Related papers: Ionise hard: interstellar PO$^{+}$ detection
Expansion of wind-blown bubbles or HII regions lead to formation of shocks in the interstellar medium, which compress surrounding gas into dense layers. We made spatially and velocity-resolved observations of the RCW~120 PDR and nearby…
We have revisited the chemistry of chlorine-bearing species in the diffuse interstellar medium with new observations of the HCl$^+$ molecular ion and new astrochemical models. Using the GREAT instrument on board SOFIA, we observed the…
Ions and electrons play an important role in various stages of the star formation process. By following the magnetic field of their environment and interacting with neutral species, they slow down the gravitational collapse of the…
Low-energy cosmic rays are a fundamental source of ionization for molecular clouds, influencing their chemical, thermal and dynamical evolution. The purpose of this work is to explore the possibility that a low-energy component of…
Carbon monoxide (CO) is the most abundant molecule after molecular hydrogen and is important for the chemistry in circumstellar envelopes around evolved stars. When modelling the strength and shape of molecular lines, the size of the CO…
Chemistry in diffuse molecular clouds relies primarily on rapid ion-molecule reactions. Formation of the initial ions, H$^+$ and H$_2^+$, is dominated by cosmic-ray ionization of H and H$_2$, making the cosmic-ray ionization rate (denoted…
We describe deep (40 orbits) HST/STIS observations of the BALQSO PG 0946+301 and make them available to the community. These observations are the major part of a multi-wavelength campaign on this object aimed at determining the ionization…
The H3O+ molecule probes the oxygen chemistry and the ionization rate of dense circumnuclear gas in galaxies. In particular, recent H3O+ observations show variations in the cosmic-ray ionization rate by factors of $>$10 within our Galaxy.…
Isolated dense molecular cores are investigated to study the onset of complex organic molecule formation in interstellar ice. Sampling three cores with ongoing formation of low-mass stars (B59, B335, and L483) and one starless core (L694-2)…
We carried out survey observations of HC$_{3}$N and HC$_{5}$N in the 42$-$45 GHz band toward 17 high-mass starless cores (HMSCs) and 35 high-mass protostellar objects (HMPOs) with the Nobeyama 45 m radio telescope. We have detected…
We present very high signal-to-noise ratio absorption-line observations of CN and CH+ along 13 lines of sight through diffuse molecular clouds. The data are examined to extract precise isotopologic ratios of 12CN/13CN and 12CH+/13CH+ in…
We present observations of the nearby extremely metal-poor galaxy I Zw 18 using the Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI) and the JWST Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI) Integral Field Spectrographs (IFS). From optical and mid-IR oxygen emission lines,…
HOCO$^+$ is a polar molecule that represents a useful proxy for its parent molecule CO$_2$, which is not directly observable in the cold interstellar medium. This cation has been detected towards several lines of sight, including massive…
This paper presents a detailed study of the chemistry in the outflow associated with the low-mass protostar NGC1333-IRAS2A down to 3" (650 AU) scales. Millimeter-wavelength aperture-synthesis observations from the OVRO and BIMA…
We calculate the hydrogen and helium-ionizing radiation escaping star-forming molecular clouds, as a function of the star cluster mass and compactness, using a set of high-resolution radiation-magneto-hydrodynamic simulations of star…
Atomic carbon ([CI]) is a key species in the carbon chemistry of the interstellar medium (ISM). Using the Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite (SWAS), we conducted a [CI]($^3$P$_1$--$^3$P$_0$) 492 GHz survey covering approximately 4…
Phosphorus (P) is an important element for the chemical evolution of galaxies and many kinds of biochemical reactions. Phosphorus is one of the crucial chemical compounds in the formation of life on our planet. In an interstellar medium,…
As a galaxy evolves, its chemical composition changes and the abundance ratios of different elements are powerful probes of the underlying evolutionary processes. Phosphorous is an element whose evolution has remained quite elusive until…
We consider the possibility that solid molecular hydrogen is present in interstellar space. If so cosmic-rays and energetic photons cause ionisation in the solid leading to the formation of H6+. This ion is not produced by gas-phase…
The properties of the first-discovered interstellar object (ISO), 1I/2017 (`Oumuamua), differ from both Solar System asteroids and comets, casting doubt on a protoplanetary disk origin. In this study, we investigate the possibility that it…