Search Publications
The Ice Survey Opportunity of ISO
Dartois, Emmanuel
The instruments on board the Infrared Space Observatory have for the first time allowed a complete low (PHOT, CVF) to medium resolution (SWS) spectroscopic harvest, from 2.5 to 45 µm, of interstellar dust. Amongst the detected solids present in starless molecular clouds surrounding recently born stellar and still embedded objects or products…
Crystalline Silicates
Kemper, Ciska; Molster, Frank
One of the big surprises of the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) has been discovery of crystalline silicates outside our own Solar system. It was generally assumed before that all cosmic silicates in space were of amorphous structure. Thanks to ISO we know now that crystalline silicates are ubiquitous in the Galaxy (except for the diffuse ISM) and…
Molecular Hydrogen
Maiolino, Roberto; Habart, Emilie; Walmsley, Malcolm +5 more
Observations of H2 line emission in galactic and extragalactic environments obtained with the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) are reviewed. The diagnostic capability of H2 observations is illustrated. We discuss what one has learned about such diverse astrophysical sources as photon-dominated regions, shocks, young stellar o…
Obscured Activity: AGN, Quasars, Starbursts and ULIGs Observed by the Infrared Space Observatory
Haas, Martin; Klaas, Ulrich; Lutz, Dieter +2 more
Some of the most ‘active’ galaxies in the Universe are obscured by large quantities of dust and emit a substantial fraction of their bolometric luminosity in the infrared. Observations of these infrared luminous galaxies with the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) have provided a relatively unabsorbed view to the sources fuelling this active emissio…
Water in Space: The Water World of ISO
Cernicharo, José; Crovisier, Jacques
In this review we present the main results obtained by the ISO satellite on the abundance and spatial distribution of water vapor in the direction of molecular clouds, evolved stars, galaxies, and in the bodies of our Solar System. We also discuss the modeling of H2O and the difficulties found in the interpretation of the data, the need…
Normal Nearby Galaxies
Tuffs, Richard J.; Popescu, Cristina C.; Sauvage, Marc
Following on from IRAS, ISO has provided a huge advancement in our knowledge of the phenomenology of the infrared (IR) emission of normal galaxies and the underlying physical processes. Highlights include the discovery of an extended cold dust emission component, present in all types of gas-rich galaxies and carrying the bulk of the dust luminosit…
ISO's Contribution to the Study of Clusters of Galaxies
Metcalfe, Leo; Fadda, Dario; Biviano, Andrea
Starting with nearby galaxy clusters like Virgo and Coma, and continuing out to the furthest galaxy clusters for which ISO results have yet been published (z = 0.56), we discuss the development of knowledge of the infrared and associated physical properties of galaxy clusters from early IRAS observations, through the “ISO-era” to the present, in o…
The Planets and Titan Observed by ISO
Bézard, Bruno; Fouchet, Thierry; Encrenaz, Therese
Infrared spectroscopic observations of planets and Saturn's satellite Titan with the Infrared Space Observatory led to many significant discoveries that improved our understanding on the formation, physics and chemistry of these objects. The prime results achieved by ISO are: (1) a new and consistent determination of the D/H ratios on the giant pl…
Late Stages of Stellar Evolution
Blommaert, Joris A. D. L.; Cami, Jan; Szczerba, Ryszard +1 more
A large fraction of ISO observing time was used to study the late stages of stellar evolution. Many molecular and solid state features, including crystalline silicates and the rotational lines of water vapour, were detected for the first time in the spectra of (post-)Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars. Their analysis has greatly improved our know…
Understanding Galaxy Formation with ISO Deep Surveys
Elbaz, David
We present the results obtained through the various ISO extragalactic deep surveys. Although IRAS revealed the existence of galaxies forming stars at a rate of a few tens (LIRGs) or even hundreds (ULIRGs) solar masses in the local universe, ISO not only discovered that these galaxies were already in place at redshift one, but also that they are no…