We report the detection of CO(J = 5 -> 4), CO(J = 3 -> 2), and CO(J = 1 -> 0) emission in the strongly lensed, Herschel/SPIRE-selected submillimeter galaxy (SMG) HERMES J105751.1+573027 at z = 2.9574 ...? 0.0001, using the Plateau de Bure Interferometer, the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy, and the Green Bank Telescope. The observations spatially resolve the molecular gas into four lensed images with a maximum separation of ~9'' and reveal the internal gas dynamics in this system. We derive lensing-corrected CO line luminosities of L'CO(1-0) = (4.17 ? 0.41), L'CO(3-2) = (3.96 ? 0.20), and L'CO(5-4) = (3.45 ? 0.20) X 1010 ( Delta *mL/10.9)--1 K km s--1 pc2, corresponding to luminosity ratios of r 31 = 0.95 ? 0.10, r 53 = 0.87 ? 0.06, and r 51 = 0.83 ? 0.09. This suggests a total molecular gas mass of M gas = 3.3X1010 ( Delta *aCO/0.8) ( Delta *mL/10.9)--1 M . The gas mass, gas mass fraction, gas depletion timescale, star formation efficiency, and specific star formation rate are typical for an SMG. The velocity structure of the gas reservoir suggests that the brightest two lensed images are dynamically resolved projections of the same dust-obscured region in the galaxy that are kinematically offset from the unresolved fainter images. The resolved kinematics appear consistent with the complex velocity structure observed in major, 'wet' (i.e., gas-rich) mergers. Major mergers are commonly observed in SMGs and are likely to be responsible for fueling their intense starbursts at high gas consumption rates. This study demonstrates the level of detail to which galaxies in the early universe can be studied by utilizing the increase in effective spatial resolution and sensitivity provided by gravitational lensing.
Photography and video footage, captured by researchers and tourists on board two vessels, provided insights into the predation techniques employed by an adult male killer whale Orcinus orca in Mossel ...Bay, South Africa. The incapacitation of its prey, a juvenile white shark Carcharodon carcharias (∼2.5 m TL), followed by consumption of the liver, occurred within less than 2 minutes, highlighting the predator proficiency of the killer whale. Notably, another adult male killer whale, and constant traveling companion with the first, was observed approximately 100 m away and was not involved during the predation. The following day a second carcass of a different eviscerated white shark (3.55 m TL) washed ashore in the vicinity, indicating that at least two white sharks may have been killed during the interaction.
Heart failure is a serious condition and equivalent to malignant disease in terms of symptom burden and mortality. At this moment only a comparatively small number of heart failure patients receive ...specialist palliative care. Heart failure patients may have generic palliative care needs, such as refractory multifaceted symptoms, communication and decision making issues and the requirement for family support. The Advanced Heart Failure Study Group of the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology organized a workshop to address the issue of palliative care in heart failure to increase awareness of the need for palliative care. Additional objectives included improving the accessibility and quality of palliative care for heart failure patients and promoting the development of heart failure-orientated palliative care services across Europe. This document represents a synthesis of the presentations and discussion during the workshop and describes recommendations in the area of delivery of quality care to patients and families, education, treatment coordination, research and policy.
The Herschel survey, H-ATLAS, with its large areal coverage, has recently discovered a number of bright, strongly lensed high-z submillimeter galaxies. The strong magnification makes it possible to ...study molecular species other than CO, which are otherwise difficult to observe in high-z galaxies. Among the lensed galaxies already identified by H-ATLAS, the source J090302.9-014127B (SDP.17b) at z = 2.305 is remarkable because of its excitation conditions and a tentative detection of the H2O 202-111 emission line (Lupu et al. 2010, ApJ, submitted). We report observations of this line in SDP.17b using the IRAM interferometer equipped with its new 277–371 GHz receivers. The H2O line is detected at a redshift of z = 2.3049 ± 0.0006, with a flux of 7.8 ± 0.5 Jy km s-1 and a FWHM of 250 ± 60 km s-1. The new flux is 2.4 times weaker than the previous tentative detection, although both remain marginally consistent within 1.6σ. The intrinsic line luminosity and ratio of H2O(202 − 111)/CO(8 − 7) are comparable with those of the nearby starburst/enshrouded-AGN Mrk 231, and the ratio I(H2O)/LFIR is even higher, suggesting that SDP.17b could also host a luminous AGN. The detection of a strong H2O 202 − 111 line in SDP.17b implies an efficient excitation mechanism of the water levels that must occur in very dense and warm interstellar gas probably similar to Mrk 231.
Using the IRAM Plateau de Bure interferometer (PdBI), we report the detection of water vapor in six new lensed ultra-luminous starburst galaxies at high redshift, discovered in the Herschel ...Astrophysical Terahertz Large Area Survey (H-ATLAS). The sources are detected either in the 202−111 or 211−202 H2O emission lines with integrated line fluxes ranging from 1.8 to 14 Jy km s-1. The corresponding apparent luminosities are μLH2O ~ 3−12 × 108 L⊙, where μ is the lensing magnification factor (3 < μ < 12). These results confirm that H2O lines are among the strongest molecular lines in high-z ultra-luminous starburst galaxies, with intensities almost comparable to those of the high-J CO lines, and similar profiles and line widths (~200−900 km s-1). With the current sensitivity of the PdBI, the water lines can therefore easily be detected in high-z lensed galaxies (with F(500 μm) > 100 mJy) discovered in the Herschel surveys. Correcting the luminosities for amplification, using existing lensing models, LH2O is found to have a strong dependence on the infrared luminosity, varying as ~LIR1.2. This relation, which needs to be confirmed with better statistics, may indicate a role of radiative (infrared) excitation of the H2O lines, and implies that high-z galaxies with LIR ≳ 1013 L⊙ tend to be very strong emitters in water vapor, that have no equivalent in the local universe.
We report on the redshift measurement and CO line excitation of HERMES J105751.1+573027 (HLSW-01), a strongly lensed submillimeter galaxy discovered in Herschel/SPIRE observations as part of the ...Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES). HLSW-01 is an ultra-luminous galaxy with an intrinsic far-infrared luminosity of L FIR = 1.4 X 1013 L , and is lensed by a massive group of galaxies into at least four images with a total magnification of Delta *m = 10.9 ? 0.7. With the 100 GHz instantaneous bandwidth of the Z-Spec instrument on the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory, we robustly identify a redshift of z = 2.958 ? 0.007 for this source, using the simultaneous detection of four CO emission lines (J = 7 -> 6, J = 8 -> 7, J = 9 -> 8, and J = 10 -> 9). Combining the measured line fluxes for these high-J transitions with the J = 1 -> 0, J = 3 -> 2, and J = 5 -> 4 line fluxes measured with the Green Bank Telescope, the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter Astronomy, and the Plateau de Bure Interferometer, respectively, we model the physical properties of the molecular gas in this galaxy. We find that the full CO spectral line energy distribution is described well by warm, moderate-density gas with T kin = 86-235 K and cm--3. However, it is possible that the highest-J transitions are tracing a small fraction of very dense gas in molecular cloud cores, and two-component models that include a warm/dense molecular gas phase with T kin ~ 200 K, cm--3 are also consistent with these data. Higher signal-to-noise measurements of the J up >= 7 transitions with high spectral resolution, combined with high spatial resolution CO maps, are needed to improve our understanding of the gas excitation, morphology, and dynamics of this interesting high-redshift galaxy.
The GALEX Ultraviolet Virgo Cluster Survey (GUViCS) is a complete blind survey of the Virgo cluster covering similar to 40 sq. deg in the far UV (FUV, lambda(eff) = 1539 angstrom, Delta lambda = 442 ...angstrom) and similar to 120 sq. deg in the near UV (NUV, lambda(eff) = 2316 angstrom, Delta lambda = 1060 angstrom). The goal of the survey is to study the ultraviolet (UV) properties of galaxies in a rich cluster environment, spanning a wide luminosity range from giants to dwarfs, and regardless of prior knowledge of their star formation activity. The UV data will be combined with those in other bands (optical: NGVS; far-infrared - submm: HeViCS; HI: ALFALFA) and with our multizone chemo-spectrophotometric models of galaxy evolution to make a complete and exhaustive study of the effects of the environment on the evolution of galaxies in high density regions. We present here the scientific objectives of the survey, describing the observing strategy and briefly discussing different data reduction techniques. Using UV data already in-hand for the central 12 sq. deg we determine the FUV and NUV luminosity functions of the Virgo cluster core for all cluster members and separately for early-and late-type galaxies and compare it to the one obtained in the field and other nearby clusters (Coma, A1367). This analysis shows that the FUV and NUV luminosity functions of the core of the Virgo clusters are flatter (alpha similar to -1.1) than those determined in Coma and A1367. We discuss the possible origin of this difference.
During the land-to-water transition in the Eocene epoch, the cetacean skeleton underwent modifications to accommodate life in the seas. These changes are well-documented in the fossil record. The ...forelimb transformed from a weight-bearing limb with mobile joints to a flipper with an immobile carpus. We used micro-CT imaging to assess evolutionary changes in carpal size, orientation, and articulation within Eocene cetacean taxa associated with the transition from a terrestrial to amphibious niche. We compared Ambulocetus natans, a well-preserved amphibious archaeocete, with other archaeocetes, and with Eocene terrestrial artiodactyls, the sister group to Cetacea. A cylindrical carpus in terrestrial taxa evolved into a mediolaterally flattened, cambered carpus in the semi-aquatic and fully aquatic cetaceans. Specifically, the pisiform bone shifted from a ventral orientation in terrestrial taxa to a lateral orientation, in plane with the carpus, within semi-aquatic and fully aquatic taxa. Flattening of the carpus, including lateral rotation of the pisiform, likely relates to functional shifts from weight-bearing terrestrial locomotion to aquatic locomotion. This laterally projecting pisiform morphology is retained in all extant cetaceans. Our results suggest this shift, along with other modifications to the carpus, predominantly occurred during the middle Eocene and facilitated an obligatorily aquatic lifestyle in late Eocene cetaceans.