The methanol lines and hot core of OMC2-FIR4, an intermediate-mass protostar, with Herschel/HIFI

In contrast with numerous studies on the physical and chemical structure of low- and high-mass protostars, much less is known about their intermediate-mass counterparts, a class of objects that could help to elucidate the mechanisms of star formation on both ends of the mass range. We present the first results from a rich HIFI spectral dataset on an intermediate-mass protostar, OMC2-FIR4, obtained in the CHESS (Chemical HErschel Survey of Star forming regions) key programme. The more than 100 methanol lines detected between 554 and 961 GHz cover a range in upper level energy of 40 to 540 K. Our physical interpretation focusses on the hot core, but likely the cold envelope and shocked regions also play a role in reality, because an analysis of the line profiles suggests the presence of multiple emission components. An upper limit of 10^(-6) is placed on the methanol abundance in the hot core, using a population diagram, large-scale source model and other considerations. This value is consistent with abundances previously seen in low-mass hot cores. Furthermore, the highest energy lines at the highest frequencies display asymmetric profiles, which may arise from infall around the hot core

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

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-H2_O 1_(10)–1_(01) 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 × 10^5 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) × 10^4 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

Principal Component Analysis of Cavity Beam Position Monitor Signals

Model-independent analysis (MIA) methods are generally useful for analysing complex systems in which relationships between the observables are non-trivial and noise is present. Principle Component Analysis (PCA) is one of MIA methods allowing to isolate components in the input data graded to their contribution to the variability of the data. In this publication we show how the PCA can be applied to digitised signals obtained from a cavity beam position monitor (CBPM) system on the example of a 3-cavity test system installed at the Accelerator Test Facility 2 (ATF2) at KEK in Japan. We demonstrate that the PCA based method can be used to extract beam position information, and matches conventional techniques in terms of performance, while requiring considerably less settings and data for calibration

Effects of CO2 on H2O band profiles and band strengths in mixed H2O:CO2 ices

H2O is the most abundant component of astrophysical ices. In most lines of sight it is not possible to fit both the H2O 3 um stretching, the 6 um bending and the 13 um libration band intensities with a single pure H2O spectrum. Recent Spitzer observations have revealed CO2 ice in high abundances and it has been suggested that CO2 mixed into H2O ice can affect relative strengths of the 3 um and 6 um bands. We used laboratory infrared transmission spectroscopy of H2O:CO2 ice mixtures to investigate the effects of CO2 on H2O ice spectral features at 15-135 K. We find that the H2O peak profiles and band strengths are significantly different in H2O:CO2 ice mixtures compared to pure H2O ice. In all H2O:CO2 mixtures, a strong free-OH stretching band appears around 2.73 um, which can be used to put an upper limit on the CO2 concentration in the H2O ice. The H2O bending mode profile also changes drastically with CO2 concentration; the broad pure H2O band gives way to two narrow bands as the CO2 concentration is increased. This makes it crucial to constrain the environment of H2O ice to enable correct assignments of other species contributing to the interstellar 6 um absorption band. The amount of CO2 present in the H2O ice of B5:IRS1 is estimated by simultaneously comparing the H2O stretching and bending regions and the CO2 bending mode to laboratory spectra of H2O, CO2, H2O:CO2 and HCOOH.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figures, accepted by A&

Herschel/HIFI discovery of interstellar chloronium (H_2Cl^+)

We report the first detection of chloronium, H_2Cl^+, in the interstellar medium, using the HIFI instrument aboard the Herschel Space Observatory. The 2_(12)−1_(01) lines of ortho-H^(35)_2 Cl^+ and ortho-H^(37)_2 Cl^+ are detected in absorption towards NGC 6334I, and the 1_(11)−0_(00) transition of para-H^(35)_2 Cl^+ is detected in absorption towards NGC 6334I and Sgr B2(S). The H_2Cl^+ column densities are compared to those of the chemically-related species HCl. The derived HCl/H_2Cl^+ column density ratios, ~1–10, are within the range predicted by models of diffuse and dense photon dominated regions (PDRs). However, the observed H_2Cl^+ column densities, in excess of 10^(13) cm^(−2), are significantly higher than the model predictions. Our observations demonstrate the outstanding spectroscopic capabilities of HIFI for detecting new interstellar molecules and providing key constraints for astrochemical models

Infrared spectroscopy of solid CO-CO2 mixtures and layers

The spectra of pure, mixed and layered CO and CO2 ices have been studied systematically under laboratory conditions using infrared spectroscopy. This work provides improved resolution spectra (0.5 cm-1) of the CO2 bending and asymmetric stretching mode, as well as the CO stretching mode, extending the existing Leiden database of laboratory spectra to match the spectral resolution reached by modern telescopes and to support the interpretation of the most recent data from Spitzer. It is shown that mixed and layered CO and CO2 ices exhibit very different spectral characteristics, which depend critically on thermal annealing and can be used to distinguish between mixed, layered and thermally annealed CO-CO2 ices. CO only affects the CO2 bending mode spectra in mixed ices below 50K under the current experimental conditions, where it exhibits a single asymmetric band profile in intimate mixtures. In all other ice morphologies the CO2 bending mode shows a double peaked profile, similar to that observed for pure solid CO2. Conversely, CO2 induces a blue-shift in the peak-position of the CO stretching vibration, to a maximum of 2142 cm-1 in mixed ices, and 2140-2146 cm-1 in layered ices. As such, the CO2 bending mode puts clear constraints on the ice morphology below 50K, whereas beyond this temperature the CO2 stretching vibration can distinguish between initially mixed and layered ices. This is illustrated for the low-mass YSO HH46, where the laboratory spectra are used to analyse the observed CO and CO2 band profiles and try to constrain the formation scenarios of CO2.Comment: Accepted in A&

Laboratory Determination of the Infrared Band Strengths of Pyrene Frozen in Water Ice: Implications for the Composition of Interstellar Ices

Broad infrared emission features (e.g., at 3.3, 6.2, 7.7, 8.6, and 11.3 microns) from the gas phase interstellar medium have long been attributed to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). A significant portion (10%-20%) of the Milky Way's carbon reservoir is locked in PAH molecules, which makes their characterization integral to our understanding of astrochemistry. In molecular clouds and the dense envelopes and disks of young stellar objects (YSOs), PAHs are expected to be frozen in the icy mantles of dust grains where they should reveal themselves through infrared absorption. To facilitate the search for frozen interstellar PAHs, laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the positions and strengths of the bands of pyrene mixed with H2O and D2O ices. The D2O mixtures are used to measure pyrene bands that are masked by the strong bands of H2O, leading to the first laboratory determination of the band strength for the CH stretching mode of pyrene in water ice near 3.25 microns. Our infrared band strengths were normalized to experimentally determined ultraviolet band strengths, and we find that they are generally ~50% larger than those reported by Bouwman et al. based on theoretical strengths. These improved band strengths were used to reexamine YSO spectra published by Boogert et al. to estimate the contribution of frozen PAHs to absorption in the 5-8 micron spectral region, taking into account the strength of the 3.25 micron CH stretching mode. It is found that frozen neutral PAHs contain 5%-9% of the cosmic carbon budget, and account for 2%-9% of the unidentified absorption in the 5-8 micron region.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ on 14 Feb 201

Detection of interstellar oxidaniumyl: Abundant H_2O^+ towards the star-forming regions DR21, Sgr B2, and NGC6334

Aims. We identify a prominent absorption feature at 1115 GHz, detected in first HIFI spectra towards high-mass star-forming regions, and interpret its astrophysical origin. Methods. The characteristic hyperfine pattern of the H_2O^+ ground-state rotational transition, and the lack of other known low-energy transitions in this frequency range, identifies the feature as H_2O^+ absorption against the dust continuum background and allows us to derive the velocity profile of the absorbing gas. By comparing this velocity profile with velocity profiles of other tracers in the DR21 star-forming region, we constrain the frequency of the transition and the conditions for its formation. Results. In DR21, the velocity distribution of H_2O^+ matches that of the [C_(II)] line at 158 μm and of OH cm-wave absorption, both stemming from the hot and dense clump surfaces facing the H_(II)-region and dynamically affected by the blister outflow. Diffuse foreground gas dominates the absorption towards Sgr B2. The integrated intensity of the absorption line allows us to derive lower limits to the H_2O^+ column density of 7.2 × 10^(12) cm^(−2) in NGC 6334, 2.3 × 10^(13) cm^(−2) in DR21, and 1.1 × 10^(15) cm^(−2) in Sgr B2