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On the Nature of the First Galaxies Selected at 350 MicrometersWe present constraints on the nature of the first galaxies selected at 350 micrometers. The sample includes galaxies discovered in the deepest blank-field survey at 350 micrometers (in the Bo6tes Deep Field) and also later serendipitous detections in the Lockman Hole. In determining multiwavelength identifications, the 350 lam position and map resolution of the second generation Submillimeter High Angular Resolution Camera are critical, especially in the cases where multiple radio sources exist and the 24 micrometer counterparts are unresolved. Spectral energy distribution templates are fitted to identified counterparts, and the sample is found to comprise IR-luminous galaxies at 1 < z < 3 predominantly powered by star formation. The first spectrum of a 350 micrometer selected galaxy provides an additional confirmation, showing prominent dust grain features typically associated with star-forming galaxies. Compared to submillimeter galaxies selected at 850 and 1100 micrometers, galaxies selected at 350 micrometers have a similar range of far-infrared color temperatures. However, no 350 micrometer selected sources are reliably detected at 850 or 1100 micrometers. Galaxies in our sample with redshifts 1 < z < 2 show a tight correlation between the far- and mid-infrared flux densities, but galaxies at higher redshifts show a large dispersion in their mid- to far-infrared colors. This implies a limit to which the mid-IR emission traces the far-IR emission in star-forming galaxies. The 350 micrometer flux densities (15 < S(sub 350) < 40 mJy) place these objects near the Herschel/SPIRE 350 micrometer confusion threshold, with the lower limit on the star formation rate density suggesting the bulk of the 350 micrometers contribution will come from less luminous infrared sources and normal galaxies. Therefore, the nature of the dominant source of the 350 micrometers background-star-forming galaxies in the epoch of peak star formation in the universe-could be more effectively probed using ground-based instruments with their angular resolution and sensitivity offering significant advantages over space-based imaging. Key words: galaxies: high-redshift galaxies: starburst infrared: galaxies submillimeter
Document ID
20100032041
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Khan, Sophia A.
(Pontificia Univ. Catolica de Chile Santiago, Chile)
Chanial, Pierre F.
(Imperial Coll. of London London, United Kingdom)
Willner, S. P.
(Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Cambridge, MA, United States)
Pearson, Chris P.
(Rutherford Appleton Lab. Chilton, United Kingdom)
Ashby, M. L. N.
(Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Cambridge, MA, United States)
Benford, Dominic J.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Clements, David L.
(Imperial Coll. of London London, United Kingdom)
Dye, Simon
(Cardiff Univ. United Kingdom)
Farrah, Duncan
(Sussex Univ. Brighton, United Kingdom)
Fazio, G. G.
(Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Cambridge, MA, United States)
Huang, J. S.
(Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Cambridge, MA, United States)
Lebouteiller, V.
(Cornell Univ. Ithaca, NY, United States)
Le Floc'H, Emeric
(Hawaii Univ. Honolulu, HI, United States)
Mainetti, Gabriele
(Padua Univ. Italy)
Harvey Moseley, S.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Negrello, Mattia
(Open Univ. Milton Keynes, United Kingdom)
Serjeant, Stephen
(Open Univ. Milton Keynes, United Kingdom)
Shafer, Richard A.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Staguhn, Johannes
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Sumner, Timothy J.
(Imperial Coll. of London London, United Kingdom)
Vaccari, Mattia
(Padua Univ. Italy)
Date Acquired
August 25, 2013
Publication Date
November 20, 2009
Publication Information
Publication: The Astrophysical Journal
Volume: 706
Issue: 1
Subject Category
Astronomy
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: AST-022900
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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