Fluorescent Lyman α emission from gas near a QSO at redshift 4.28 |
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| Authors: | Paul J. Francis Sunsanee McDonnell |
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| Affiliation: | Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics, the Australian National University, Canberra 0200, Australia;Joint Appointment with the Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, the Australian National University, Canberra 0200, Australia |
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| Abstract: | We use integral field spectroscopy with the Gemini North Telescope to detect probable fluorescent Lyman α (Lyα) emission from gas lying close to the luminous QSO PSS 2155+1358 at redshift 4.28. The emission is most likely coming not from primordial gas, but from a multiphase, chemically enriched cloud of gas lying about 50 kpc from the QSO. It appears to be associated with a highly ionized associated absorber seen in the QSO spectrum. With the exception of this gas cloud, the environment of the QSO is remarkably free of neutral hydrogen. We also marginally detect Lyα emission from a foreground subdamped Lyα absorption-line system. |
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| Keywords: | galaxies: high-redshift intergalactic medium quasars: absorption lines quasars: individual: PSS 2155+1358 |
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