E. Caux

Detection of hydrogen fluoride absorption in diffuse molecular clouds with Herschel/HIFI: an ubiquitous tracer of molecular gas

We discuss the detection of absorption by interstellar hydrogen fluoride (HF) along the sight line to the submillimeter continuum sources W49N and W51. We have used Herschels HIFI instrument in dual beam switch mode to observe the 1232.4762 GHz J = 1-0 HF transition in the upper sideband of the band 5a receiver. We detected foreground absorption by HF toward both sources over a wide range of velocities. Optically thin absorption components were detected on both sight lines, allowing us to measure - as opposed to obtain a lower limit on - the column density of HF for the first time. As in previous observations of HF toward the source G10.6-0.4, the derived HF column density is typically comparable to that of water vapor, even though the elemental abundance of oxygen is greater than that of fluorine by four orders of magnitude. We used the rather uncertain N(CH) - N(H-2) relationship derived previously toward diffuse molecular clouds to infer the molecular hydrogen column density in the clouds exhibiting HF absorption. Within the uncertainties, we find that the abundance of HF with respect to H-2 is consistent with the theoretical prediction that HF is the main reservoir of gas-phase fluorine for these clouds. Thus, hydrogen fluoride has the potential to become an excellent tracer of molecular hydrogen, and provides a sensitive probe of clouds of small H-2 column density. Indeed, the observations of hydrogen fluoride reported here reveal the presence of a low column density diffuse molecular cloud along the W51 sight line, at an LSR velocity of similar to 24 km s(-1), that had not been identified in molecular absorption line studies prior to the launch of Herschel.

TIMASSS: The IRAS 16293-2422 Millimeter and Submillimeter Spectral Survey - I. Observations, calibration, and analysis of the line kinematics

While unbiased surveys observable from ground-based telescopes have previously been obtained towards several high mass protostars, very little exists on low mass protostars. To fill up this gap, we carried out a complete spectral survey of the bands at 3, 2, 1 and 0.8 mm towards the solar type protostar IRAS16293-2422. The observations covered about 200,GHz and were obtained with the IRAM-30m and JCMT-15m telescopes. Particular attention was devoted to the inter-calibration of the obtained spectra with previous observations. All the lines detected with more than 3 sigma and free from obvious blending effects were fitted with Gaussians to estimate their basic kinematic properties. More than 4000 lines were detected (with sigma geq 3) and identified, yielding a line density of approximatively 20 lines per GHz, comparable to previous surveys in massive hot cores. The vast majority (~2/3) of the lines are weak and due to complex organic molecules. The analysis of the profiles of more than 1000 lines belonging 70 species firmly establishes the presence of two distinct velocity components, associated with the two objects, A and B, forming the IRAS16293-2422 binary system. In the source A, the line widths of several species increase with the upper level energy of the transition, a behavior compatible with gas infalling towards a ~1 Mo object. The source B, which does not show this effect, might have a much lower central mass of ~0.1 Mo. The difference in the rest velocities of both objects is consistent with the hypothesis that the source B rotates around the source A. This spectral survey, although obtained with single-dish telescope with a low spatial resolution, allows to separate the emission from 2 different components, thanks to the large number of lines detected. The data of the survey are public and can be retrieved on the web site http://www-laog.obs.ujf-grenoble.fr/heberges/timasss.

Interstellar CH absorption in the diffuse interstellar medium along the sight-lines to G10.6-0.4 (W31C), W49N, and W51

We report the detection of the ground state N, J = 1, 3/2 → 1, 1/2 doublet of the methylidyne radical CH at ∼532 GHz and ∼536 GHz with the Herschel/HIFI instrument along the sight-line to the massive star-forming regions G10.6–0.4 (W31C), W49N, and W51. While the molecular cores associated with these massive star-forming regions show emission lines, clouds in the diffuse interstellar medium are detected in absorption against the strong submillimeter background. The combination of hyperfine structure with emission and absorption results in complex profiles, with overlap of the different hyperfine components. The opacities of most of the CH absorption features are linearly correlated with those of CCH, CN, and HCO + in the same velocity intervals. In specific narrow velocity intervals, the opacities of CN and HCO + deviate from the mean trends, giving rise to more opaque absorption features. We propose that CCH can be used as another tracer of the molecular gas in the absence of better tracers, with [CCH]/[H2] ∼3.2 ± 1.1 × 10 −8 . The observed [CN]/[CH], [CCH]/[CH] abundance ratios suggest that the bulk of the diffuse matter along the lines of sight has gas densities nH = n(H) + 2n(H2) ranging between 100 and 1000 cm −3 .

Strong absorption by interstellar hydrogen fluoride: Herschel/HIFI observations of the sight-line to G10.6-0.4 (W31C)

We report the detection of strong absorption by interstellar hydrogen fluoride along the sight-line to the submillimeter continuum source G10.6-0.4 (W31C). We have used Herschels HIFI instrument, in dual beam switch mode, to observe the 1232.4763 GHz J=1-0 HF transition in the upper sideband of the Band 5a receiver. The resultant spectrum shows weak HF emission from G10.6-0.4 at LSR velocities in the range -10 to -3 km/s, accompanied by strong absorption by foreground material at LSR velocities in the range 15 to 50 km/s. The spectrum is similar to that of the 1113.3430 GHz 1(11)-0(00) transition of para-water, although at some frequencies the HF (hydrogen fluoride) optical depth clearly exceeds that of para-H2O. The optically-thick HF absorption that we have observed places a conservative lower limit of 1.6E+14 cm-2 on the HF column density along the sight-line to G10.6-0.4. Our lower limit on the HF abundance, 6E-9 relative to hydrogen nuclei, implies that hydrogen fluoride accounts for between ~ 30 and 100% of the fluorine nuclei in the gas phase along this sight-line. This observation corroborates theoretical predictions that - because the unique thermochemistry of fluorine permits the exothermic reaction of F atoms with molecular hydrogen - HF will be the dominant reservoir of interstellar fluorine under a wide range of conditions.

Gas morphology and energetics at the surface of PDRs: New insights with Herschel observations of NGC 7023

Context. We investigate the physics and chemistry of the gas and dust in dense photon-dominated regions (PDRs), along with their dependence on the illuminating UV field. n nAims. Using Herschel/HIFI observations, we study the gas energetics in NGC 7023 in relation to the morphology of this nebula. NGC 7023 is the prototype of a PDR illuminated by a B2V star and is one of the key targets of Herschel. n nMethods. Our approach consists in determining the energetics of the region by combining the information carried by the mid-IR spectrum (extinction by classical grains, emission from very small dust particles) with that of the main gas coolant lines. In this letter, we discuss more specifically the intensity and line profile of the 158u2009μm (1901u2009GHz) [Cu2009ii] line measured by HIFI and provide information on the emitting gas. n nResults. We show that both the [Cu2009ii] emission and the mid-IR emission from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) arise from the regions located in the transition zone between atomic and molecular gas. Using the Meudon PDR code and a simple transfer model, we find good agreement between the calculated and observed [Cu2009ii] intensities. n nConclusions. HIFI observations of NGC 7023 provide the opportunity to constrain the energetics at the surface of PDRs. Future work will include analysis of the main coolant line [Ou2009i] and use of a new PDR model that includes PAH-related species.

The distribution of water in the high-mass star-forming region NGC 6334 I

Aims: We present observations of twelve rotational transitions of H_216O, H_218O, and H_217O toward the massive star-forming region NGC 6334 I, carried out with Herschel/HIFI as part of the guaranteed time key program Chemical HErschel Surveys of Star forming regions (CHESS). We analyze these observations to obtain insights into physical processes in this region. Methods: We identify three main gas components (hot core, cold foreground, and outflow) in NGC 6334 I and derive the physical conditions in these components. Results: The hot core, identified by the emission in highly excited lines, shows a high excitation temperature of ~200 K, whereas water in the foreground component is predominantly in the ortho- and para- ground states. The abundance of water varies between 4 × 10-5 (outflow) and 10-8 (cold foreground gas). This variation is most likely due to the freeze-out of water molecules onto dust grains. The H_218O/H_217O abundance ratio is 3.2, which is consistent with the 18O/17O ratio determined from CO isotopologues. The ortho/para ratio in water appears to be relatively low (1.6±1) in the cold, quiescent gas, but close to the equilibrium value of three in the warmer outflow material (2.5±0.8). Herschel is an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA.Figures 1, 2 and 3 and Tables 2-4 (pages 5 to 6) are only available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

The Cl-35/Cl-37 isotopic ratio in dense molecular clouds : HIFI observations of hydrogen chloride towards W3 A

We report on the detection with the HIFI instrument on board the Herschel satellite of the two hydrogen chloride isotopologues, H 35 Cl and H 37 Cl, towards the massive star-forming region W3 A. The J = 1–0 line of both species was observed with receiver 1b of the HIFI instrument at ∼625.9 and ∼624.9 GHz. The different hyperfine components were resolved. The observations were modeled with a non-local, non-LTE radiative transfer model that includes hyperfine line overlap and radiative pumping by dust. Both effects are found to play an important role in the emerging intensity from the different hyperfine components. The inferred H 35 Cl column density (a few times ∼10 14 cm −2 ), and fractional abundance relative to H nuclei (∼7.5 × 10 −10 ), supports an upper limit to the gas phase chlorine depletion of ≈200. Our best-fit model estimate of the H 35 Cl/H 37 Cl abundance ratio is ≈2.1 ± 0.5, slightly lower, but still compatible with the solar isotopic abundance ratio (≈3.1). Since both species were observed simultaneously, this is the first accurate estimation of the [ 35 Cl]/[ 37 Cl] isotopic ratio in molecular clouds. Our models indicate that even for large line opacities and possible hyperfine intensity anomalies, the H 35 Cl and H 37 Cl J = 1–0 integrated line-intensity ratio provides a good estimate of the 35 Cl/ 37 Cl isotopic abundance ratio.

The CHESS spectral survey of star forming regions: Peering into the protostellar shock L1157-B1. I. Shock chemical complexity

We present the first results of the unbiased survey of the L1157-B1 bow shock, obtained with HIFI in the framework of the key program Chemical Herschel surveys of star forming regions (CHESS). The L1157 outflow is driven by a low-mass Class 0 protostar and is considered the prototype of the so-called chemically active outflows. The bright blue-shifted bow shock B1 is the ideal laboratory for studying the link between the hot (around 1000-2000 K) component traced by H2 IR-emission and the cold (around 10-20 K) swept-up material. The main aim is to trace the warm gas chemically enriched by the passage of a shock and to infer the excitation conditions in L1157-B1. A total of 27 lines are identified in the 555-636 GHz region, down to an average 3 sigma level of 30 mK. The emission is dominated by CO(5-4) and H2O(110-101) transitions, as discussed by Lefloch et al. (2010). Here we report on the identification of lines from NH3, H2CO, CH3OH, CS, HCN, and HCO+. The comparison between the profiles produced by molecules released from dust mantles (NH3, H2CO, CH3OH) and that of H2O is consistent with a scenario in which water is also formed in the gas-phase in high-temperature regions where sputtering or grain-grain collisions are not efficient. The high excitation range of the observed tracers allows us to infer, for the first time for these species, the existence of a warm (> 200 K) gas component coexisting in the B1 bow structure with the cold and hot gas detected from ground.We present the first results of the unbiased survey of the L1157-B1 bow shock, obtained with HIFI in the framework of the key program Chemical HErschel Survey of Star forming regions (CHESS). The L1157 outflow is driven by a low-mass Class 0 protostar and is considered the prototype of the so-called chemically active outflows. The bright blue-shifted bow shock B1 is the ideal laboratory for studying the link between the hot (∼1000‐ 2000 K) component traced by H2 IR-emission and the cold (∼10‐20 K) swept-up material. The main aim is to trace the warm gas chemically enriched by the passage of a shock and to infer the excitation conditions in L1157-B1. A total of 27 lines are identified in the 555‐636 GHz region, down to an average 3σ level of 30 mK. The emission is dominated by CO(5‐4) and H2O(110‐101) transitions, as discussed by Lefloch et al. in this volume. Here we report on the identification of lines from NH3 ,H 2CO, CH3OH, CS, HCN, and HCO + . The comparison between the profiles produced by molecules released from dust mantles (NH3 ,H 2CO, CH3OH) and that of H2O is consistent with a scenario in which water is also formed in the gas-phase in high-temperature regions where sputtering or grain-grain collisions are not efficient. The high excitation range of the observed tracers allows us to infer, for the first time for these species, the existence of a warm (≥200 K) gas component coexisting in the B1 bow structure with the cold and hot gas detected from ground.

The CHESS spectral survey of star forming regions : Peering into the protostellar shock L1157-B1. II. Shock dynamics

The outflow driven by the low-mass class 0 protostar L1157 is the prototype of the so-called chemically active outflows. The bright bowshock B1 in the southern outflow lobe is a privileged testbed of magneto-hydrodynamical (MHD) shock models, for which dynamical and chemical processes are strongly interdependent. We present the first results of the unbiased spectral survey of the L1157-B1 bowshock, obtained in the framework of the key program Chemical Herschel Surveys of Star Forming Regions (CHESS). The main aim is to trace the warm and chemically enriched gas and to infer the excitation conditions in the shock region. The CO 5-4 and H2O lines have been detected at high-spectral resolution in the unbiased spectral survey of the HIFI-Band 1b spectral window (555-636 GHz), presented by Codella et al. in this volume. Complementary ground-based observations in the submm window help establish the origin of the emission detected in the main-beam of HIFI, and the physical conditions in the shock.}{Both lines exhibit broad wings, which extend to velocities much higher than reported up to now. We find that the molecular emission arises from two regions with distinct physical conditions: an extended, warm (100K), dense (3e5 cm-3) component at low-velocity, which dominates the water line flux in Band~1; a secondary component in a small region of B1 (a few arcsec) associated with high-velocity, hot (> 400 K) gas of moderate density ((1.0-3.0)e4 cm-3), which appears to dominate the flux of the water line at 179mu observed with PACS. The water abundance is enhanced by two orders of magnitude between the low- and the high-velocity component, from 8e-7 up to 8e-5. The properties of the high-velocity component agree well with the predictions of steady-state C-shock models.Context. The outflow driven by the low-mass class 0 protostar L1157 is the prototype of the so-called chemically active outflows. The bright bowshock B1 in the southern outflow lobe is a privileged testbed of magneto-hydrodynamical (MHD) shock models, for which dynamical and chemical processes are strongly interdependent. Aims: We present the first results of the unbiased spectral survey of the L1157-B1 bowshock, obtained in the framework of the key program “Chemical HErschel Surveys of star forming regions” (CHESS). The main aim is to trace the warm and chemically enriched gas and to infer the excitation conditions in the shock region. Methods: The CO 5-4 and o-H2O 110-101 lines have been detected at high-spectral resolution in the unbiased spectral survey of the HIFI-band 1b spectral window (555-636 GHz), presented by Codella et al. in this volume. Complementary ground-based observations in the submm window help establish the origin of the emission detected in the main-beam of HIFI and the physical conditions in the shock. Results: Both lines exhibit broad wings, which extend to velocities much higher than reported up to now. We find that the molecular emission arises from two regions with distinct physical conditions : an extended, warm (100 K), dense (3 × 105 cm-3) component at low-velocity, which dominates the water line flux in Band 1; a secondary component in a small region of B1 (a few arcsec) associated with high-velocity, hot (>400 K) gas of moderate density ((1.0-3.0) × 104 cm-3), which appears to dominate the flux of the water line at 179μm observed with PACS. The water abundance is enhanced by two orders of magnitude between the low- and the high-velocity component, from 8 × 10-7 up to 8 × 10-5. The properties of the high-velocity component agree well with the predictions of steady-state C-shock models. Herschel is an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led Principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA.

Multi-line detection of O2 toward ρ Ophiuchi A

Models of pure gas-phase chemistry in well-shielded regions of molecular clouds predict relatively high levels of molecular oxygen, O2, and water, H2O. Contrary to expectation, the space missions SWAS and Odin found only very small amounts of water vapour and essentially no O2 in the dense star-forming interstellar medium. Only toward rho Oph A did Odin detect a weak line of O2 at 119 GHz in a beam size of 10 arcmin. A larger telescope aperture such as that of the Herschel Space Observatory is required to resolve the O2 emission and to pinpoint its origin. We use the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared aboard Herschel to obtain high resolution O2 spectra toward selected positions in rho Oph A. These data are analysed using standard techniques for O2 excitation and compared to recent PDR-like chemical cloud models. The 487.2GHz line was clearly detected toward all three observed positions in rho Oph A. In addition, an oversampled map of the 773.8GHz transition revealed the detection of the line in only half of the observed area. Based on their ratios, the temperature of the O2 emitting gas appears to vary quite substantially, with warm gas (> 50 K) adjacent to a much colder region, where temperatures are below 30 K. The exploited models predict O2 column densities to be sensitive to the prevailing dust temperatures, but rather insensitive to the temperatures of the gas. In agreement with these model, the observationally determined O2 column densities seem not to depend strongly on the derived gas temperatures, but fall into the range N(O2) = (3 to >6)e15/cm^2. Beam averaged O2 abundances are about 5e-8 relative to H2. Combining the HIFI data with earlier Odin observations yields a source size at 119 GHz of about 4 - 5 arcmin, encompassing the entire rho Oph A core.