Clumpology of starbursts in the WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey

We have observed Hα emission from a sample of 13 star-forming galaxies from the WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey in the redshift range z ∼ 1.2 − 1.5 and stellar mass range 9.8 < log(M∗/M⊙)< 11.6 with the integral field spectrograph OSIRIS on Keck, taking advantage of Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics. We detect multiple emission, 1–2 kpc size sub-components, or ‘clumps’ within the Hα spatial emission in 4 galaxies, extended emission in 4 galaxies and compact spheroidal emission in 5 galaxies. Considering our results in the context of unstable disk formation and a merger sequence, we find evidence of ordered orbital motion in the majority of galaxies as would be found in unstable gaseous disks.