A gravitationally lensed water maser in the early Universe

C. M. Violette Impellizzeri (), John P. McKean, Paola Castangia, Alan L. Roy, Christian Henkel, Andreas Brunthaler and Olaf Wucknitz
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C. M. Violette Impellizzeri: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany
John P. McKean: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany
Paola Castangia: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany
Alan L. Roy: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany
Christian Henkel: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany
Andreas Brunthaler: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany
Olaf Wucknitz: Argelander-Institut für Astronomie, Auf dem Hügel 71, D-53121 Bonn, Germany

Nature, 2008, vol. 456, issue 7224, 927-929

Abstract: Masers, masers everywhere Astrophysical masers are sources of stimulated spectral line emission at microwave wavelengths, analogous to the optical emissions of lasers. Water masers, emitting in the 22 GHz region from the water molecule, are found in dense molecular clouds associated with supermassive black holes in the centres of active galaxies. Based on the luminosity function for water masers derived from local examples, it was assumed that masers must be rare at intermediate and high redshifts. That assumption seems to be unfounded: with the aid of amplification by gravitational lensing, a water maser has been found at redshift 2.64 in a quasar. Its luminosity is twice that of the most powerful local water maser, and half that of the most luminous maser known. The discovery suggests that such masers were much more abundant in the early Universe than they are now.

Date: 2008
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DOI: 10.1038/nature07544

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