Circumgalactic CIV Absorption Found Only Within 30 Degrees of the Minor Axis of Present-Epoch Galaxies

Abstract

We studied CIV 1548,1550 absorption in the circumgalactic medium (CGM) of 88 isolated, bright (L_B > 0.2L*_B) galaxies at z < 0.03 selected without prior knowledge of CGM absorption. The galaxies have observationally-unbiased distributions of inclination and galaxy-quasar sightline azimuthal angle. Above a 5-sigma rest-frame equivalent width detection threshold of W_r > 0.1 angstroms, we found absorption in the CGM of 9/88 of the galaxies within projected separation R_perp < 350 kpc. All nine absorbers arise within 30 deg of the projected minor axes and R_perp < 1.2R_vir of star-forming galaxies [log(sSFR/yr^-1) > -10.75]. To a confidence level of 99.998% (4.3-sigma), we can rule out that these absorbers are drawn from a random distribution of galaxy-quasar azimuthal angles. These findings suggest strong evidence for biconical polar winds related to the moderately elevated star formation in these present-epoch galaxies and we describe simple spatial-kinematic models that support this hypothesis. High specific star-formation rates may not be a sufficient condition for predicting minor-axis CIV absorption because the covering fraction of the subsample of star-forming galaxies within 30 deg of their minor axes is f_cov ~ 0.5; this may imply transient and/or patchy outflows. Incorporating studies of MgII and OVI CGM absorption, we favor a scenario in which CIV-bearing CGM gas interfaces between these low- and high-ionization regimes, comprising enriched intermediate-ionization clouds entrained and collimated in biconical stellar winds while mixing and cooling via non-equilibrium photoionization.