Related papers: Reconstructing the intergalactic UV background wit…

We investigate the metallicity evolution and content of the intergalactic medium (IGM) and galactic halo gas from z=2->0 using 110-million particle cosmological hydrodynamic simulations. We focus on the detectability and physical properties…

The production and distribution of metals in the diffuse intergalactic medium (IGM) have implications for galaxy formation models and the baryon (re)cycling process. The relative abundance of metals in high versus low-ionization states has…

Studies of absorption spectra of high-z QSOs have revealed that the intergalactic medium at z ~ 2-3 is enriched to ~ 0.1%-1% solar for gas densities more than a few times the mean cosmic density, but have not yet produced an accurate…

Absorption signatures in the spectra of QSOs are one of our most powerful tools for studying galactic and intergalactic environments at high redshifts. With the discovery of QSOs out to z > 7, QSO absorption lines are now tracing the end…

Rest-frame UV spectral lines of star-forming galaxies are systematically offset from the galaxies' systemic redshifts, probably because of large-scale outflows. We calibrate galaxy redshifts measured from rest-frame UV lines by utilizing…

We used ultraviolet spectra from HST/STIS (R=30,000), together with optical spectra from Keck/HIRES (R=45,000), to study the three MgII-selected absorption systems at z=0.9254, 0.9276, and 0.9342 toward the quasar PG 1206+459. A multi-phase…

We present measurements of the large-scale (~40 comoving Mpc) effective optical depth of HeII Ly$\alpha$ absorption, $\tau_{\rm eff}$, at 2.54<z<3.86 toward 16 HeII-transparent quasars observed with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) on…

We present a sample of 34 weak metal line absorbers at $z< 0.3$ complied via the simultaneous detections ($3\sigma$) of the SiII$\lambda1260$ and CII$\lambda1334$ absorption lines, with $W_{r}$(SiII)$<0.2$ \AA\ and $W_{r}$(CII)$<0.3$ \AA,…

We present a new model to compute the effects of dust on the integrated spectral properties of galaxies, based on an idealized prescription of the main features of the interstellar medium (ISM). The model includes the ionization of HII…

We present observations of the O VI system at z_abs = 0.495096 toward PKS 0405-123 (z_em = 0.5726) obtained with FUSE and STIS. In addition to strong O VI, with log N(O VI) = 14.47+/-0.02, and moderate H I this absorber shows C III, N IV, O…

To explore the ionization conditions in highly-ionized absorbers at high redshift we have studied in detail two intervening OVI absorbers at z=2 towards the quasar PKS1448-232, based on high (R=75,000) and intermediate (R=45,000) resolution…

We present an observational test of the spectrum of the ionizing background at z~5; the test is sufficiently sensitive to determine whether Pop II or Pop III stars are the dominant source of ionizing radiation. The ionizing background at…

We conduct an ultraviolet (HST and FUSE) spectroscopic survey of HI (Lyman lines) and seven metal ions (OVI, NV, CIV, CIII, SiIV, SiIII, FeIII) in the low-redshift intergalactic medium (IGM) at z<0.4. We analyzed 650 Lya absorbers over…

A search for O VI at redshifts corresponding to Ly-alpha lines in the z_em ~ 2.4 QSOs HE1122-1648 and HE2217-2818 reveals that a substantial fraction of those with H I column densities log N(HI) > 14 (cm^{-2}) are highly ionized and show…

We present here the analysis of ultraviolet spectra from IUE and an X-ray spectrum from ROSAT PSPC observations of the X-ray weak, far-infrared loud AGN, PG 1126-041 (Mrk 1298). The first UV spectra taken in June 1992, simultaneously with…

Absorption-line spectroscopy of 23 background QSOs and numerous background galaxies has let us measure the spatial distribution of metals and neutral hydrogen around 1044 UV-selected galaxies at redshifts 1.8<z<3.3. The typical galaxy is…

Ratios of different ions of the same element encode ionization information independently from relative abundances in quasar absorption line systems, crucial for understanding the multiphase nature and origin of absorbing gas, particularly…

Observations from the HUT and the HST have recently detected HeII absorption along the lines of sight to two high redshift quasars. We use cosmological simulations with gas dynamics to investigate HeII absorption in the cold dark matter…

Measuring the response of the intergalactic medium to a blast of ionizing radiation allows one to infer the physical properties of the medium and, in principle, the lifetime and isotropy of the radiating source. The most sensitive such…

Using the statistics of pixel optical depths, we compare HI, CIV and CIII absorption in a set of six high quality z ~ 3-4 quasar absorption spectra to that in spectra drawn from two different state-of-the-art cosmological simulations that…