ISO Observations of Star-forming Galaxies

Abstract

The Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) is used to carry out mid-IR (7 and 15 micron) and far-IR (90 micron) observations of a sample of star-forming sub-mJy radio sources. By selecting the sample at radio wavelengths, one avoids biases due to dust obscuration. It is found that the mid-IR luminosities, covering the PAH features, measure the star formation rate for galaxies with $P_{1.4 GHz} < 10^{23}$ W Hz$^{-1}$. This is further confirmed using the H$\alpha$ luminosities. The far-IR emission is also found to trace the SFR over the whole range of radio and H$\alpha$ luminosities. The implication of the mid-IR measurements in estimating the SFRs from the future infrared space missions (SIRTF and ASTRO-F) is discussed.