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| The rapid assembly of an elliptical galaxy of 400 billion solar masses at a redshift of 2.3 |
| Stellar archaeology shows that massive elliptical galaxies formed rapidly about ten billion years ago with star-formation rates of above several hundred solar masses per year. Their progenitors are probably the submillimetre bright galaxies at redshifts z greater than 2. Although the mean molecular gas mass (5x1010 solar masses) of the submillimetre bright galaxies can explain the formation of typical elliptical galaxies, it is inadequate to form elliptical galaxies that already have stellar masses above 2x1011 solar masses at z~2. Here we report multi-wavelength high-resolution observations of a rare merger of two massive submillimetre bright galaxies at z=2.3. The system is seen to be forming stars at a rate of 2,000 solar masses per year. The star-formation efficiency is an order of magnitude greater than that of normal galaxies, so the gas reservoir will be exhausted and star formation will be quenched in only around 200 million years. At a projected separation of 19 kiloparsecs, the two massive starbursts are about to merge and form a passive elliptical galaxy with a stellar mass of about 4x1011 solar masses. We conclude that gas-rich major galaxy mergers with intense star formation can form the most massive elliptical galaxies by z~1.5. |
| Publication date: 22 May 2013 |
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| Herschel Far-Infrared Spectroscopy of the Galactic Center. Hot Molecular Gas: Shocks versus Radiation near Sgr A* |
| We present a ~52-671 um spectral scan towards Sgr A* taken with the PACS and SPIRE spectrometers onboard Herschel. The achieved angular resolution allows us to separate, for the first time at far-IR wavelengths, the emission towards the central cavity (gas in the inner central parsec of the galaxy) from that of the surrounding circum-nuclear disk. The spectrum towards SgrA* is dominated by strong [OIII], [OI], [CII], [NIII], [NII], and [CI] fine structure lines (in decreasing order of luminosity) arising in gas irradiated by UV-photons from the central stellar cluster. In addition, rotationally excited lines of 12CO (from J=4-3 to 24-23), 12CO, H2O, OH, H3O+, HCO+ and HCN, as well as ground- state absorption lines of OH+, H2O+, H3O+, CH+, H2O, OH, HF, CH and NH are detected. The excitation of the 12CO ladder is consistent with a hot isothermal component at Tk=103.1 K and n(H2)<=104 cm-3. It is also consistent with a distribution of temperature components at higher density with most CO at Tk<~300 K. The detected molecular features suggest that, at present, neither very enhanced X-ray, nor cosmic-ray fluxes play a dominant role in the heating of the hot molecular gas. The hot CO component (either the bulk of the CO column or just a small fraction depending on the above scenario) results from a combination of UV- and shock-driven heating. If irradiated dense clumps/clouds do not exist, shocks likely dominate the heating of the hot molecular gas. This is consistent with the high-velocity gas detected towards SgrA*. |
| Publication date: 07 May 2013 |
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| Spatial distribution of water in the stratosphere of Jupiter from Herschel-HIFI and PACS observations |
| Context. In the past 15 years, several studies suggested that water in the stratosphere of Jupiter originated from the Shoemaker-Levy 9 (SL9) comet impacts in July 1994, but direct proof was missing. Only a very sensitive instrument observing with high spectral/spatial resolution can help to solve this problem. This is the case of the Herschel Space Observatory, which is the first telescope capable of mapping water in Jupiter's stratosphere.Aims. We observed the spatial distribution of water emission in Jupiter's stratosphere with the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared (HIFI) and the Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) onboard Herschel to constrain its origin. In parallel, we monitored Jupiter's stratospheric temperature with the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) to separate temperature from water variability.Methods. We obtained a 25-point map of the 1669.9 GHz water line with HIFI in July 2010 and several maps with PACS in October 2009 and December 2010. The 2010 PACS map is a 400-point raster of the water 66.4 um emission. Additionally, we mapped the methane v4 band emission to constrain the stratospheric temperature in Jupiter in the same periods with the IRTF.Results. Water is found to be restricted to pressures lower than 2 mbar. Its column density decreases by a factor of 2-3 between southern and northern latitudes, consistently between the HIFI and the PACS 66.4 um maps. We infer that an emission maximum seen around 15 °S is caused by a warm stratospheric belt detected in the IRTF data.Conclusions. Latitudinal temperature variability cannot explain the global north-south asymmetry in the water maps. From the latitudinal and vertical distributions of water in Jupiter's stratosphere, we rule out interplanetary dust particles as its main source. Furthermore, we demonstrate that Jupiter's stratospheric water was delivered by SL9 and that more than 95% of the observed water comes from the comet according to our models. |
| Publication date: 23 Apr 2013 |
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| A dust-obscured massive maximum-starburst galaxy at a redshift of 6.34 |
| Massive present-day early-type (elliptical and lenticular) galaxies probably gained the bulk of their stellar mass and heavy elements through intense, dust-enshrouded starbursts - that is, increased rates of star formation - in the most massive dark-matter haloes at early epochs. However, it remains unknown how soon after the Big Bang massive starburst progenitors exist. The measured redshift (z) distribution of dusty, massive starbursts has long been suspected to be biased low in z owing to selection effects, as confirmed by recent findings of systems with redshifts as high as ~5 (refs 2-4). Here we report the identification of a massive starburst galaxy at z = 6.34 through a submillimetre colour-selection technique. We unambiguously determined the redshift from a suite of molecular and atomic fine-structure cooling lines. These measurements reveal a hundred billion solar masses of highly excited, chemically evolved interstellar medium in this galaxy, which constitutes at least 40 per cent of the baryonic mass. A 'maximum starburst' converts the gas into stars at a rate more than 2,000 times that of the Milky Way, a rate among the highest observed at any epoch. Despite the overall downturn in cosmic star formation towards the highest redshifts, it seems that environments mature enough to form the most massive, intense starbursts existed at least as early as 880 million years after the Big Bang. |
| Publication date: 18 Apr 2013 |
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| Herschel observations of the W3 GMC: Clues to the formation of clusters of high-mass stars |
| The W3 GMC is a prime target for the study of the early stages of high-mass star formation. We have used Herschel data from the HOBYS key program to produce and analyze column density and temperature maps. Two preliminary catalogs were produced by extracting sources from the column density map and from Herschel maps convolved to 500 ¼m resolution. Herschel reveals that among the compact sources (FWHM < 0.45 pc), W3 East, W3 West, and W3 (OH) are the most massive and luminous and have the highest column density. Considering the unique properties of W3 East and W3 West, the only clumps with ongoing high-mass star formation, we suggest a "convergent constructive feedback" scenario to account for the formation of a cluster with decreasing age and increasing system/source mass toward the innermost regions. This process, which relies on feedback by high-mass stars to ensure the availability of material during cluster formation, could also lead to the creation of an environment suitable for the formation of Trapezium-like systems. In common with other scenarios proposed in other HOBYS studies, our results indicate that an active/dynamic process aiding in the accumulation, compression, and confinement of material is a critical feature of the high-mass star/cluster formation, distinguishing it from classical low-mass star formation. The environmental conditions and availability of triggers determine the form in which this process occurs, implying that high-mass star/cluster formation could arise from a range of scenarios: from large-scale convergence of turbulent flows to convergent constructive feedback or mergers of filaments. |
| Publication date: 01 Apr 2013 |
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| What Determines The Density Structure Of Molecular Clouds? A Case Study Of Orion B With Herschel |
| A key parameter to the description of all star formation processes is the density structure of the gas. In this Letter, we make use of probability distribution functions (PDFs) of Herschel column density maps of Orion B, Aquila, and Polaris, obtained with the Herschel Gould Belt survey (HGBS). We aim to understand which physical processes influence the PDF shape, and with which signatures. The PDFs of Orion B (Aquila) show a lognormal distribution for low column densities until AV ~ 3 (6), and a power-law tail for high column densities, consistent with a rho ~ r-2 profile for the equivalent spherical density distribution. The PDF of Orion B is broadened by external compression due to the nearby OB stellar aggregates. The PDF of a quiescent subregion of the non-star-forming Polaris cloud is nearly lognormal, indicating that supersonic turbulence governs the density distribution. But we also observe a deviation from the lognormal shape at AV > 1 for a subregion in Polaris that includes a prominent filament. We conclude that (1) the point where the PDF deviates from the lognormal form does not trace a universal AV -threshold for star formation, (2) statistical density fluctuations, intermittency, and magnetic fields can cause excess from the lognormal PDF at an early cloud formation stage, (3) core formation and/or global collapse of filaments and a non-isothermal gas distribution lead to a power-law tail, and (4) external compression broadens the column density PDF, consistent with numerical simulations. |
| Publication date: 13 Mar 2013 |
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| Formation of the compact jets in the black hole GX 339−4 |
| Galactic black hole binaries produce powerful outflows which emit over almost the entire electromagnetic spectrum. Here, we report the first detection with the Herschel observatory of a variable far-infrared source associated with the compact jets of the black hole transient GX 339-4 during the decay of its recent 2010-2011 outburst, after the transition to the hard state. We also outline the results of very sensitive radio observations conducted with the Australia Telescope Compact Array, along with a series of near-infrared, optical (OIR) and X-ray observations, allowing for the first time the re-ignition of the compact jets to be observed over a wide range of wavelengths. The compact jets first turn on at radio frequencies with an optically thin spectrum that later evolves to an optically thick synchrotron emission. An OIR reflare is observed about 10 d after the onset of radio and hard X-ray emission, likely reflecting the necessary time to build up enough density, as well as to have acceleration (e.g. through shocks) along an extended region in the jets. The Herschel measurements are consistent with an extrapolation of the radio inverted power-law spectrum, but they highlight a more complex radio to OIR spectral energy distribution for the jets. |
| Publication date: 11 Mar 2013 |
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| An old disk still capable of forming a planetary system |
| From the masses of the planets orbiting the Sun, and the abundance of elements relative to hydrogen, it is estimated that when the Solar System formed, the circumstellar disk must have had a minimum mass of around 0.01 solar masses within about 100 astronomical units of the star. (One astronomical unit is the Earth-Sun distance.) The main constituent of the disk, gaseous molecular hydrogen, does not efficiently emit radiation from the disk mass reservoir, and so the most common measure of the disk mass is dust thermal emission and lines of gaseous carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide emission generally indicates properties of the disk surface, and the conversion from dust emission to gas mass requires knowledge of the grain properties and the gas-to-dust mass ratio, which probably differ from their interstellar values. As a result, mass estimates vary by orders of magnitude, as exemplified by the relatively old (3-10 million years) star TW Hydrae, for which the range is 0.0005-0.06 solar masses. Here we report the detection of the fundamental rotational transition of hydrogen deuteride from the direction of TW Hydrae. Hydrogen deuteride is a good tracer of disk gas because it follows the distribution of molecular hydrogen and its emission is sensitive to the total mass. The detection of hydrogen deuteride, combined with existing observations and detailed models, implies a disk mass of more than 0.05 solar masses, which is enough to form a planetary system like our own. |
| Publication date: 31 Jan 2013 |
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| Alpha Centauri A in the far infrared - First measurement of the temperature minimum of a star other than the Sun |
| Context. Chromospheres and coronae are common phenomena on solar-type stars. Understanding the energy transfer to these heated atmospheric layers requires direct access to the relevant empirical data. Study of these structures has, by and large, been limited to the Sun thus far.
Aims. The region of the temperature reversal can be directly observed only in the far infrared and submillimetre spectral regime. We aim at determining the characteristics of the atmosphere in the region of the temperature minimum of the solar sister star alpha Cen A. As a bonus this will also provide a detailed mapping of the spectral energy distribution, i.e. knowledge that is crucial when searching for faint, Kuiper belt-like dust emission around other stars.
Methods. For the nearby binary system alpha Cen, stellar parameters are known with high accuracy from measurements. For the basic model parameters T_eff, log g and [Fe/H], we interpolate stellar model atmospheres in the grid of Gaia/PHOENIX and compute the corresponding model for the G2 V star alpha Cen A. Comparison with photometric measurements shows excellent agreement between observed photospheric data in the optical and infrared. For longer wavelengths, the modelled spectral energy distribution is compared to Spitzer-MIPS, Herschel-PACS, Herschel-SPIRE, and APEX-LABOCA photometry. A specifically tailored Uppsala model based on the MARCS code and extending further in wavelength is used to gauge the emission characteristics of alpha Cen A in the far infared.
[Abstract abbreviated due to character limitations.] |
| Publication date: 10 Jan 2013 |
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| A population of z>2 far-infrared Herschel-SPIRE selected starbursts |
| We present spectroscopic observations for a sample of 36 Herschel-SPIRE 250-500 micron selected galaxies (HSGs) at 22 in six extragalactic legacy fields. Observations were taken with the Keck I Low Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (LRIS) and the Keck II DEep Imaging Multi-Object Spectrograph (DEIMOS). Precise astrometry, needed for spectroscopic follow-up, is determined by identification of counterparts at 24 um or 1.4 GHz using a cross-identification likelihood matching method. Individual source luminosities range from log(LIR/LSun)=12.5-13.6 (corresponding to star formation rates 500-9000 MSun/yr, assuming a Salpeter IMF), constituting some of the most intrinsically luminous, distant infrared galaxies yet discovered. We present both individual and composite rest-frame ultraviolet spectra and infrared spectral energy distributions (SEDs). The selection of these HSGs is reproducible and well characterized across large areas of sky in contrast to most z>2 HyLIRGs in the literature which are detected serendipitously or via tailored surveys searching only for high-z HyLIRGs; therefore, we can place lower limits on the contribution of HSGs to the cosmic star formation rate density at (7+/-2)x10-3MSun/yr h3Mpc-3 at z~2.5, which is >10% of the estimated total star formation rate density (SFRD) of the Universe from optical surveys. The contribution at z~4 has a lower limit of 3x10-3MSun/yr h3Mpc-3, ~>20% of the estimated total SFRD. This highlights the importance of extremely infrared-luminous galaxies with high star formation rates to the build-up of stellar mass, even at the earliest epochs. |
| Publication date: 04 Dec 2012 |
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| A redshift survey of Herschel far-infrared selected starbursts and implications for obscured star formation |
| We present Keck spectroscopic observations and redshifts for a sample of 767 Herschel-SPIRE selected galaxies (HSGs) at 250, 350, and 500 micron, taken with the Keck I Low Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (LRIS) and the Keck II DEep Imaging Multi-Object Spectrograph (DEIMOS). The redshift distribution of these SPIRE sources from the Herschel Multitiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES) peaks at z=0.85, with 731 sources at z<2 and a tail of sources out to z~5. We measure more significant disagreement between photometric and spectroscopic redshifts (delta_z/(1+z)>=0.29) than is seen in non-infrared selected samples, likely due to enhanced star formation rates and dust obscuration in infrared-selected galaxies. We estimate that the vast majority (72-83%) of z<2 Herschel-selected galaxies would drop out of traditional submillimeter surveys at 0.85-1mm. We estimate the luminosity function and implied star-formation rate density contribution of HSGs at z<1.6 and find overall agreement with work based on 24micron extrapolations of the LIRG, ULIRG and total infrared contributions. This work significantly increased the number of spectroscopically confirmed infrared-luminous galaxies at z>>0 and demonstrates the growing importance of dusty starbursts for galaxy evolution studies and the build-up of stellar mass throughout cosmic time. [abridged] |
| Publication date: 04 Dec 2012 |
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| A debris disk around the planet-hosting M-star GJ 581 spatially resolved with Herschel |
| Debris disks have been found primarily around intermediate and solar mass stars (spectral types A-K) but rarely around low mass M-type stars. We have spatially resolved a debris disk around the remarkable M3-type star GJ 581 hosting multiple planets using deep PACS images at 70, 100 and 160 micron as part of the DEBRIS Program on the Herschel Space Observatory. This is the second spatially resolved debris disk found around an M-type star, after the one surrounding the young star AU Mic (12 Myr). However, GJ 581 is much older (2-8 Gyr), and is X-ray quiet in the ROSAT data. We fit an axisymmetric model of the disk to the three PACS images and found that the best fit model is for a disk extending radially from 25 ± 12 AU to more than 60 AU. Such a cold disk is reminiscent of the Kuiper Belt but it surrounds a low mass star (0.3 MSun) and its fractional dust luminosity Ldust/L*
of ~ 10-4 is much higher. The inclination limits of the disk found in our analysis make the masses of the planets small enough to ensure the long-term stability of the system according to some dynamical simulations. The disk is collisionally dominated down to submicron-sized grains and the dust cannot be expelled from the system by radiation or wind pressures because of the low luminosity and low X-ray luminosity of GJ 581. We suggest that the correlation between low-mass planets and debris disks recently found for G-type stars also applies to M-type stars. Finally, the known planets, of low masses and orbiting within 0.3 AU from the star, cannot dynamically perturb the disk over the age of the star, suggesting that an additional planet exists at larger distance that is stirring the disk to replenish the dust. |
| Publication date: 12 Nov 2012 |
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| First Detection of Water Vapor in a Pre-stellar Core |
| Water is a crucial molecule in molecular astrophysics as it controls much of the gas/grain chemistry, including the formation and evolution of more complex organic molecules in ices. Pre-stellar cores provide the original reservoir of material from which future planetary systems are built, but few observational constraints exist on the formation of water and its partitioning between gas and ice in the densest cores. Thanks to the high sensitivity of the Herschel Space Observatory, we report on the first detection of water vapor at high spectral resolution toward a dense cloud on the verge of star formation, the pre-stellar core L1544. The line shows an inverse P-Cygni profile, characteristic of gravitational contraction. To reproduce the observations, water vapor has to be present in the cold and dense central few thousand AU of L1544, where species heavier than helium are expected to freeze out onto dust grains, and the ortho:para H2 ratio has to be around 1:1 or larger. The observed amount of water vapor within the core (about 1.5 × 10-6 M) can be maintained by far-UV photons locally produced by the impact of galactic cosmic rays with H2 molecules. Such FUV photons irradiate the icy mantles, liberating water vapor in the core center. Our Herschel data, combined with radiative transfer and chemical/dynamical models, shed light on the interplay between gas and solids in dense interstellar clouds and provide the first measurement of the water vapor abundance profile across the parent cloud of a future solar-type star and its potential planetary system. |
| Publication date: 10 Nov 2012 |
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| No Clear Submillimeter Signature Of Suppressed Star Formation Among X-Ray Luminous Active Galactic Nuclei |
| Many theoretical models require powerful active galactic nuclei (AGNs) to suppress star formation in distant galaxies and reproduce the observed properties of today's massive galaxies. A recent study based on Herschel-SPIRE submillimeter observations claimed to provide direct support for this picture, reporting a significant decrease in the mean star formation rates (SFRs) of the most luminous AGNs (Lx >1044 erg s-1) at z ~ 1-3 in the Chandra Deep Field-North (CDF-N). In this Letter, we extend these results using Herschel-SPIRE 250 micron data in the COSMOS and Chandra Deep Field-South fields to achieve an order-of-magnitude improvement in the number of sources at Lx >1044 erg s-1. On the basis of our analysis, we find no strong evidence for suppressed star formation in Lx >1044 erg s-1 AGNs at z ~ 1-3. The mean SFRs of the AGNs are constant over the broad X-ray luminosity range of Lx 1043-1045 erg s-1 (with mean SFRs consistent with typical star-forming galaxies at z ~ 2; SFRs ~ 100-200 M_Sun yr-1). We suggest that the previous CDF-N results were likely due to low number statistics. We discuss our results in the context of current theoretical models. |
| Publication date: 02 Nov 2012 |
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| Extreme Host Galaxy Growth In Powerful Early-Epoch Radio Galaxies |
| During the first half of the universe's life, a heyday of star formation must have occurred because many massive galaxies are in place after that epoch in cosmic history. Our observations with the revolutionary Herschel Space Observatory reveal vigorous optically obscured star formation in the ultra-massive hosts of many powerful high-redshift 3C quasars and radio galaxies. This symbiotic occurrence of star formation and black hole driven activity is in marked contrast to recent results dealing with Herschel observations of X-ray-selected active galaxies. Three archetypal radio galaxies at redshifts 1.132, 1.575, and 2.474 are presented here, with inferred star formation rates of hundreds of solar masses per year. A series of spectacular coeval active galactic nucleus/starburst events may have formed these ultra-massive galaxies and their massive central black holes during their relatively short lifetimes. |
| Publication date: 14 Sep 2012 |
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| Herschel imaging of 61 Vir: implications for the prevalence of debris in low-mass planetary systems |
| This paper describes Herschel observations of the nearby (8.5 pc) G5V multi-exoplanet host star 61 Vir at 70, 100, 160, 250, 350 and 500 micron carried out as part of the DEBRIS survey. These observations reveal emission that is significantly extended out to a distance of >15 arcsec with a morphology that can be fitted by a nearly edge-on (77° inclination) radially broad (from 30 AU out to at least 100 AU) debris disc of fractional luminosity 2.7 × 10-5, with two additional (presumably unrelated) sources nearby that become more prominent at longer wavelengths. Chance alignment with a background object seen at 1.4 GHz provides potential for confusion, however, the star's 1.4 arcsec/yr proper motion allows archival Spitzer 70 m images to confirm that what we are interpreting as disc emission really is circumstellar. Although the exact shape of the disc's inner edge is not well constrained, the region inside 30 AU must be significantly depleted in planetesimals. This is readily explained if there are additional planets outside those already known (i.e. in the 0.5-30 AU region), but is also consistent with collisional erosion. We also find tentative evidence that the presence of detectable debris around nearby stars correlates with the presence of the lowest mass planets that are detectable in current radial velocity surveys. Out of an unbiased sample of the nearest 60 G stars, 11 are known to have planets, of which six (including 61 Vir) have planets that are all less massive than Saturn, and four of these have evidence for debris. The debris towards one of these planet hosts (HD 20794) is reported here for the first time ... [Abstract abbreviated due to character limitations.] |
| Publication date: 01 Aug 2012 |
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| Rapid disappearance of a warm, dusty circumstellar disk |
| Stars form with gaseous and dusty circumstellar envelopes, which rapidly settle into disks that eventually give rise to planetary systems. Understanding the process by which these disks evolve is paramount in developing an accurate theory of planet formation that can account for the variety of planetary systems discovered so far. The formation of Earth-like planets through collisional accumulation of rocky objects within a disk has mainly been explored in theoretical and computational work in which post-collision ejecta evolution typically is ignored although recent work has considered the fate of such material. Here we report observations of a young, Sun-like star (TYC 8241 2652 1) where infrared flux from post-collisional ejecta has decreased drastically, by a factor of about 30, over a period of less than two years. The star seems to have gone from hosting substantial quantities of dusty ejecta, in a region analogous to where the rocky planets orbit in the Solar System, to retaining at most a meagre amount of cooler dust. Such a phase of rapid ejecta evolution has not been previously predicted or observed, and no currently available physical model satisfactorily explains the observations. |
| Publication date: 05 Jul 2012 |
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| ESA SP-1323: ESA's Report to the 39th COSPAR Meeting |
The 39th meeting of the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) was held 14-22 July 2012 in Mysore, India.
This report to COSPAR on the scientific activities of the European Space Agency was written by members of the Directorate of Earth Observation, the Directorate of Human Spaceflight and Operations and the Directorate of Science and Robotic Exploration.
Contents:
- Foreword by Jean-Jacques Dordain, Director General, ESA
- Earth Observation
- Introduction
- The Living Planet Programme
- The Earth Explorer Missions
- ERS and Envisat
- Human Spaceflight and Operations
- Introduction
- Overview: Columbus and ISS Facilities
- Funding Europe's ISS Research: ELIPS
- Research on the ISS
- Ongoing Research Using Other Platforms
- Projects under Development
- Science and Robotic Exploration
- Introduction
- Missions in Operation
- Missions in the Post-Operations and Archiving Phases
- Projects under Development
- Missions under Study
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| Publication date: 30 Jun 2012 |
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| Herschel far-infrared observations of the Carina Nebula complex. I. Introduction and global cloud structure |
| Context.
The Carina Nebula represents one of the most massive star forming regions known in our Galaxy and displays a high level of feedback from the large number of very massive stars. While the stellar content is now well known from recent deep X-ray and near-infrared surveys, the properties of the clouds remained rather poorly studied until today.
Methods.
We used SPIRE and PACS onboard of Herschel to map the full spatial extent (~5.3 square-degrees) of the clouds in the Carina Nebula complex at wavelengths between 70 and 500 micron. We used here the 70 micron and 160 micron far-infrared maps to determine color temperatures and column densities, and to investigate the global properties of the gas and dust clouds in the complex.
Results.
Our Herschel maps show the far-infrared morphology of the clouds at unprecedented high angular resolution. The clouds show a very complex and filamentary structure that is dominated by the radiation and wind feedback from the massive stars. In most locations, the column density of the clouds is NH < 2 × 1022 cm-2 (corresponding to visual extinctions of AV < 10 mag); denser cloud structures are restricted to the massive cloud west of Tr 14 and the innermost parts of large pillars. Our temperature map shows a clear large-scale gradient from ~35-40 K in the central region to <20 K at the periphery and in the densest parts of individual pillars. The total mass of the clouds seen by Herschel in the central (1 degree radius) region is ~656 000 M_Sun. We also derive the global spectral energy distribution in the mid-infrared to mm wavelength range. A simple radiative transfer model suggests that the total mass of all the gas (including a warmer component that is not well traced by Herschel) in the central 1 degree radius region is ~890 000 M_Sun.
[Abstract abbreviated due to character limitations.] |
| Publication date: 14 May 2012 |
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| The suppression of star formation by powerful active galactic nuclei |
| Published online 9 May 2012
The old, red stars that constitute the bulges of galaxies, and the massive black holes at their centres, are the relics of a period in cosmic history when galaxies formed stars at remarkable rates and active galactic nuclei (AGN) shone brightly as a result of accretion onto black holes. It is widely suspected, but unproved, that the tight correlation between the mass of the black hole and the mass of the stellar bulge results from the AGN quenching the surrounding star formation as it approaches its peak luminosity. X-rays trace emission from AGN unambiguously, whereas powerful star-forming galaxies are usually dust-obscured and are brightest at infrared and submillimetre wavelengths. Here we report submillimetre and X-ray observations that show that rapid star formation was common in the host galaxies of AGN when the Universe was 2-6 billion years old, but that the most vigorous star formation is not observed around black holes above an X-ray luminosity of 1044 ergs per second. This suppression of star formation in the host galaxy of a powerful AGN is a key prediction of models in which the AGN drives an outflow, expelling the interstellar medium of its host and transforming the galaxy's properties in a brief period of cosmic time. |
| Publication date: 10 May 2012 |
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