Far-infrared line intensities of H2O and CO from warm molecular clouds

Abstract

Takahashi et al. (1983) have studied the role of H2O in the overall energetics of warm molecular clouds with large optical depths. It was found that in molecular clouds associated with nearby or embedded luminosity sources, the dust is likely to be warmer than the molecular gas. Thus, the warm dust represents the primary source of heat for the gas. In some cases, H2O was found to cool the gas. Takahashi et al. (1983) have presented the formalism for treating H2O in an optically thick molecular cloud with embedded sources of luminosity. The total H2O heating and cooling rates were also calculated. In the present investigation, the emergent intensities of far-infrared lines of H2O and excited, rotational CO transitions from relatively warm molecular clouds based on the large-velocity gradient model of the previous study are calculated. It is found that the dominant submillimeter CO transitions are related to emission, while the H2O transitions can be either absorption or emission lines.