Abstract
Circumstellar hydroxyl (OH) masers are believed to be radian tively pumped (Elitzur et al. 1976). However, the proposed pumping mechanism has not been directly observed before now, because the far-IR spectral lines which correspond to the pumping cycle transitions are unobservable from the ground. We present ISO 1 observations of the strong OH maser source IRC +10420. Our spectra clearly show the 34.6-μm doublet in absorption, and the ensuing rotational cascade lines at 98.7, 163 and 79 μm in emission. These spectra provide the first direct confirmation of the radiative pumping cycle for OH masers.
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© 1997 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
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Sylvester, R.J. (1997). Detection of the FAR-IR Pumping Lines for OH Masers. In: Cherchneff, I., Millar, T.J. (eds) Dust and Molecules in Evolved Stars. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1307-8_45
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1307-8_45
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-5018-2
Online ISBN: 978-94-017-1307-8
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