Cosmic Noon Galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field with MIRI Wide-Field Slitless Spectroscopy
Abstract
We present results from a survey of the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field using the Wide-Field Slitless Spectroscopic (WFSS) capability of the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) on JWST, demonstrating the capabilities of this new mode. We describe the data reduction and calibration methodology, and estimate calibration uncertainties. From our observations we obtain spectra of 47 galaxies with confirmed spectroscopic redshifts, with a maximum z_spec of 3.712. In the final sample we target in particular the 3.3 um Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) feature, which has recently gathered interest as a star formation rate indicator and diagnostic for the dust grain size distribution in star forming galaxies from the local Universe to intermediate redshifts. The feature falls into the WFSS wavelength region for redshifts 0.67 to 3.1 - providing full coverage of the peak star formation ``Cosmic Noon'' era (1 < z < 3) and connecting dust properties in this critical galaxy evolution period with local-Universe and low-redshift observations. Using the galaxies in our sample in this redshift regime, we test correlations identified in lower-redshift samples in the near-infrared or targeted programs in the mid-infrared, finding the WFSS spectra, even with large calibration uncertainties, show good agreement with complementary samples. The 3.3 um PAH luminosities follow previously established correlations with total IR luminosity and SED-derived star formation rates, confirming this feature's power as tracer of dust-obscured star formation. Our work illustrate the potential of the MIRI WFSS mode for studies of Cosmic Noon-era galaxies in particular in an observationally efficient way.
Related
- An Archival Calibration of JWST/MIRI Prism Wide-Field Slitless Spectroscopy: Methodology, Performance, and a Mid-Infrared Spectral Atlas of Galaxies at z=0−4 in the GOODS-N/S Fields
- Surveying the Universe in 4D: Beating Cosmic Variance with Wide-Field Slitless Spectroscopy from HST, JWST, Euclid, Roman, and Beyond
- Precise C-N-O Abundances of Individual Galaxies in the First Billion Years from Ultra-Deep, Rest-UV-to-Optical JWST Spectroscopy
- MOCSS: Multi-Object Coronagraphy for JWST/NIRSpec Slitless Spectroscopy
- A Comprehensive JWST Slitless Spectroscopic Census of ∼12,000 Emission-Line Galaxies at Redshift 0∼9 in COSMOS
BibTeX
@misc{kendrew2026cosmic,
title = {{Cosmic Noon Galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field with MIRI Wide-Field Slitless Spectroscopy}},
author = {S. Kendrew and G. Östlin and L. Colina and P. Rinaldi and J. Álvarez-Márquez and L. A. Boogaard and J. Melinder and J. P. Pye and A. Alonso Herrero and K. I. Caputi and A. Crespo Gómez and M. Garcia Marín and S. Gillman and S. Harish and E. Iani and D. Langeroodi and A. Labiano and P. G. Pérez-González and P. van der Werf and F. Walter and G. Wright and T. Greve and M. Güdel and T. Henning and P. -O. Lagage and T. P. Ray and B. Vandenbussche and E. van Dishoeck and S. Alberts and R. Fernandez Aranda and A. Petric and I. Shivaei},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.16239},
eprint = {2609.16239},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.16239},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Cosmic Noon Galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field with MIRI Wide-Field Slitless Spectroscopy
AU - S. Kendrew
AU - G. Östlin
AU - L. Colina
AU - P. Rinaldi
AU - J. Álvarez-Márquez
AU - L. A. Boogaard
AU - J. Melinder
AU - J. P. Pye
AU - A. Alonso Herrero
AU - K. I. Caputi
AU - A. Crespo Gómez
AU - M. Garcia Marín
AU - S. Gillman
AU - S. Harish
AU - E. Iani
AU - D. Langeroodi
AU - A. Labiano
AU - P. G. Pérez-González
AU - P. van der Werf
AU - F. Walter
AU - G. Wright
AU - T. Greve
AU - M. Güdel
AU - T. Henning
AU - P. -O. Lagage
AU - T. P. Ray
AU - B. Vandenbussche
AU - E. van Dishoeck
AU - S. Alberts
AU - R. Fernandez Aranda
AU - A. Petric
AU - I. Shivaei
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/14
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.16239
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.16239
AB - We present results from a survey of the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field using the Wide-Field Slitless Spectroscopic (WFSS) capability of the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) on JWST, demonstrating the capabilities of this new mode. We describe the data reduction and calibration methodology, and estimate calibration uncertainties. From our observations we obtain spectra of 47 galaxies with confirmed spectroscopic redshifts, with a maximum z_spec of 3.712. In the final sample we target in particular the 3.3 um Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) feature, which has recently gathered interest as a star formation rate indicator and diagnostic for the dust grain size distribution in star forming galaxies from the local Universe to intermediate redshifts. The feature falls into the WFSS wavelength region for redshifts 0.67 to 3.1 - providing full coverage of the peak star formation ``Cosmic Noon'' era (1 < z < 3) and connecting dust properties in this critical galaxy evolution period with local-Universe and low-redshift observations. Using the galaxies in our sample in this redshift regime, we test correlations identified in lower-redshift samples in the near-infrared or targeted programs in the mid-infrared, finding the WFSS spectra, even with large calibration uncertainties, show good agreement with complementary samples. The 3.3 um PAH luminosities follow previously established correlations with total IR luminosity and SED-derived star formation rates, confirming this feature's power as tracer of dust-obscured star formation. Our work illustrate the potential of the MIRI WFSS mode for studies of Cosmic Noon-era galaxies in particular in an observationally efficient way.
ER -