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The Past, Present, and Groundbreaking Future of OH Megamaser Discoveries

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 February 2024

Hayley Roberts Open the ORCID record for Hayley Roberts [Opens in a new window]  and
Jeremy Darling
Hayley Roberts*
Affiliation:
Center for Astrophysics and Space Astronomy, Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Science, University of Colorado, 389 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309-0389, USA.
Jeremy Darling
Affiliation:
Center for Astrophysics and Space Astronomy, Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Science, University of Colorado, 389 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309-0389, USA.
*
email: hayley.roberts@colorado.edu
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Abstract

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OH megamasers (OHMs) are luminous masers found in (ultra-)luminous infrared galaxies ([U]LIRGs). OHMs are signposts of major gas-rich mergers associated with some of the most extreme star forming regions in our universe. The dominant OH masing line, occurring at 1667 MHz, can spoof the 1420 MHz neutral hydrogen (HI) line in untargeted HI emission line surveys. While only ∼120 OHMs are currently known, HI surveys on next-generation radio telescopes, such as the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) and its precursors, will detect unprecedented numbers of OHMs. This surge in detections will not only fundamentally change what we know about the OHM population, but will also unlock our ability to implement OHMs as tracers of major mergers and extreme star formation on cosmic scales. Here we present predictions for the number of OHMs that will be detected by these surveys. We also present our novel methods for identifying these interlopers using a k-Nearest Neighbors machine learning algorithm. Preliminary data from HI surveys on precursor SKA telescopes is being used to vet and strengthen these methods as well as give us a first look at a new era in OHM science. From a detection of one of the most luminous OHMs to the discovery of a megamaser at a record-shattering redshift, these new sources are glimpses into how our understanding of the known OHM population will soon be expanding and shifting rapidly and how they will influence our understanding of galaxy evolution.

Keywords

OH megamasersmerging galaxiesstarburst galaxies
Type
Contributed Paper
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 18 , Symposium S380: Cosmic Masers: Proper Motion toward the Next-Generation Large Projects , December 2022 , pp. 16 - 20
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Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of International Astronomical Union

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