Mid- and far-infrared (IR) photometric and spectroscopic observations are fundamental to a full understanding of the dust-obscured Universe and the evolution of both star formation and black hole accretion in galaxies. In this work, using the specifications of the SPace Infrared telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics (SPICA) as a baseline, we investigate the capability to study the dust-obscured Universe of mid- and far-IR photometry at 34 and $70\, {\rm{\mu }}\mathrm{m}$ and low-resolution spectroscopy at $17{-}36\, {\rm{\mu }}\mathrm{m}$ using the state-of-the-art Spectro-Photometric Realisations of Infrared-selected Targets at all-z (Spritz) simulation. This investigation is also compared to the expected performance of the Origins Space Telescope and the Galaxy Evolution Probe. The photometric view of the Universe of a SPICA-like mission could cover not only bright objects (e.g. $L_{IR}>10^{12}\,{\rm L}_{\odot}$ ) up to ${z}=10$ , but also normal galaxies ( $L_{IR}<10^{11}\,{\rm L}_{\odot}$ ) up to $\textit{z}\sim4$ . At the same time, the spectroscopic observations of such mission could also allow us to estimate the redshifts and study the physical properties for thousands of star-forming galaxies and active galactic nuclei by observing the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and a large set of IR nebular emission lines. In this way, a cold, 2.5-m size space telescope with spectro-photometric capability analogous to SPICA, could provide us with a complete three-dimensional (i.e. images and integrated spectra) view of the dust-obscured Universe and the physics governing galaxy evolution up to $\textit{z}\sim4$ .

Thanks to deep optical to near-IR imaging and spectroscopy, significant progress is made in characterizing the rest-frame UV to optical properties of galaxies in the early universe (z > 4. Surveys with Hubble, Spitzer, and ground-based facilities (Keck, Subaru, and VLT) provide spectroscopic and photometric redshifts, measurements of the spatial structure, stellar masses, and optical emission lines for large samples of galaxies. Recently, the Atacama Large (Sub) Millimeter Array (ALMA) has become a major player in pushing studies of high redshift galaxies to far-infrared wavelengths, hence making panchromatic surveys over many orders of frequencies possible. While past studies focused mostly on bright sub-millimeter galaxies, the sensitivity of ALMA now enables surveys like ALPINE, which focuses on measuring the gas and dust properties of a large sample of normal main-sequence galaxies at z > 4. Combining observations across different wavelengths into a single, panchromatic picture of galaxy formation and evolution is currently and in the future an important focus of the astronomical community.

The ALMA-ALPINE [CII] survey (A2C2S) aims at characterizing the properties of normal star-forming galaxies (SFGs) observed in the [CII]-158μm line in the period of rapid mass assembly at redshifts 4 < z < 6. Here we present the survey and the selection of 118 galaxies observed with ALMA, selected from large samples of galaxies with spectroscopic redshifts derived from UV-rest frame. The observed properties derived from the ALMA data are presented and discussed in terms of the overall detection rate in [CII] and far-IR continuum. The sample is representative of the SFG population at these redshifts. The overall detection rate is 61% down to a flux limit of 0.07 mJy. From a visual inspection of the [CII] data cubes together with the large wealth of ancillary data we find a surprisingly wide range of galaxy types, including 32.4% mergers, 25.7% extended and dispersion dominated, 13.5% rotating discs, and 16.2% compact, the remaining being too faint to be classified. ALPINE sets a reference sample for the gas distribution in normal star-forming galaxies at a key epoch in galaxy assembly, ideally suited for studies with future facilities like JWST and ELTs.

With the recent discovery of a dozen dusty star-forming galaxies and around 30 quasars at z > 5 that are hyper-luminous in the infrared (μ LIR > 1013 L⊙, where μ is a lensing magnification factor), the possibility has opened up for SPICA, the proposed ESA M5 mid-/far-infrared mission, to extend its spectroscopic studies toward the epoch of reionisation and beyond. In this paper, we examine the feasibility and scientific potential of such observations with SPICA’s far-infrared spectrometer SAFARI, which will probe a spectral range (35–230 μm) that will be unexplored by ALMA and JWST. Our simulations show that SAFARI is capable of delivering good-quality spectra for hyper-luminous infrared galaxies at z = 5 − 10, allowing us to sample spectral features in the rest-frame mid-infrared and to investigate a host of key scientific issues, such as the relative importance of star formation versus AGN, the hardness of the radiation field, the level of chemical enrichment, and the properties of the molecular gas. From a broader perspective, SAFARI offers the potential to open up a new frontier in the study of the early Universe, providing access to uniquely powerful spectral features for probing first-generation objects, such as the key cooling lines of low-metallicity or metal-free forming galaxies (fine-structure and H2 lines) and emission features of solid compounds freshly synthesised by Population III supernovae. Ultimately, SAFARI’s ability to explore the high-redshift Universe will be determined by the availability of sufficiently bright targets (whether intrinsically luminous or gravitationally lensed). With its launch expected around 2030, SPICA is ideally positioned to take full advantage of upcoming wide-field surveys such as LSST, SKA, Euclid, and WFIRST, which are likely to provide extraordinary targets for SAFARI.

IR spectroscopy in the range 12–230 μm with the SPace IR telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics (SPICA) will reveal the physical processes governing the formation and evolution of galaxies and black holes through cosmic time, bridging the gap between the James Webb Space Telescope and the upcoming Extremely Large Telescopes at shorter wavelengths and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array at longer wavelengths. The SPICA, with its 2.5-m telescope actively cooled to below 8 K, will obtain the first spectroscopic determination, in the mid-IR rest-frame, of both the star-formation rate and black hole accretion rate histories of galaxies, reaching lookback times of 12 Gyr, for large statistically significant samples. Densities, temperatures, radiation fields, and gas-phase metallicities will be measured in dust-obscured galaxies and active galactic nuclei, sampling a large range in mass and luminosity, from faint local dwarf galaxies to luminous quasars in the distant Universe. Active galactic nuclei and starburst feedback and feeding mechanisms in distant galaxies will be uncovered through detailed measurements of molecular and atomic line profiles. The SPICA’s large-area deep spectrophotometric surveys will provide mid-IR spectra and continuum fluxes for unbiased samples of tens of thousands of galaxies, out to redshifts of z ~ 6.

An avalanche dynamics model, appropriate for complex terrain, for real avalanche paths was developed by Perla, Cheng and McClung in 1980. The model has two friction terms, one for sliding friction which is independent of speed, and one for turbulent friction which is proportional to V2, where V is the centre-of-mass speed along the incline. By introducing speed maxima for avalanches, along with start and stop reference positions, it is possible to determine the the two constant friction coefficients for the model. When this is done, it is found that speed data often exceed a model speed limit implied by the application of V = 0 at the start and stop positions. This effect is illustrated by analytic solutions of the relevant equations, as well as numerical solutions for actual avalanche paths. Some limitations and properties of the fundamental modelling are outlined and suggestions given for future use of such models.

Experimental data on avalanche impact pressures and speeds from an avalanche path at Rogers Pass, B.C., are presented for both dry and wet avalanches. Data from small load cells (645 mm2 surface) at various heights through the vertical cross-section of the avalanches show that the frequency of particle impact and hence flow density increases rapidly from top to bottom of the flow.

Data from a large circular impact plate (196 000 mm2) just above the ground surface show that dry avalanches have relatively higher peak pressures and relatively lower average pressures than wet avalanches for a given speed. Longitudinal wave-like characteristics in the flow may be seen for both wet and dry avalanches, but they appear to be the exception rather than the rule.

Comparison of pressure results with those of other studies shows good agreement for peak pressures, but average pressures are generally less than those of previous studies. This discrepancy is attributed to the past use of cells for which loading surface size approached typical particle size. The size effect may be demonstrated by comparison of small cell data with results from the large impact plate at Rogers Pass.

To extend the molecular gas measurements to typical L* star-forming galaxies (SFGs) at z ∼ 1.5 − 3, we have observed CO emission for five strongly-lensed galaxies selected from the Herschel Lensing Survey. The combined sample of our L* SFGs with CO-detected SFGs at z >1 from the literature shows a large spread in star formation efficiency (SFE). We find that this spread in SFE is due to variations of several physical parameters, primarily the specific star formation rate, but also stellar mass and redshift. An increase of the molecular gas fraction (fgas) is observed from z ∼ 0.2 to z ∼ 1.2, followed by a quasi non-evolution toward higher redshifts, as found in earlier studies. We provide the first measure of fgas of z >1 SFGs at the low-stellar mass end between 109.4 < M∗/M⊙ < 109.9, which shows a clear fgas upturn.

We describe our results on multi-colour observations of extremely red galaxies found in two gravitational lensing clusters (Abell 1835 and AC114). Applying a colour criteria of R-K≥ 5.6 we have selected 12(10) EROs, of which 10(4) have no R-band detection. 5 of these objects have exceptional red colours (R-K>7.5). We compare their colours with other galaxy populations, like distant red galaxies and infrared detected extremely red galaxies, in order to differentiate between them.

We summarise the current status of our project to identify and classify ~ 6-10 galaxies thanks to strong gravitational lensing. Building on the detailed work by Richard et al. (2006), we present results from new follow-up observations undertaken with the ACS/HST and the Spitzer space telescope and compare our results with findings from the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field (UDF).

We developped a 3D Monte Carlo Lyα radiation transfer code to understand the diversity of Lyα line profiles observed in star forming galaxies and related objects (Verhamme et al. 2006). Our code allows for prescribed arbitrary hydrogen density, ionisation, temperature structures, and dust distributions, and arbitrary velocity fields and UV photon sources.Here we present results from the first modelling of the Lyα line and of the UV spectrum with our code of a sample of z ~ 3 Lyman break galaxies observed by Steidel and collaborators (Pettini et al. 2002) and taken from the FORS Deep Field (Tapken et al. 2006). A simple model of an expanding neutral shell surrounding a starburst region can reproduce the whole variety of spectra ranging from double-peaked profiles to asymetric emission lines, P-Cygni profiles or broad absorption. The main determining parameters are the outflow velocity and the dust content. Other parameters such as the hydrogen column density, the intrinsic Lyα emission and hence SFR, and the intrinsic Lyα line widths can be determined consistently taking all radiation transfer effects into account.

Following up on the detailed results from our searches for z~ 6–10 galaxies using gravitional lensing clusters descrived in Richard et al. (2006), we have obtained new observations, which are presented here. For a general overview of the project see Schaerer et al. (2006). First, deep HST/ACS observations in the z-band confirm 17 out of 18 high redshift candidates as optical drop-out objects; the remaining object appears faint and star-like. Second, Spitzer/IRAC images at 3.6, 4.5, 5.8 and 8.0 μm have been obtained. 11 out of 18 candidates are in “free”, uncominated regions. These 11 high-z candidates are undetected, with upper limits which are compatible with their SED if these objects are blue star-forming galaxies at high redshift (see Fig. 1). In conclusion, our new observations corroborate so far the high-z nature of the majority of the candidates.

We use multi-colour data of the gravitational lensing cluster Abell 1835 to search for high-z candidates (Richard et al. 2006) and extremely red galaxies.

Applying a colour criteria of R-K ≥ 5.6 we have selected 12 EROs, of which 10(9) have no R(I)-band detection. Two of these sources posses multiple detections in the ACS z850 band, possibly gravitationally bound objects.

Using the method of Pozzetti and Mannucci (2000) to classify an ERO either as evolved elliptical or dusty starburst, we find that two thirds of all objects have colours assigned to evolved ellipticals. One of the remaining 4 sources is the known sub-mm source SMMJ14009+0252.

The spectral energy distributions of sources with no optical detection show strong similarities to the SED of the high-z object of Mobasher et al. (2005), i.e. a degeneracy between a low- and high-z solution. However, for objects we accept the low-z solution as the better fit.

A detailed analyses of the colour properties and spectral energy distribution will be published in two forthcoming papers (Schaerer et al., Hempel et al.).

We review in this paper the main results recently obtained on the identification and study of very high-z galaxies using lensing clusters as natural gravitational telescopes. We present in detail our pilot survey with ISAAC/VLT, aimed at the detection of z$>7$ sources. Evolutionary synthesis models for extremely metal-poor and PopIII starbursts have been used to derive the observational properties expected for these high-$z$ galaxies, such as expected magnitudes and colors, line fluxes for the main emission lines, etc. These models have allowed to define fairly robust selection criteria to find z$\sim 7-10$ galaxies based on broad-band near-IR photometry in combination with the traditional Lyman drop-out technique. The first results issued from our photometric and spectroscopic survey are discussed, in particular the preliminary confirmation rate, and the global properties of our high-z candidates, including the latest results on the possible z=10.0 candidate A1835-1916. The search efficiency should be significantly improved by the future near-IR multi-object ground-based and space facilities. However, strong lensing clusters remain a factor of $\sim$ 5-10 more efficient than blank fields in the z $\sim$ 7-11 domain, within the FOV of a few arcminutes around the cluster core, for the typical depth required for this survey project.To search for other articles by the author(s) go to: http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abstract_service.html

We review the properties of stellar populations and the interstellarmedium (ISM) of various kinds of massive star forming regions(ranging from stellar clusters, Hii regions, super star clusters,etc. to distant starburst galaxies). The nature of their multi-wavelength spectra as well as the techniques used for their interpretation is are discussed.These objects play an important role in our understandingof star formation, interactions between stars and the ISM, and galaxyevolution among others.

Using the latest stellar evolution models, theoretical stellar spectra, and a compilation of observed emission line strengths from Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars, we have constructed evolutionary synthesis models for young starbursts (Schaerer & Vacca 1997; see also Schaerer 1996). We provide detailed predictions of UV and optical emission line strengths for both the WR stellar lines and the major nebular hydrogen and helium emission lines, as a function of several input parameters related to the starburst episode.

The Geneva group has computed a complete grid of stellar models from 0.8 to 60 M⊙ at a metallicity of Z=0.100 (i.e. 5 times solar, Mowlavi et al. 1997). These stellar models present interesting features such as the nearly complete evaporation of the most massive stars due to intense stellar winds. For instance, for Z >> 0.040, final stages of massive stars (M > 60 M⊙) might be white dwarfs rather than neutron stars or black holes.

We present the first models of massive stars, where the interior structure is coupled to a spherically extended, metal line blanketed non–LTE atmosphere with a wind. This is accomplished with the Geneva stellar evolution code and the non–LTE atmosphere code of de Koter et al. (1993). The method described in Schaerer & Schmutz (1994) is used to treat line blanketing. A first account of this work is published in Schaerer et al. (1994).

We present a first step towards complete stellar models for massive stars that treat the entire star including its wind. Our models are based on state-of-the art non-LTE atmospheric and interior modelling. The models yield the stellar evolution under the constraint of realistic atmospheres as well as line-blanketed continuum fluxes and H and He line profiles. We follow the evolution from OB to LBV, Ofpe/WN, and WR stars. We investigate the effect of line-blanketing during MS evolution. We adress the effect of an the extended atmosphere on the evolution and discuss the first results for WR stars.