It is thought that isolated neutron stars receive a natal kick velocity at birth nearly aligned with their spin axis. Direct observational confirmation of this alignment is currently limited to a single source in a supernova remnant (PSR J0538+2817), for which the threedimensional velocity has been well constrained. Meanwhile, pulsar polarisation statistics suggest the existence of a spin-kick correlation, though both aligned and orthogonal cases remain possible. However, if the velocities of radiopulsars are predominantly aligned with their spin axes, a systematic difference in the observed transverse velocities of pulsars with small and large magnetic obliquities would be expected. In particular, due to projection effects, weakly oblique rotators should exhibit smaller, less scattered transverse velocities. Conversely, the transverse velocities of pulsars with large magnetic inclination should reflect their actual three-dimensional velocities. This study uses this idea to analyse samples of 13 weakly and 25 strongly oblique pulsars with known distances and proper motions. We find that their peculiar velocities are distributed differently, with statistical confidence levels of 0.007 and 0.016 according to the Anderson–Darling and Kolmogorov–Smirnov tests, respectively. We performed a detailed population synthesis of isolated pulsars, considering the evolution of their viewing geometry in isotropic and spin-aligned kick scenarios. The observed split in the transverse velocity distributions and its amplitude are consistent with the spin-aligned kick model, but not with the isotropic case. At the same time, an orthogonal kick would predict a similar effect, but with the opposite sign. This provides robust support for pulsar spin kick alignment based on statistics, independently of polarisation.

Measurements of the ionisation state of the intergalactic medium (IGM) can probe the sources of the extragalactic ionising background. We provide new measurements of the ionising emissivity of galaxies using measurements of the ionising background and ionising photon mean free path from high-redshift quasar spectra at 2.5 < z < 6. Unlike most prior works, we account for radiative-transfer effects and possible neutral islands from the tail of reionisation at z > 5. We combine our results with measurements of the UV luminosity function to constrain the average escaping ionising efficiency of galaxies, . Assuming galaxies with MUV < –11 emit ionizing photons, we find , and 1σ upper limits of 24.48 and 24.31 at z = 2.5 and 4, respectively. We also estimate the population-averaged fesc using measurements of intrinsic ionising efficiency from JWST. We find and 6, and 1σ upper limits of fesc < 0.138 and 0.096 at z = 2.5 and 4, respectively, for MUV < –11. Our findings are consistent with prior measurements of , but indicate a factor of several increase between z = 4 and 6. The steepness of this evolution is sensitive to the highly uncertain mean free path and ionising background intensity at z > 5. Lastly, we find photons per H atom are emitted into the IGM between z = 6 and = 5.3. This is ≈ 4× more than needed to complete the last 20% of reionisation absent recombinations, suggesting that reionisation’s end was likely absorption-dominated.

Spectroscopic observations are essential for confirming associations, measuring kinematics, and determining stellar populations in dwarf galaxies. Here, we present Keck CosmicWeb Imager (KCWI) spectra for 12 MATLAS survey dwarfs. For 9, we confirm recession velocities consistent with their literature-assumed host galaxies. We propose revisions of the host galaxy associations for MATLAS-631, 1494, and 1938. For MATLAS-1494, our measured redshift reclassifies it from an ultra-diffuse galaxy candidate to a dwarf galaxy that is of smaller physical size and places it in the field. It also appears old and passive, providing a challenge to models that invoke quenching by tidal effects. Additionally, we measure stellar population estimates for 7 of the 12 galaxies, finding a ‘mixed bag’ of old quenched galaxies and those that are currently forming stars. Compared to the literature we find generally younger ages and higher metallicities. This result may help reconcile the observed offset of MATLAS survey dwarf galaxies from the universal stellar mass–metallicity relationship reported by Heesters et al. (2023).

The advent of next-generation telescope facilities brings with it an unprecedented amount of data, and the demand for effective tools to process and classify this information has become increasingly important. This work proposes a novel approach to quantify the radio galaxy morphology, through the development of a series of algorithmic metrics that can quantitatively describe the structure of radio source, and can be applied to radio images in an automatic way. These metrics are intuitive in nature and are inspired by the intrinsic structural differences observed between the existing Fanaroff-Riley (FR) morphology types. The metrics are defined in categories of asymmetry, blurriness, concentration, disorder, and elongation (ABCDE/single-lobe metrics), as well as the asymmetry and angle between lobes (source metrics). We apply these metrics to a sample of 480 sources from the Evolutionary Map of the Universe Pilot Survey (EMU-PS) and 72 well resolved extensively studied sources from An Atlas of DRAGNs, a subset of the revised Third Cambridge Catalogue of Radio Sources (3CRR).We find that these metrics are relatively robust to resolution changes, independent of each other, and measure fundamentally different structural components of radio galaxy lobes. These metrics work particularly well for sources with reasonable signal-to-noise and well separated lobes. We also find that we can recover the original FR classification using probabilistic combinations of our metrics, highlighting the usefulness of our approach for future large data sets from radio sky surveys.

The Indian Pulsar Timing Array (InPTA) employs unique features of the upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT) to monitor dozens of the International Pulsar Timing Array (IPTA) millisecond pulsars (MSPs), simultaneously in the 300-500 MHz and the 1260-1460 MHz bands. This dual-band approach ensures that any frequency-dependent delays are accurately characterized, significantly improving the timing precision for pulsar observations, which is crucial for pulsar timing arrays. We present details of InPTA’s second data release that involves 7 yrs of data on 27 IPTA MSPs. This includes sub-banded Times of Arrival (ToAs), Dispersion Measures (DM), and initial timing ephemerides for our MSPs. A part of this dataset, originally released in InPTA’s first data release, is being incorporated into IPTA’s third data release which is expected to detect and characterize nanohertz gravitational waves in the coming years. The entire dataset is reprocessed in this second data release providing some of the highest precision DM estimates so far and interesting solar wind related DM variations in some pulsars. This is likely to characterize the noise introduced by the dynamic inter-stellar ionised medium much better than the previous release thereby increasing sensitivity to any future gravitational wave search.

We investigate the evolution of active galactic nucleus jets on kiloparsec-scales due to their interaction with the clumpy interstellar medium (ISM) of the host galaxy and, subsequently, the surrounding circumgalactic environment. Hydrodynamic simulations of this jet–environment interaction are presented for a range of jet kinetic powers, peak densities of the multiphase ISM, and scale radii of the larger-scale environment – characteristic of either a galaxy cluster or poor group. Synthetic radio images are generated by considering the combination of synchrotron radiation from the jet plasma and free-free absorption from the multiphase ISM. We find that jet propagation is slowed by interactions with a few very dense clouds in the host galaxy ISM, producing asymmetries in lobe length and brightness which persist to scales of tens of kpc for poor group environments. The classification of kiloparsec-scale jets is highly dependent on surface brightness sensitivity and resolution. Our simulations of young active sources can appear as restarted sources, showing double-double lobe morphology, high core prominence (CP > 0.1), and the expected radio spectra for both the inner- and outer-lobe components. We qualitatively reproduce the observed inverse correlation between peak frequency and source size, and find that the peak frequency of the integrated radio spectrum depends on ISM density but not the jet power. Spectral turnover in resolved young radio sources therefore provides a new probe of the ISM.

We present the first radio–continuum detection of the circumstellar shell around the well-known WN8 type Wolf-Rayet star WR16 at 943.5MHz using the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) Evolutionary Map of the Universe (EMU) survey. At this frequency, the shell has a measured flux density of 72.2±7.2 mJy. Using previous Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) measurements at 2.4, 4.8, and 8.64 GHz, as well as the EMU observations of the star itself, we determine a spectral index of α = +0.74 ± 0.02, indicating thermal emission. We propose that the shell and star both exhibit thermal emission, supported by the its appearance in near-infrared and Hα observations. The latest Gaia parallax is used to determine a distance of 2.28 ± 0.09 kpc. This star is well-known for its surrounding circular nebulosity, and using the distance and an angular diameter of 8′.42, we determine the shell size to be 5.57±0.22 pc. We use the Gaia proper motions (PMs) of WR16 to determine peculiar velocities of the star as Vα(pec) = –45.3±5.4 kms–1 and Vδ(pec) = 22.8±4.7 kms–1, which indicates that the star is moving in a north-west direction, and translates to a peculiar tangential velocity to be 50.7±6.9 kms–1. We also use these PMs to determine the shell’s origin, estimate an age of ∼ 9500 ±1300 yr, and determine its average expansion velocity to be 280 ± 40 km s–1. This average expansion velocity suggests that the previous transitional phase is a Luminous Blue Variable (LBV) phase, rather than a Red Super Giant (RSG) phase. We also use the measured flux at 943.5 MHz to determine a mass-loss rate of 1.753 × 10–5 M⊙ yr–1, and use this to determine a lower-limit on ionising photons of NUV > 1.406 × 1047 s–1.

Studying the diffuse Galactic synchrotron emission (hereafter, DGSE) at arc-minute angular scale is important to remove the foregrounds for the cosmological 21-cm observations. Statistical measurements of the large-scale DGSE can also be used to constrain the magnetic field and the cosmic ray electron density of our Galaxy’s interstellar medium (ISM). Here, we have used the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) drift scan observations at 154.2 MHz to measure the angular power spectrum (Cℓ) of the DGSE of a region of the sky from right ascension (RA) 349° to 70.3° at the fixed declination –26.7°. In this RA range, we have chosen 24 pointing centers (PCs), for which we have removed all the bright point sources above ∼ 430 mJy (3σ), and applied the Tapered Gridded Estimator (TGE) on residual data to estimate the Cℓ. We use the angular multipole range 65 ≤ ℓ ≤ 650 to fit the data with a model, , where we interpret the model as the combination of a power law (∝ ℓ–β) nature of the DGSE and a constant part due to the Poisson fluctuations of the residual point sources. We are able to fit the model for six PCs centered at α = 352.5°, 353°, 357°, 4.5°, 4° and 1°. We run the Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) ensemble sampler to get the best-fit values of the parameters A, β and C for these PCs. We see that the values of A vary in the range 155 to 400 mK2, whereas the β varies in the range 0.9 to 1.7. We find that the value of β is consistent at 2 – σ level with the earlier measurement of the DGSE at similar frequency and angular scales.

Very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) astrometry is used to determine the three-dimensional position and proper motion of astronomical objects. A typical VLBI astrometric campaign generally includes around ten observations, making it challenging to characterise systematic uncertainties. Our study on two bright pulsars, B0329+54 and B1133+16, involves analysis of broadband Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) data over ∼ 30 epochs (spanning approximately 3.5 years). This extended dataset has significantly improved the precision of the astrometric estimates of these pulsars. Our broadband study suggests that, as expected, the primary contribution to systematic uncertainties in L-band VLBI astrometry originates from the ionosphere. We have also assessed the effectiveness of the modified TEC (total electron content) mapping function, which converts vertical TEC to slant TEC, in correcting ionospheric dispersive delays using global TEC maps. The astrometric parameters (parallax and proper motion) obtained from the multiple data sets, calibrated using the traditional and the modified TEC mapping functions, are consistent. However, the reduced chi-square values from least-squares fitting and precision of the fitted astrometric parameters show no significant improvement, and hence, the effectiveness of the new TEC mapping function on astrometry is unclear. For B0329+54, the refined parallax estimate is mas, with best-fit proper motion of in R.A. and and in Dec. These correspond to a distance of kpc and a transverse velocity of ∼ 154 km s–1. For B1133+16, the new estimated parallax is mas, with proper motions of and , implying a distance of pc and a transverse velocity of ∼ 656 km s–1. The proper motions of B0329+54 and B1133+16 are consistent within 1σ of the most precise values reported in the literature to date while achieving more than a twofold improvement in precision. Similarly, the parallax measurements for both pulsars show a ∼ 73% enhancement in precision, with differences of approximately < 1σ compared to the most precise published values to date.

Magnetic AB stars are known to produce periodic radio pulses by the electron cyclotron maser emission (ECME) mechanism. Only 19 such stars, known as ‘Main-sequence Radio Pulse emitters’ (MRPs) are currently known. The majority of MRPs have been discovered through targeted observation campaigns that involve carefully selecting a sample of stars that are likely to produce ECME, and which can be detected by a given telescope within reasonable amount of time. These selection criteria inadvertently introduce bias in the resulting sample of MRPs, which affects subsequent investigation of the relation between ECME properties and stellar magnetospheric parameters. The alternative is to use all-sky surveys. Until now, MRP candidates obtained from surveys were identified based on their high circular polarisation (≳ 30%). In this paper, we introduce a complementary strategy, which does not require polarisation information. Using multi-epoch data from the Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP) telescope, we identify four MRP candidates based on the variability in the total intensity light curves. Follow-up observations with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) confirm three of them to be MRPs, thereby demonstrating the effectiveness of our strategy. With the expanded sample, we find that ECME is affected by temperature and the magnetic field strength, consistent with past results. There is, however, a degeneracy regarding how the two parameters govern the ECME luminosity for magnetic A and late-B stars (effective temperature ≲ 16 kK). The current sample is also inadequate to investigate the role of stellar rotation, which has been shown to play a key role in driving incoherent radio emission.

This work introduces GalProTE, a proof-of-concept Machine Learning model, leveraging Transformer Encoder architecture to efficiently determine the stellar age, metallicity, and dust attenuation of galaxies from optical spectra. Designed to address the challenges posed by the vast datasets produced by modern astronomical surveys, GalProTE offers a significant improvement in processing speed while maintaining accuracy. Using the E-MILES spectral library, we generate a dataset of 111,936 diverse templates by expanding the original 636 simple stellar population models with varying extinction levels, combinations of multiple spectra, and noise modifications. This ensures robust training over the spectral range of 4750–7100 Å at a resolution of 2.5 Å. GalProTE architecture employs four parallel attention-based encoders with varying kernel sizes to capture diverse spectral features. The model demonstrates a mean squared error (MSE) of 0.27% with a standard deviation of 0.10% between the input spectra and the GalProTE-generated spectra for the synthetic test dataset. Performance evaluation against real data from two galaxies in the PHANGS-MUSE survey (NGC4254 and NGC5068) demonstrates its ability to extract physical parameters efficiently, with spectral fit residuals showing a mean of -0.02% and 0.28%, and standard deviations of 4.3% and 5.3%, respectively. To contextualize these results, we compare age, metallicity and dust attenuation maps generated by GalProTE with those of pPXF, a state-of-the-art spectral fitting tool. While pPXF achieves robust results, it requires approximately 11 seconds per spectrum. In contrast, GalProTE processes a spectrum in less than 4 milliseconds—a speedup factor exceeding 2,750, while also consuming 68 times less power per spectrum. The comparison with pPXF maps from PHANGS-MUSE underscores GalProTE’s capacity to enhance traditional methods through machine learning, paving the way for faster, more energy-efficient, and more comprehensive analyses of galactic properties. This study demonstrates the potential of GalProTE as an efficient, scalable, and sustainable solution for processing large astronomical surveys.

We present EMUSE (Evolutionary Map of the Universe Search Engine), a tool designed for searching specific radio sources within the extensive datasets of the EMU (Evolutionary Map of the Universe) survey, with potential applications to other Big Data challenges in astronomy. Built on a multimodal approach to radio source classification and retrieval, EMUSE fine-tunes the OpenCLIP model on curated radio galaxy datasets. Leveraging the power of foundation models, our work integrates visual and textual embeddings to enable efficient and flexible searches within large radio astronomical datasets. We fine-tune OpenCLIP using a dataset of 2,900 radio galaxies, encompassing various morphological classes, including FR-I, FR-II, FR-x, R-type, and other rare and peculiar sources. The model is optimised using adapter-based fine-tuning, ensuring computational efficiency while capturing the unique characteristics of radio sources. The fine-tuned model is then deployed in the EMUSE, allowing for seamless image and text-based queries over the EMU survey dataset. Our results demonstrate the model’s effectiveness in retrieving and classifying radio sources, particularly in recognising distinct morphological features. However, challenges remain in identifying rare or previously unseen radio sources, highlighting the need for expanded datasets and continuous refinement. This study showcases the potential of multimodal machine learning in radio astronomy, paving the way for more scalable and accurate search tools in the field. The search engine is accessible at https://askap-emuse.streamlit.app/ and can be used locally by cloning the repository at https://github.com/Nikhel1/EMUSE.

Emission line galaxies (ELGs) are crucial for cosmological studies, particularly in understanding the large-scale structure of the Universe and the role of dark energy. ELGs form an essential component of the target catalogue for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), a major astronomical survey. However, the accurate selection of ELGs for such surveys is challenging due to the inherent uncertainties in determining their redshifts with photometric data. In order to improve the accuracy of photometric redshift estimation for ELGs, we propose a novel approach CNN–MLP that combines convolutional neural networks (CNNs) with multilayer perceptrons (MLPs). This approach integrates both images and photometric data derived from the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys Data Release 10. By leveraging the complementary strengths of CNNs (for image data processing) and MLPs (for photometric feature integration), the CNN–MLP model achieves a $\sigma_{\mathrm{NMAD}}$ (normalised median absolute deviation) of 0.0140 and an outlier fraction of 2.57%. Compared to other models, CNN–MLP demonstrates a significant improvement in the accuracy of ELG photometric redshift estimation, which directly benefits the target selection process for DESI. In addition, we explore the photometric redshifts of different galaxy types (Starforming, Starburst, AGN, and Broadline). Furthermore, this approach will contribute to more reliable photometric redshift estimation in ongoing and future large-scale sky surveys (e.g. LSST, CSST, and Euclid), enhancing the overall efficiency of cosmological research and galaxy surveys.

We present a systematic search for Odd Radio Circles (ORCs) and other unusual radio morphologies using data from the first year of the EMU (Evolutionary Map of the Universe) survey. ORCs are rare, enigmatic objects characterized by edge-brightened rings of radio emission, often found in association with distant galaxies. To identify these objects, we employ a hybrid methodology combining supervised object detection techniques and visual inspection of radio source candidates. This approach leads to the discovery of five new ORCs and two additional candidate ORCs, expanding the known population of these objects. In addition to ORCs, we also identify 55 Galaxies with Large-scale Ambient Radio Emission (GLAREs), which feature irregular, rectangular, or circular shapes of diffuse radio emission mostly surrounding central host galaxies. These GLAREs may represent different evolutionary stages of ORCs, and studying them could offer valuable insights into their evolutionary processes. We also highlight a subset of Starburst Radio Ring Galaxies (SRRGs), which are star-forming galaxies exhibiting edge-brightened radio rings surrounding their central star-forming regions. We emphasize the importance of multi-wavelength follow-up observations to better understand the physical properties, host galaxy characteristics, and evolutionary pathways of these radio sources.

The formation of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in early-type galaxies (ETGs) is a key challenge for galaxy formation theories. Using the monolithic collapse models of ETGs formed in Milgromian Dynamics (MOND) from Eappen et al. (2022, MNRAS, 516, 1081. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stac2229. arXiv: 2209.00024 [astro-ph.GA].), we investigate the conditions necessary to form SMBHs in MOND and test whether these systems adhere to observed SMBH-galaxy scaling relations. We analyse the evolution of the gravitational potential and gas inflow rates in the model relics with a total stellar mass ranging from $0.1 \times 10^{11}\,\text{ M}_\odot$ to $0.7 \times 10^{11} \,\text{M}_\odot$. The gravitational potential exhibits a rapid deepening during the initial galaxy formation phase, accompanied by high gas inflow rates. These conditions suggest efficient central gas accumulation capable of fuelling SMBH formation. We further examine the $M_\textrm{ BH} - \sigma$ relation by assuming that a fraction of the central stellar mass contributes to black hole formation. Black hole masses derived from 10$\%$–100$\%$ of the central mass are comparable with the observed relation, particularly at higher central velocity dispersions ($\sigma \gt 200 \, \text{km/s}$). This highlights the necessity of substantial inner mass collapse to produce SMBHs consistent with observations. Our results demonstrate that MOND dynamics, through the rapid evolution of the gravitational potential and sustained gas inflows, provide a favourable environment for SMBH formation in ETGs. These findings support the hypothesis that MOND can naturally account for the observed SMBH-galaxy scaling relations without invoking cold dark matter, emphasising the importance of early gas dynamics in determining final SMBH properties.

We report the radio continuum detection of well known Galactic Planetary Nebula (PN) NGC5189, observed at 943MHz during the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) Evolutionary Map of the Universe (EMU) survey. Two detections of NGC5189 have been made during the survey, of better resolution than previous radio surveys. Both measurements of the integrated flux density are consistent with each other, at S943 MHz = 0.33 ± 0.03 Jy, and the spectral luminosity is L943 MHz = 8.89 × 1013 W m–2 Hz–1. Using available flux density measurements for radio-detections of NGC5189, we calculate a radio surface brightness at 1GHz and measure Σ1 GHz = 6.0 × 10–21 W m–2 Hz–1 sr–1, which is in the expected range for Galactic PNe. We measure an apparent size of 3.′4×2.′2 corresponding to physical diameters of 1.48 pc × 0.96 pc, and combine available radio observations of NGC5189 to estimate a spectral index of α = 0.12 ± 0.05. Hence, we agree with previous findings that NGC5189 is a thermal (free–free) emitting nebula. Additional measurements of the optical depth (τ = 0.00246) and electron density (Ne = 138 cm–3) support our findings that NGC5189 is optically thin at 943 MHz. Furthermore, the radio contours from the ASKAP–EMU image have been overlaid onto a Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 image, demonstrating that the radio morphology closely traces the optical. Notably, the contour alignment for the innermost region highlights the two envelopes of gas previously reported to be low-ionisation structures, which is considered a defining feature of post common–envelope PNe that surround a central Wolf-Rayet star.

Here we analyse the archival data for a set of 27 Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite Targets of Interest in search for artificially generated radio signals, or ‘technosignatures’, interrupted by occultation. Exoplanetary eclipses are notable events to observe in the search for technosignatures, as they mark the geometrical alignment of the target, its host star, and Earth. During an eclipse event, any signal emanating from the target of interest should cease for the duration of the eclipse and resume after the line-of-sight has been restored. Target observations were made by Breakthrough Listen using Murriyang, the CSIRO Parkes 64-m radio telescope, coupled with the ultra-wide low frequency receiver covering a continuous range of frequencies spanning 704–4 032 MHz inclusive. Each target was observed in a pattern consisting of six back-to-back 5-min source and reference sky positions for comparison during data analysis. We performed a Doppler search for narrowband signals with a minimum signal-to-noise ratio of 10, a minimum drift rate of $\pm\,0.1$ Hz/s, and a maximum drift rate of $\pm\,4.0$ Hz/s using the turboseti pipeline. In the analysis of 1 954 880 signals, 14 639 passed automated radio interference filters where each event was presented as a set of stacked dynamic spectra. Despite manually inspecting each diagram for a signal of interest, all events were attributed to terrestrial radio frequency interference.

In this catalogue, we present the results of a systematic study of 199 short gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) detected by Konus-Wind between 1 January 2011 and 31 August 2021. The catalogue extends the Second Catalogue of short GRBs covering the period 1994–2010 by ten years of data. The resulting Konus-Wind short GRB sample includes 494 bursts. From temporal and spectral analyses of the sample, we provide the burst durations, spectral lags, estimates of the minimum variability timescales, rise and decay times, the results of spectral fits with three model functions, the total energy fluences, and the peak energy fluxes of the bursts. We present statistical distributions of these parameters for the complete set of 494 short GRBs detected in 1994–2021. We discuss in detail the properties of the bursts with extended emission in the context of the whole short GRB population. Finally, we consider the results in the context of the Type I (merger-origin)/Type II (collapsar-origin) classification and discuss the extragalactic magnetar giant flare subsample.

We have examined the nuclear spectra of very massive star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 0 to understand how they differ from other galaxies with comparable masses, which are typically passive. We selected a sample of 126 nearby massive star-forming galaxies (< 100 Mpc, 1011.3 M⊙ ≤ Mstellar ≤ 1011.7 M⊙, 1 M⊙ yr−1 < SFR < 13 M⊙ yr−1) from the 2MRS-Bright WXSC catalogue. LEDA morphologies indicate at least 63% of our galaxies are spirals, while visual inspection of Dark Energy Survey images reveals 75% of our galaxies to be spirals with the remainder being lenticular. Of our sample 59 have archival nuclear spectra, which we have modelled and subsequently measured emission lines ([NII]λ6583, Hαλ6563, [OIII]λ5008, and Hβλ4863), classifying galaxies as star-forming, LINERS or AGNs. Using a BPT diagram we find 83 ± 6 % of our galaxies, with sufficient signal-to-noise to measure all 4 emission lines, to be LINERs. Using the [NII]λ6583/Hαλ6563 emission line ratio alone we find that 79 ± 6 % of the galaxies (46 galaxies) with archival spectra are LINERs, whereas just ∼ 30% of the overall massive galaxy population are LINERs (Belfiore et al., 2016). Our sample can be considered a local analogue of the Ogle et al. (2016, 2019) sample of z ∼ 0.22 massive star-forming galaxies in terms of selection criteria, and we find 64% of their galaxies are LINERs using SDSS spectra. The high frequency of LINER emission in these massive star-forming galaxies indicates that LINER emission in massive galaxies may be linked to the presence of gas that fuels star formation.