BST1047+1156: An extremely diffuse and gas-rich object in the Leo I Group

Abstract

We report the detection of diffuse starlight in an extragalactic HI cloud in the nearby Leo~I galaxy group. We detect the source, dubbed BST1047+1156, in both broadband optical and GALEX ultraviolet light. Spanning ~ 2 kpc in radius, it has a peak surface brightness of $\mu_B$=28.8 mag/arcsec$^2$, making it the lowest surface brightness object ever detected via integrated light. Although the object is extremely gas-rich, with a gas fraction of $f_g$=0.99, its peak HI column density is well below levels where star formation is typically observed in galaxies. Nonetheless, BST1047+1156 shows evidence for young stellar populations: along with the detected UV emission, the object is extremely blue, with B-V=0.14$\pm$0.09. The object sports two tidal tails and is found embedded within diffuse gas connecting the spiral galaxy M96 to the group's extended HI Leo Ring. The nature of BST1047+1156 is unclear. It could be a disrupting tidal dwarf, recently spawned from star formation triggered in the Leo I Group's tidal debris. Alternatively, the object may have been a pre-existing galaxy --- the most extreme example of a gas-rich field LSB known to date --- which had a recent burst of star formation triggered by encounters in the group environment.