Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-pjpqr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-13T20:55:02.740Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The Herschel Space Observatory View of the Gas and Dust Properties ofDwarf Galaxies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 July 2011

S.C. Madden
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/ Service d’Astrophysique, Saclay, France
M. Galametz
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/ Service d’Astrophysique, Saclay, France
D. Cormier
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/ Service d’Astrophysique, Saclay, France
V. Lebouteiller
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/ Service d’Astrophysique, Saclay, France
F. Galliano
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/ Service d’Astrophysique, Saclay, France
S. Hony
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/ Service d’Astrophysique, Saclay, France
M. Sauvage
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/ Service d’Astrophysique, Saclay, France
M. Pohlen
Affiliation:
School of Physics and Astronomy, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, UK
G. Bendo
Affiliation:
Astrophysics Group, Imperial College, London, UK
B. O’Halloran
Affiliation:
Astrophysics Group, Imperial College, London, UK
Get access

Abstract

The Herschel Dwarf Galaxy Survey investigates the metal enrichment of the dust and gas in galaxies through observations of the local universe dwarf galaxies via the new far-infrared (FIR) and submillimetre imaging spectroscopic and photometric observations from the recently launched Herschel Space Observatory. The dust spectral energy distributions can now be constrained out to submm wavelengths and often show a submm excess in the low metallicity galaxies, which, if tracing very cold dust, could highlight large dust masses, sometimes not easily reconciled with their low-metallicity and observed gas mass. Additionally, Herschel observations of the FIR fine-structure lines probe the low density ionised gas, the HII regions and photodissociation regions. L[CII]/LCO is remarkably high in dwarf galaxies – typically an order of magnitude larger than more metal-rich starburst galaxies, pointing to a potentially significant reservoir of H2 not traced by CO but shielded in the C+-emitting envelopes. Thus a more accurate estimate of the molecular gas mass in low metallicity galaxies will be via the (CO + [CII]) to H2 conversion factor. The 88 μm [OIII] line is the brightest of all FIR lines in low-metallicity galaxies, sometimes 1.5 to 2 time brighter than the 158 μm [CII] line which is usually the dominate FIR coolant in normal spiral and starburst galaxies. The 88 μm [OIII] line may become the workhorse diagnostic for the high-redshift low-metallicity galaxies which will be targets for future submm observatories, such as ALMA. Further observations from The Herschel Dwarf Galaxy survey will provide a more complete picture of the nature of the dust and gas in low metallicity galaxies and thus a more comprehensive view of the chemical evolution of galaxies.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© EAS, EDP Sciences, 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bianchi, L., Scuderi, S., Massey, P., & Romaniello, M., 2001, AJ, 121, 2020CrossRef
de Blok, W.J.G., & Walter, F., 2000, ApJ, 537, L95CrossRef
de Graauw, Th., et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L6
Cannon, J., Smith, J.D., Walter, F., et al., 2006a, ApJ, 647, 293CrossRef
Cannon, J., Walter, F., Armus, L., et al., 2006b, ApJ, 652, 1170CrossRef
Cormier, D., Madden, S.C., & Galliano, F., 2010, A&A, 518PubMed
Engelbracht, , et al., 2008, ApJ, 678, 804CrossRef
Galametz, M., Madden, S.C., Galliano, F., et al., 2009, A&A, 508, 645
Galametz, M., Madden, S.C., Galliano, F., et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L55
Galametz, M., Madden, S.C., Galliano, F., et al., 2010, A&A, submitted
Galliano, F., Dwek, E., & Chanial, P., 2008, ApJ, 672, 214CrossRef
Galliano, F., Madden, S.C., Jones, A.P., Wilson, C.D., et al., 2003, A&A, 407, 159
Galliano, F., Madden, S.C., Jones, A.P., Wilson, C.D., et al., 2005, A&A, 434, 867
Gratier, P., Braine, J., Rodriguez-Fernandez, N.J., et al., 2010, A&A, 512, A68
Griffin, M.J., et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L3PubMed
Grossi, M., Hunt, L., Madden, S.C., et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L52
Hailey-Dunsheath, S., Nikola, T., Stacey, G.J., et al., 2010, ApJ, 714, L162CrossRef
Hunter, D., Kaufman, M., Hollenbach, D.J., et al., 2001, ApJ, 553, 121CrossRef
Leroy, A.K., et al., 2009, AJ, 137, 467CrossRef
OHalloran, B., Galametz, M., Madden, S.C, et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L58
Madden, S.C., Galliano, F., Jones, A.P., & Sauvage, M., 2006, A&A, 446, 877
Madden, S.C., 2000, New Astron. Rev., 44, 249CrossRef
Madden, S.C., Poglitsch, A., Geis, N., Stacey, G.J., & Townes, C.H., 1997, ApJ, 483, 200CrossRef
Meixner, M., et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L71
Meurer, G.R., et al., 2006, ApJS, 165, 307MCrossRef
Pilbratt, G.L., et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L1
Poglitsch, A., Krabbe, A., Madden, S.C., et al., 1995, ApJ, 454, 293CrossRef
Poglitsch, A., et al., 2010, A&A, 518, L2
Röllig, M., Ossenkopf, V., Jeyakumar, S., Stutzki, J., & Sternberg, A., 2006, A&A, 451, 917
Stacey, G.J., Geis, N., Genzel, R., et al., 1991, ApJ, 373, 423CrossRef
Stacey, G.J., Hailey-Donsheath, S., Ferkinhoff, C., et al., 2010, ApJ, in press
Walter, F., Taylor, C.L., Httemeister, S., Scoville, N., & McIntyre, V., 2001, AJ, 121, 727CrossRef
Wolfire, M., Hollenbach, D., & McKee, C., 2010, ApJ, 716, 1191CrossRef
Wu, Y., Charmandaris, V., Hunt, L.K., et al., 2007, ApJ, 662, 952CrossRef