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During the dawn of chemistry when the temperature of the young Universe had fallen below ∼4000 K, the ions of the light elements produced in Big Bang nucleosynthesis recombined in reverse order of their ionization potential. With its higher ionization potentials, He++ (54.5 eV) and He+ (24.6 eV) combined first with free electrons to form the first neutral atom, prior to the recombination of hydrogen (13.6 eV). At that time, in this metal-free and low-density environment, neutral helium atoms formed the Universe's first molecular bond in the helium hydride ion HeH+, by radiative association with protons (He + H+ → HeH+ + hν). As recombination progressed, the destruction of HeH+ (HeH+ + H → He + H+2) created a first path to the formation of molecular hydrogen, marking the beginning of the Molecular Age. Despite its unquestioned importance for the evolution of the early Universe, the HeH+ molecule has so far escaped unequivocal detection in interstellar space. In the laboratory, the ion was discovered as long ago as 1925, but only in the late seventies was the possibility that HeH+ might exist in local astrophysical plasmas discussed. In particular, the conditions in planetary nebulae were shown to be suitable for the production of potentially detectable HeH+ column densities: the hard radiation field from the central hot white dwarf creates overlapping Strömgren spheres, where HeH+ is predicted to form, primarily by radiative association of He+ and H. With the GREAT spectrometer onboard SOFIA, the HeH+ rotational ground-state transition at λ149.1 μm is now accessible. We report here its detection towards the planetary nebula NGC7027.
Obwohl bis zum heutigen Tage mehr als 1500 Radio-Pulsare in unserer Galaxie entdeckt wurden, konnte bislang nicht ein einziger Pulsar im direkten Umfeld des Galaktischen Zentrums gefunden werden. Dies ist um so mehr erstaunlich, da die statistische Pulsar-Verteilung nicht nur eine deutliche Zunahme der Pulsare zum Zentrum unserer Galaxie zeigt, sondern dieser Himmelsbereich auch schon mehrfach in verschiedenen Pulsar-Suchen beobachtet wurde.
Das Defizit von Pulsaren im Galaktischen Zentrum wird heute allgemein durch Selektionseffekte bei der Suche erklärt, die aufgrund von Inhomogenitäten und der erhöhten Dichte des Interstellaren Mediums im Zentrumsbereich hervorgerufen werden. Diese Einflüsse bewirken eine frequenzabhängige Phasenverschiebung (Dispersion) sowie eine Pulsverbreiterung durch Mehrwegeausbreitung (Scattering) der zeitvarianten Strahlung von Pulsaren. Während die Dispersion durch geeignete Maßnahmen bei der Beobachtung nahezu vollständig beseitigt werden kann, ist die Pulsverbreiterung durch Scattering, die einen negativen Einfluß auf die Suchempfindlichkeit hat, nur mit Beobachtungen bei höheren Frequenzen zu mindern. Weil die Strahlungsintensität von Pulsaren jedoch zu höheren Frequenzen steil abfällt, kann die optimale Beobachtungsfrequenz nur ein Kompromiß der beiden gegensätzlichen Forderungen sein.
Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurde daher die erste Suche nach Pulsaren im Galaktischen Zentrum bei der für Pulsar-Beobachtungen ungewöhnlich hohen Frequenz von 5 GHz mit dem 100-m Radioteleskop des Max-Planck-Instituts für Radioastronomie durchgeführt und analysiert. Der wissenschaftliche Teil dieser Dissertation umfasst eine ausführliche Diskussion über die zu erwartende Anzahl detektierbarer Zentrumspulsare für zwei unterschiedliche Sternentstehungs-Szenarien im Galaktischen Zentrum und ferner eine gründliche Untersuchung der erzielten Empfindlichkeit zur durchgeführten Pulsar-Suche. Die technischen Kapitel beschreiben die Entwicklung des Datenaufnahmesystems (Backends) und der Suchsoftware zur Auswertung der Beobachtungsdaten, die beide speziell für dieses Suchprojekt entworfen wurden.
High-latitude intermediate-velocity clouds (IVCs) are part of the Milky Way’s H I halo and originate from either a galactic fountain process or extragalactic gas infall. They are partly molecular and can most of the time be identified in CO. Some of these regions also exhibit high-velocity cloud gas, which is mostly atomic, and gas at local velocities (LVCs), which is partly atomic and partly molecular. We conducted a study on the IVCs Draco and Spider, both were exposed to a very weak UV field, using the spectroscopic receiver upGREAT on the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). The 158 µm fine-structure line of ionized carbon ([C II]) was observed, and the results are as follows: In Draco, the [C II] line was detected at intermediate velocities (but not at local or high velocities) in four out of five positions. No [C II] emission was found at any velocity in the two observed positions in Spider. To understand the excitation conditions of the gas in Draco, we analyzed complementary CO and H I data as well as dust column density and temperature maps from Herschel. The observed [C II] intensities suggest the presence of shocks in Draco that heat the gas and subsequently emit in the [C II] cooling line. These shocks are likely caused by the fast cloud’s motion toward the Galactic plane that is accompanied by collisions between H I clouds. The nondetection of [C II] in the Spider IVC and LVC as well as in other low-density clouds at local velocities that we present in this paper (Polaris and Musca) supports the idea that highly dynamic processes are necessary for [C II] excitation in UV-faint low-density regions.
4GREAT is an extension of the German Receiver for Astronomy at Terahertz frequencies (GREAT) operated aboard the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). The spectrometer comprises four different detector bands and their associated subsystems for simultaneous and fully independent science operation. All detector beams are co-aligned on the sky. The frequency bands of 4GREAT cover 491-635, 890-1090, 1240-1525 and 2490-2590 GHz, respectively. This paper presents the design and characterization of the instrument, and its in-flight performance. 4GREAT saw first light in June 2018, and has been offered to the interested SOFIA communities starting with observing cycle 6.
In recent years, a plethora of observations with high spectral resolution of sub-millimetre and far-infrared transitions of methylidene (CH), conducted with Herschel and SOFIA, have demonstrated this radical to be a valuable proxy for molecular hydrogen that can be used for characterising molecular gas within the interstellar medium on a Galactic scale, including the CO-dark component. We report the discovery of the 13CH isotopologue in the interstellar medium using the upGREAT receiver on board SOFIA. We have detected the three hyperfine structure components of the ≈2 THz frequency transition from its X2Π1∕2 ground-state towards the high-mass star-forming regions Sgr B2(M), G34.26+0.15, W49(N), and W51E and determined 13CH column densities. The ubiquity of molecules containing carbon in the interstellar medium has turned the determination of the ratio between the abundances of the two stable isotopes of carbon, 12C/13C, into a cornerstone for Galactic chemical evolution studies. Whilst displaying a rising gradient with galactocentric distance, this ratio, when measured using observations of different molecules (CO, H2CO, and others), shows systematic variations depending on the tracer used. These observed inconsistencies may arise from optical depth effects, chemical fractionation, or isotope-selective photo-dissociation. Formed from C+ either through UV-driven or turbulence-driven chemistry, CH reflects the fractionation of C+, and does not show any significant fractionation effects, unlike other molecules that were previously used to determine the 12C/13C isotopic ratio. This makes it an ideal tracer for the 12C/13C ratio throughout the Galaxy. By comparing the derived column densities of 13CH with previously obtained SOFIA data of the corresponding transitions of the main isotopologue 12CH, we therefore derive 12C/13C isotopic ratios toward Sgr B2(M), G34.26+0.15, W49(N) and W51E. Adding our values derived from 12∕13CH to previous calculations of the Galactic isotopic gradient, we derive a revised value of 12C/13C = 5.87(0.45)RGC + 13.25(2.94).
Atomic oxygen in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere measured by terahertz heterodyne spectroscopy
(2021)
Atomic oxygen is a main component of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT). The photochemistry and the energy balance of the MLT are governed by atomic oxygen. In addition, it is a tracer for dynamical motions in the MLT. It is difficult to measure with remote sensing techniques. Concentrations can be inferred indirectly from the oxygen air glow or from observations of OH, which is involved in photochemical processes related to atomic oxygen. Such measurements have been performed with several satellite instruments such as SCIAMACHY, SABER, WINDII and OSIRIS. However, the methods are indirect and rely on photochemical models and assumptions such as quenching rates, radiative lifetimes, and reaction coefficients. The results are not always in agreement, particularly when obtained with different instruments.
Atomic oxygen is a key species in the mesosphere and thermosphere of Venus. It peaks in the transition region between the two dominant atmospheric circulation patterns, the retrograde super-rotating zonal flow below 70 km and the subsolar to antisolar flow above 120 km altitude. However, past and current detection methods are indirect and based on measurements of other molecules in combination with photochemical models. Here, we show direct detection of atomic oxygen on the dayside as well as on the nightside of Venus by measuring its ground-state transition at 4.74 THz (63.2 µm). The atomic oxygen is concentrated at altitudes around 100 km with a maximum column density on the dayside where it is generated by photolysis of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. This method enables detailed investigations of the Venusian atmosphere in the region between the two atmospheric circulation patterns in support of future space missions to Venus.
