Submillimeter-selected galaxies

Abstract

The first generation of submillimeter(submm)-wave surveys are being carried out using the 450/850-micron SCUBA camera at the JCMT on Mauna Kea. These surveys are potentially sensitive to galaxies at very high redshift, and the galaxies that have been detected so far appear to contribute the greater fraction of the mm/submm-wave background radiation intensity measured by COBE. In order to understand this new population of galaxies, individual examples must be studied in detail across many wavebands; in particular their redshifts must be determined. We discuss the potential selection effects at work in submm-wave surveys and describe the spectral energy distributions of galaxies selected or luminous in the submm waveband. We also describe the general procedure for, and emphasize the difficulty of, identifying optical counterparts to submm-selected galaxies. Finally, we summarize what is known about the redshifts of these galaxies and the source of their luminosity.