Characterizing the Molecular Gas Contents of High Redshift Galaxies

天体物理学家才刚刚开始揭开早期宇宙的细节和星星形成的历史。 由于分子气体是星星形成的燃料，因此了解大多数恒星形成时的特征至关重要，当时宇宙的年龄约为当前年龄的15%。 该项目的目的是测试星系形成的理论图像，该理论图像做出了非常遥远的星星形成星系具有大量气体储存的可靠预测。 首席研究员（PI）将对非常遥远（高红移）星系中的分子气体进行彻底的表征。 该项目涉及一个多年期观测方案，在新启用的无线电和毫米波干涉仪上进行，这些观测将用于测量已知最遥远的星系团之一的七个形成星星的星系中一氧化碳（CO）的基态发射。 有了这些数据，PI将得出气体质量，气体消耗时间尺度，星星形成效率，动力学质量和气体分数，并将增加总的可用样品与这种强大的测量的三倍。 PI将对大约30个星系进行类似的分析，目标是一组新发现的高红移超密度星系。 这一样本量将使独特的研究气体的内容和物理条件的气体作为一个函数的红移和恒星质量。 这项分析将是高红移星系的分子气体含量如何取决于它们的环境的第一次检验。在教育方面，PI将在劳伦斯高中设计和实施一个推广计划。 该计划的目标是教授研究技术，科学的本质和电磁频谱。 这个项目的学生将使用斯皮策太空望远镜的数据来测量星系团中星星的形成率。 该计划将涉及20名学生，为期两年。 最好的两名学生将在美国天文学会的会议上介绍他们的发现。 该项目将由学校的一名物理老师、一名研究生和PI共同管理。 通过为高中教师提供继续教育的机会，并为教师提供研究工具和数据，这一方案将成为自我维持。 将对这些活动的效果进行严格的量化评估。 PI还将与本科生一起进行研究，他们将在美国天文学会会议上展示他们的发现。 PI还将在PI所在机构附近的研究所组织河外天文学家及其学生的年度会议，以便为学生提供交流思想和介绍研究成果的机会。

Astrophysicists are just beginning to unravel the details of the early Universe and the history of star formation. Because molecular gas is the fuel for star formation, it is crucial to understand its characteristics when most stars formed, a time when the Universe was about 15% of its current age. The aim of this project is to test the theoretical picture of galaxy formation that makes the robust prediction that very distant star forming galaxies have large gas reservoirs. The principal investigator (PI) will perform a thorough characterization of molecular gas in very distant (high redshift) galaxies. This project involves a multi-year observing program conducted at newly commissioned radio and millimeter interferometers.These observations will be used to measure the ground state emission from carbon monoxide (CO) in seven star forming galaxies in one of the most distant known galaxy clusters. With these data the PI will derive the gas mass, gas consumption timescales, star formation efficiencies, dynamical masses, and gas fractions, and will increase the total available sample with such robust measurements by a factor of three. The PI will perform a similar analysis of about 30 galaxies by targeting a set of newly discovered high redshift over-densities. This sample size will enable a unique study of the gas contents and the physical conditions of the gas as a function of redshift and stellar mass. This analysis will be the first examination of how the molecular gas contents of high redshift galaxies depend on their environment.Educationally, the PI will design and implement an outreach program at Lawrence High School. The goals of this program are to teach research techniques, the nature of science, and the electromagnetic spectrum. Students in this program will use data from the Spitzer Space Telescope to measure the star formation rates of cluster galaxies. The program will involve 20 students and span over two years. The best two students will present their findings at an American Astronomical Society meeting. The program will be jointly run by a physics teacher at the school, a graduate student, and the PI. By providing opportunities for continuing education to the high school teacher and by providing the teacher with research tools and data, this program will become self-sustaining. The effectiveness of the activities will be rigorously and quantitatively assessed. The PI will additionally perform research with undergraduates, who will present their findings at an American Astronomical Society meeting. The PI will also organize an annual meeting of extragalactic astronomers and their students at institutes close to the PI's institution in order to provide opportunities for the students to exchange ideas and present their research.