tail extending to the east, similar to the morphology seen in other wavebands. Spatially resolved spectroscopy shows that the data are consistent with intragroup gas being pressurized at the leading western edge of NGC 2276 due to the galaxy moving supersonically through the IGM at a velocity similar to 850 km s(-1). Detailed modelling of the gravitational potential of NGC 2276 shows that the resulting ram pressure could significantly affect the morphology of the outer gas disc but is probably insufficient to strip large amounts of cold gas from the disc. We estimate the mass-loss rates due to turbulent viscous stripping and starburst outflows being swept back by ram pressure, showing that both mechanisms could plausibly explain the presence of the X-ray tail. Comparison to existing H I measurements shows that most of the gas escaping the galaxy is in a hot phase. With a total mass-loss rate of similar to 5 M-circle dot yr(-1), the galaxy could be losing its entire present H I supply within a Gyr. This demonstrates that the removal of galactic gas through interactions with a hot IGM can occur rapidly enough to transform the morphology of galaxies in groups. Implications of this for galaxy evolution in groups and clusters are briefly discussed.