Related papers: The Structure of High Redshift Galactic Halos
We report the discovery of a strong CIV 1548,1550 absorption system at z_abs = 5.7238 in the near-infrared spectrum (J-band) of the z_em = 6.28 QSO SDSS J1030+0524. These observations, obtained with the Infrared Spectrometer And Array…
The importance of HST for the study of quasar absorption lines and of the nature of the intergalactic medium is illustrated by reviewing selected results from past HST observations. Topics reviewed include the study of Ly-alpha absorbers at…
We review observations of molecular absorption line systems at high redshift toward red quasars and gravitational lenses.
We determined C, N and alpha-element relative abundances in the gas surrounding six QSOs at an average redshift of < z > ~ 2.4, by studying six narrow associated absorption systems in UVES high-resolution spectra. We found five systems with…
Absorption-line spectroscopy of multiply-lensed QSOs near a known foreground galaxy provides a unique opportunity to go beyond the traditional one-dimensional application of QSO probes and establish a crude three-dimensional (3D) map of…
Results of a careful analysis of the absorption systems with zabs = zem seen toward the bright, z_em ~ 3.91, gravitationally lensed quasar APM 08279+5255 are presented. Two of the narrow-line systems, at z_abs = 3.8931 and z_abs = 3.9135,…
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…
We have analyzed the broad absorption line system of the bright (V=16.5) high-redshift (z=2.361) QSO SBS1542+541 using UV spectra from the HST FOS along with optical data from the MMT and the Steward Observatory 2.3m telescope. These…
We present a detailed analysis of the Astrophysical Research Consortium 3.5 m telescope spectrum of QSO SDSS J0838+2955. The object shows three broad absorption line (BAL) systems at 22,000, 13,000, and 4900 km s^-1 blueshifted from the…
We have completed spectroscopic observations using LRIS on the Keck 1 telescope of 30 very high redshift quasars, 11 selected for the presence of damped Ly-alpha absorption systems and 19 with redshifts z > 3.5 not previously surveyed for…
We use new UV and optical spectra and an archival HST-WFPC2 image to study the z_a~z_e absorber in the z_e = 0.20 QSO PKS 2135-147. The UV spectra, obtained with HST-FOS, show strong z_a~z_e absorption lines of C IV, N V, O VI, Ly-alpha and…
We use FUSE and STIS spectra to study intergalactic absorption towards the quasar PG1259+593 (z=0.478). We identify 135 intergalactic absorption lines with equivalent widths >10mA, tracing 78 absorption components in 72 Ly alpha/beta…
We have obtained Keck HIRES spectra of three images of the gravitationally lensed QSO 2237+0305 to study low ionization absorption systems and their differences in terms of projected velocity and column density across the lines of sight. We…
In this thesis, we systematically analyze the properties of intergalactic \Ovi absorbing gas structures at high redshift using optical spectra with intermediate ($\sim 6.6$ \kms FWHM) and high ($\sim 4.0$ \kms FWHM) resolution, obtained…
We have performed RIJHK_S imaging of the field around the z=2.67 quasar Q0836+113, which presents several metal line and a damped Ly\alpha absorption systems in its spectrum. The images reveal the existence of a red K_S=18.9 object \approx…
We have observed nine QSOs with redshifts 0.85 to 4.16 at near-IR wavelengths with the adaptive optics bonnette of the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope. Exposure times ranged from 1500 to 24000s (mostly near 7000s) in J, H, or K bands, with…
The APM multicolor survey for bright z > 4 objects, covering 2500 deg^2 of sky to m(R)~19, resulted in the discovery of thirty-one quasars with z > 4. High signal-to-noise optical spectrophotometry at 5A resolution has been obtained for the…
The four known molecular absorption line systems at redshifts z$=$0.25--0.89 are discussed. Two of the systems originate in the galaxy hosting the `background' AGN, while in two cases the absorption occurs in truely intervening galaxies.…
A study of the absorption systems toward the gravitationally lensed quasar APM 08279+5255 is presented. Most of the MgII systems in the redshift range 1.2-2.07, although saturated, show large residuals at the bottom of the lines. The most…
Together with the CMB, the three sources of information that astronomers have at high redshift as probes of the formation and evolution of the LSS are QSOs, galaxies and absorbers observed in the spectrum of distant background objects. In…