Start year
1986
Organizational Unit
Organizing institutions
Grants related:
General
Description
This IAC research group carries out several extragalactic projects in different spectral ranges, using space as well as ground-based telescopes, to study the cosmological evolution of galaxies and the origin of nuclear activity in active galaxies. The group is a member of the international consortium which built the SPIRE instrument for the Herschel Space Observatory and of the European consortium which is developing the SAFARI instrument for the infrared space telescope SPICA of the space agencies ESA and JAXA.
The main projects in 2018 were:
a) High-redshift galaxies and quasars with far-infrared emission discovered with the Herschel Space Observatory in the HerMES and Herschel-ATLAS Key Projects.
b) Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV: BELLS GALLERY galaxies and very luminous Lyman alpha emitting galaxies.
c) Participation in the development of the SAFARI instrument, one of the European contributions to the SPICA infrared space telescope.
d) Discovery of the most distant individual star ever observed, in one of the fields of the "HST Frontier Fields".
e) Search for supernovae in distant, gravitationally lensed galaxies.
f) Several studies with GTC of absorption line systems in the line of sight to red quasars.
Members
Principal investigator
Ismael
Pérez Fournon
Project staff
Dr.
Stefan Geier
Collaborators
Herschel SPIRE, HerMES, Herschel-ATLAS, SPICA, SAFARI, BELLS GALLERY, SERVS, DEEPDRILL, SDSS-IV y SHARDS Frontier Fields
Results
- Marques-Chaves et al. (2018) present a study of the submillimeter galaxy HLock01 at z = 2.9574, one of the brightest gravitationally lensed sources discovered in the Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey. Detailed analysis of the high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) rest-frame UV GTC OSIRIS spectrum shows complex kinematics of the gas.
- Rigopoulou et al. (2018) using new, Herschel spectroscopic observations of key far-infrared fine structure lines of the z ∼ 3 galaxy HLSW-01 derive gas-phase metallicities and find that the metallicities of z ∼ 3 submm-luminous galaxies are consistent with solar metallicities and that they appear to follow the mass–metallicity relation expected for z ∼ 3 systems.
- Cornachione et al. (2018) present a morphological study of 17 lensed Lyα emitter (LAE) galaxies of the BELLS GALLERY sample. The analysis combines the magnification effect of strong galaxy–galaxy lensing with the high resolution of the Hubble Space Telescope to achieve a physical resolution of ~80 pc for this 2 < z < 3 LAE sample.
- Oteo et al. (2018) report the identification of an extreme protocluster of galaxies in the early universe whose core (nicknamed Distant Red Core, DRC, because of its very red color in Herschel SPIRE bands) is formed by at least 10 dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs), spectroscopically confirmed to lie at z = 4.002 via detection of emission lines with ALMA and ATCA.
- Kelly et al. (2018) report the discovery of an individual star, Icarus, at redshift z = 1.49 magnified by more than × 2,000 by gravitational lensing of the galaxy cluster MACS J1149+222. Icarus is located in a spiral galaxy that is so far from Earth that its light has taken 9000 million years to reach the Earth.
Scientific activity
Related publications
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The evolution of early-type galaxies in clusters from z˜ 0.8 to z ˜ 0: the ellipticity distribution and the morphological mixWe present the ellipticity distribution and its evolution for early-type galaxies in clusters from z˜ 0.8 to the current epoch, based on the WIde-field Nearby Galaxy-cluster Survey (0.04 ≤z≤ 0.07) and the ESO Distant Cluster Survey (0.4 ≤z≤ 0.8). We first investigate a mass-limited sample and we find that above a fixed mass limit (M*≥ 1010.2 M&sunVulcani, Benedetta et al.
Advertised on:
52011 -
The Detection of a Population of Submillimeter-Bright, Strongly Lensed GalaxiesGravitational lensing is a powerful astrophysical and cosmological probe and is particularly valuable at submillimeter wavelengths for the study of the statistical and individual properties of dusty star-forming galaxies. However, the identification of gravitational lenses is often time-intensive, involving the sifting of large volumes of imagingNegrello, Mattia et al.
Advertised on:
112010 -
Spitzer Imaging of Herschel-atlas Gravitationally Lensed Submillimeter SourcesWe present physical properties of two submillimeter selected gravitationally lensed sources, identified in the Herschel Astrophysical Terahertz Large Area Survey. These submillimeter galaxies (SMGs) have flux densities >100 mJy at 500 μm, but are not visible in existing optical imaging. We fit light profiles to each component of the lensing systemsHopwood, R. et al.
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22011 -
On the Connection Between Shape and Stellar Population in Early-type GalaxiesWe report on the discovery of a relation between the stellar mass M* of early-type galaxies (hereafter ETGs), their shape, as parameterized by the Sersic index n, and their stellar mass-to-light ratio M*/L. In a three-dimensional log space defined by these variables, the ETGs populate a plane surface with small scatter. This relation tells us thatD'Onofrio, M. et al.
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12011 -
Herschel-ATLAS: statistical properties of Galactic cirrus in the GAMA-9 Hour Science Demonstration Phase FieldWe study the spectral energy distribution (SED) and the power spectrum of Galactic cirrus emission observed in the 14 deg2 Science Demonstration Phase field of the Herschel-ATLAS using Herschel and IRAS data from 100 to 500 μm. We compare the Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE) 250, 350 and 500 μm maps with IRAS 100-μm emissionBracco, A. et al.
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42011 -
Green Bank Telescope Zpectrometer CO(1-0) Observations of the Strongly Lensed Submillimeter Galaxies from the Herschel ATLASThe Herschel Astrophysical Terahertz Large Area Survey (H-ATLAS) has uncovered a population of strongly lensed submillimeter galaxies (SMGs). The Zpectrometer instrument on the Green Bank Telescope (GBT) was used to measure the redshifts and constrain the masses of the cold molecular gas reservoirs for two candidate high-redshift lensed sources. WeFrayer, D. T. et al.
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12011 -
GAMA/H-ATLAS: the ultraviolet spectral slope and obscuration in galaxiesWe use multiwavelength data from the Galaxy And Mass Assembly (GAMA) and Herschel-ATLAS (H-ATLAS) surveys to compare the relationship between various dust obscuration measures in galaxies. We explore the connections between the ultraviolet (UV) spectral slope, β, the Balmer decrement and the far-infrared (FIR) to 150 nm far-ultraviolet (FUV)Wijesinghe, D. B. et al.
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82011 -
Galaxy stellar mass functions of different morphological types in clusters, and their evolution between z= 0.8 and 0We present the galaxy stellar mass function and its evolution in clusters from z˜ 0.8 to the current epoch, based on the WIde-field Nearby Galaxy-cluster Survey (WINGS) (0.04 ≤z≤ 0.07), and the ESO Distant Cluster Survey (EDisCS) (0.4 ≤z≤ 0.8). We investigate the total mass function and find that it evolves noticeably with redshift. The shape at M*Vulcani, Benedetta et al.
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32011 -
The Herschel-SPIRE instrument and its in-flight performanceThe Spectral and Photometric Imaging REceiver (SPIRE), is the Herschel Space Observatory`s submillimetre camera and spectrometer. It contains a three-band imaging photometer operating at 250, 350 and 500 μm, and an imaging Fourier-transform spectrometer (FTS) which covers simultaneously its whole operating range of 194-671 μm (447-1550 GHz). TheGriffin, M. J. et al.
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72010 -
The Herschel Reference SurveyThe Herschel Reference Survey is a Herschel guaranteed time key project and will be a benchmark study of dust in the nearby universe. The survey will complement a number of other Herschel key projects including large cosmological surveys that trace dust in the distant universe. We will use Herschel to produce images of a statistically-completeBoselli, A. et al.
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32010 -
The HerMES SPIRE submillimeter local luminosity functionLocal luminosity functions are fundamental benchmarks for high-redshift galaxy formation and evolution studies as well as for models describing these processes. Determining the local luminosity function in the submillimeter range can help to better constrain in particular the bolometric luminosity density in the local Universe, and Herschel offersVaccari, M. et al.
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72010 -
Resolved Dust Emission in a Quasar at z = 3.65We present submillimeter observations of the z= 3.653 quasar SDSS 160705+533558 together with data in the optical and infrared. The object is unusually bright in the far-IR and submillimeter with an IR luminosity of ~1014 L sun. We ascribe this luminosity to a combination of active galactic nucleus (AGN) and starburst emission, with the starburstClements, D. L. et al.
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62009 -
Properties of dusty tori in active galactic nuclei - I. The case of SWIRE/SDSS quasarsWe derive the properties of dusty tori in active galactic nuclei from the comparison of observed spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of SDSS quasars and a precomputed grid of torus models. The observed SEDs comprise SDSS photometry, Two-Micron All-Sky Survey J, H and K data, whenever available, and mid-infrared (mid-IR) data from the Spitzer WideHatziminaoglou, E. et al.
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52008 -
Probing the molecular interstellar medium of M82 with Herschel-SPIRE spectroscopyWe present the observations of the starburst galaxy M82 taken with the Herschel SPIRE Fourier-transform spectrometer. The spectrum (194-671 μm) shows a prominent CO rotational ladder from J = 4-3 to 13-12 emitted by the central region of M82. The fundamental properties of the gas are well constrained by the high J lines observed for the first timePanuzzo, P. et al.
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72010 -
Photometric redshifts in the SWIRE SurveyWe present the SWIRE Photometric Redshift Catalogue 1025119 redshifts of unprecedented reliability and of accuracy comparable with or better than previous work. Our methodology is based on fixed galaxy and quasi-stellar object templates applied to data at 0.36-4.5 μm, and on a set of four infrared emission templates fitted to infrared excess dataRowan-Robinson, Michael et al.
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52008 -
Mid-infrared spectroscopy of infrared-luminous galaxies at z ~ 0.5-3We present results on low-resolution mid-infrared (MIR) spectra of 70 IR-luminous galaxies obtained with the infrared spectrograph (IRS) onboard Spitzer. We selected sources from the European Large Area Infrared Survey with S15 > 0.8 mJy and photometric or spectroscopic z > 1. About half of the samples are quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) in theHernán-Caballero, A. et al.
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52009 -
MAMBO 1.2 mm Observations of Luminous Starbursts at z ~ 2 in the SWIRE FieldsWe report on-off pointed MAMBO observations at 1.2 mm of 61 Spitzer-selected star-forming galaxies from the Spitzer Wide Area Infrared Extragalactic Legacy survey (SWIRE). The sources are selected on the basis of bright 24 μm fluxes (f 24 μm > 0.4 mJy) and of stellar dominated near-infrared spectral energy distributions in order to favor z ~ 2Lonsdale, Carol J. et al.
Advertised on:
22009 -
Herschel and SCUBA-2 imaging and spectroscopy of a bright, lensed submillimetre galaxy at z = 2.3We present a detailed analysis of the far-infrared (-IR) properties of the bright, lensed, z = 2.3, submillimetre-selected galaxy (SMG), SMM J2135-0102 (hereafter SMM J2135), using new observations with Herschel, SCUBA-2 and the Very Large Array (VLA). These data allow us to constrain the galaxy's spectral energy distribution (SED) and show that itIvison, R. J. et al.
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72010 -
HerMES: The submillimeter spectral energy distributions of Herschel/SPIRE-detected galaxiesWe present colours of sources detected with the Herschel/SPIRE instrument in deep extragalactic surveys of the Lockman Hole, Spitzer-FLS, and GOODS-N fields in three photometric bands at 250, 350 and 500 μm. We compare these with expectations from the literature and discuss associated uncertainties and biases in the SPIRE data. We identify a 500 μmSchulz, B. et al.
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72010 -
HerMES: The SPIRE confusion limitWe report on the sensitivity of SPIRE photometers on the Herschel Space Observatory. Specifically, we measure the confusion noise from observations taken during the science demonstration phase of the Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey. Confusion noise is defined to be the spatial variation of the sky intensity in the limit of infiniteNguyen, H. T. et al.
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72010
