Tracing the sites of obscured star formation in the Antennae galaxies
  with Herschel-PACS
  FIR imaging of interacting galaxies allows locating even hidden sites of star
formation and measuring of the relative strength of nuclear and extra-nuclear
star formation. We want to resolve the star-forming sites in the nearby system
of the Antennae. Thanks to the unprecedented sharpness and depth of the PACS
camera onboard ESA's Herschel Space Observatory, it is possible for the first
time to achieve a complete assessment of individual star-forming knots in the
FIR with scan maps at 70, 100, and 160 um. We used clump extraction photometry
and SED diagnostics to derive the properties related to star-forming activity.
The PACS 70, 100, and 160 um maps trace the knotty structure of the most recent
star formation along an arc between the two nuclei in the overlap area. The
resolution of the starburst knots and additional multi-wavelength data allow
their individual star formation history and state to be analysed. In
particular, the brightest knot in the mid-infrared (K1), east of the southern
nucleus, exhibits the highest activity by far in terms of dust heating and star
formation rate, efficiency, and density. With only 2 kpc in diameter, this area
has a 10-1000 um luminosity, which is as high as that of our Milky Way. It
shows the highest deficiency in radio emission in the radio-to-FIR luminosity
ratio and a lack of X-ray emission, classifying it as a very young complex. The
brightest 100 and 160 um emission region (K2), which is close to the collision
front and consists of 3 knots, also shows a high star formation density and
efficiency and lack of X-ray emission in its most obscured part, but an excess
in the radio-to-FIR luminosity ratio. This suggests a young stage, too, but
different conditions in its interstellar medium. Our results provide important
checkpoints for numerical simulations of interacting galaxies when modelling
the star formation and stellar feedback.
