Submillimetre surveys: The prospects for Herschel

Abstract

Using the observed submillimetre source counts, from 250-1200 microns (including the most recent 250, 350 and 500 micron counts from BLAST), we present a model capable of reproducing these results, which is used as a basis to make predictions for upcoming surveys with the SPIRE instrument aboard the Herschel Space Observatory. The model successfully fits both the integral and differential source counts of submillimetre galaxies in all wavebands, predicting that while ultra-luminous infrared galaxies dominate at the brightest flux densities, the bulk of the infrared background is due to the less luminous infrared galaxy population. The model also predicts confusion limits and contributions to the cosmic infrared background that are consistent with the BLAST results. Applying this to SPIRE gives predicted source confusion limits of 19.4, 20.5 and 16.1mJy in the 250, 350 and 500 micron bands respectively. This means the SPIRE surveys should achieve sensitivities 1.5 times deeper than BLAST, revealing a fainter population of infrared-luminous galaxies, and detecting approximately 2600, 1300, and 700 sources per square degree in the SPIRE bands (with one in three sources expected to be a high redshift ultra-luminous source at 500 microns). The model number redshift distributions predict a bimodal distribution of local quiescent galaxies and a high redshift peak corresponding to strongly evolving star-forming galaxies. It suggests the very deepest surveys with Herschel-SPIRE ought to sample the source population responsible for the bulk of the infrared background.

5 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS Letters

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Cited by in corpus (20)

• The Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey: HerMES
• Extragalactic millimeter-wave sources in South Pole Telescope survey data: source counts, catalog, and statistics for an 87 square-degree field
• HerMES: SPIRE galaxy number counts at 250, 350 and 500 microns
• Planck Early Results XVIII: The power spectrum of cosmic infrared background anisotropies
• Spitzer Deep and Wide Legacy Mid- and Far-Infrared Number Counts and Lower Limits of Cosmic Infrared Background
• The Herschel-ATLAS: Extragalactic Number Counts from 250 to 500 Microns
• HerMES: Clusters of Dusty Galaxies Uncovered by Herschel and Planck
• The source counts of submillimetre galaxies detected at 1.1 mm
• Submillimeter Number Counts at 250, 350 and 500 microns in BLAST data
• An infrared-radio simulation of the extragalactic sky: from the Square Kilometer Array to Herschel
• Lensing Magnification: Implications for Counts of Submillimeter Galaxies and SZ Clusters
• The Cosmic Far-Infrared Background Buildup Since Redshift 2 at 70 and 160 microns in the COSMOS and GOODS fields
• Planck intermediate results. VII. Statistical properties of infrared and radio extragalactic sources from the Planck Early Release Compact Source Catalogue at frequencies between 100 and 857 GHz
• Submillimeter Galaxy Number Counts and Magnification by Galaxy Clusters
• The AKARI Deep Field South: Spitzer 24 and 70 micron Observations, Catalogs and Counts
• The Herschel-PACS North Ecliptic Pole Survey
• The Effectiveness of Mid IR / Far IR Blind, Wide Area, Spectral Surveys in Breaking the Confusion Limit
• The 2 to 24 micron source counts from the AKARI North Ecliptic Pole survey
• On the nature of the first galaxies selected at 350 microns
• The Herschel-SPIRE Dark Field I: The deepest Herschel image of the submillimetre Universe