We introduce the GALEX Arecibo SDSS Survey (GASS), an on‐going large programme that is gathering high quality H i‐line spectra using the Arecibo radio telescope for an unbiased sample of ∼1000 galaxies with stellar masses greater than 1010 M⊙ and redshifts 0.025 < z < 0.05, selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) spectroscopic and Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) imaging surveys. The galaxies are observed until detected or until a low gas mass fraction limit (1.5–5 per cent) is reached. This paper presents the first Data Release, consisting of ∼20 per cent of the final GASS sample. We use this data set to explore the main scaling relations of the H i gas fraction with galaxy structure and NUV−r colour. A large fraction (∼60 per cent) of the galaxies in our sample are detected in H i. Even at stellar masses above 1011 M⊙, the detected fraction does not fall below ∼40 per cent. We find that the atomic gas fraction MH i/M★ decreases strongly with stellar mass, stellar surface mass density and NUV−r colour, but is only weakly correlated with the galaxy bulge‐to‐disc ratio (as measured by the concentration index of the r‐band light). We also find that the fraction of galaxies with significant (more than a few per cent) H i decreases sharply above a characteristic stellar surface mass density of 108.5 M⊙ kpc−2. The fraction of gas‐rich galaxies decreases much more smoothly with stellar mass. One of the key goals of GASS is to identify and quantify the incidence of galaxies that are transitioning between the blue, star‐forming cloud and the red sequence of passively evolving galaxies. Likely transition candidates can be identified as outliers from the mean scaling relations between MH i/M★ and other galaxy properties. We have fitted a plane to the two‐dimensional relation between the H i mass fraction, stellar surface mass density and NUV−r colour. Interesting outliers from this plane include gas‐rich red sequence galaxies that may be in the process of regrowing their discs, as well as blue, but gas‐poor spirals.

Context. We present new photometric data from our Herschel guaranteed time key programme, the Dwarf Galaxy Survey (DGS), dedicated to the observation of the gas and dust in low-metallicity environments. A total of 48 dwarf galaxies were observed with the PACS and SPIRE instruments onboard the Herschel Space Observatory at 70, 100, 160, 250, 350, and 500 µm. Aims. The goal of this paper is to provide reliable far-infrared (FIR) photometry for the DGS sample and to analyse the FIR/submillimetre (submm) behaviour of the DGS galaxies. We focus on a systematic comparison of the derived FIR properties (FIR luminosity, L FIR , dust mass, M dust , dust temperature, T, emissivity index, β) with more metal-rich galaxies and investigate the detection of a potential submm excess. Methods. The data reduction method is adapted for each galaxy in order to derive the most reliable photometry from the final maps. The derived PACS flux densities are compared with the Spitzer MIPS 70 and 160 µm bands. We use colour−colour diagrams to analyse the FIR/submm behaviour of the DGS galaxies and modified blackbody fitting procedures to determine their dust properties. To study the variation in these dust properties with metallicity, we also include galaxies from the Herschel KINGFISH sample, which contains more metal-rich environments, totalling 109 galaxies. Results. The location of the DGS galaxies on Herschel colour−colour diagrams highlights the differences in dust grain properties and/or global environments of low-metallicity dwarf galaxies. The dust in DGS galaxies is generally warmer than in KINGFISH galaxies (T DGS ∼ 32 K and T KINGFISH ∼ 23 K). The emissivity index, β, is ∼1.7 in the DGS, however metallicity does not make a strong effect on β. The proportion of dust mass relative to stellar mass is lower in low-metallicity galaxies: M dust /M star ∼ 0.02% for the DGS versus 0.1% for KINGFISH. However, per unit dust mass, dwarf galaxies emit about six times more in the FIR/submm than higher metallicity galaxies. Out of the 22 DGS galaxies detected at 500 µm, about 41% present an excess in the submm beyond the explanation of our dust SED model, and this excess can go up to 150% above the prediction from the model. The excess mainly appears in lower metallicity galaxies (12 + log(O/H) 8.3), and the strongest excesses are detected in the most metal-poor galaxies. However, we also stress the need for observations longwards of the Herschel wavelengths to detect any submm excess appearing beyond 500 µm.

We present the second data release from the GALEX Arecibo SDSS Survey (GASS), an ongoing large Arecibo program to measure the Hi properties for an unbiased sample of ∼1000 galaxies with stellar masses greater than 10 10 M and redshifts 0.025 < z < 0.05. GASS targets are selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) spectroscopic and Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) imaging surveys, and are observed until detected or until a gas mass fraction limit of a few per cent is reached. This second data installment includes new Arecibo observations of 240 galaxies, and marks the 50% of the complete survey. We present catalogs of the Hi, optical and ultraviolet parameters for these galaxies, and their Hi-line profiles. Having more than doubled the size of the sample since the first data release, we also revisit the main scaling relations of the Hi mass fraction with galaxy stellar mass, stellar mass surface density, concentration index, and NUV−r color, as well as the gas fraction plane introduced in our earlier work.

We present the final data release from the GALEX Arecibo SDSS Survey (GASS), a large Arecibo program that measured the Hi properties for an unbiased sample of ∼800 galaxies with stellar masses greater than 10 10 M ⊙ and redshifts 0.025 < z < 0.05. This release includes new Arecibo observations for 250 galaxies. We use the full GASS sample to investigate environmental effects on the cold gas content of massive galaxies at fixed stellar mass. The environment is characterized in terms of dark matter halo mass, obtained by cross-matching our sample with the SDSS group catalog of Yang et al. Our analysis provides, for the first time, clear statistical evidence that massive galaxies located in halos with masses of 10 13 −10 14 M ⊙ have at least 0.4 dex less Hi than objects in lower density environments. The process responsible for the suppression of gas in group galaxies most likely drives the observed quenching of the star formation in these systems. Our findings strongly support the importance of the group environment for galaxy evolution, and have profound implications for semi-analytic models of galaxy formation, which currently do not allow for stripping of the cold interstellar medium in galaxy groups.

We present new Herschel-SPIRE imaging spectroscopy (194-671 µm) of the bright starburst galaxy M82. Covering the CO ladder from J = 4 → 3 to J = 13 → 12, spectra were obtained at multiple positions for a fully sampled ∼ 3 x 3 arcminute map, including a longer exposure at the central position. We present measurements of 12 CO, 13 CO, [C I], [N ii], HCN, and HCO + in emission, along with OH + , H 2 O + and HF in absorption and H 2 O in both emission and absorption, with discussion. We use a radiative transfer code and Bayesian likelihood analysis to model the temperature, density, column density, and filling factor of multiple components of molecular gas traced by 12 CO and 13 CO, adding further evidence to the high-J lines tracing a much warmer (∼ 500 K), less massive component than the low-J lines. The addition of 13 CO (and [C I]) is new and indicates that [C I] may be tracing different gas than 12 CO. No temperature/density gradients can be inferred from the map, indicating that the single-pointing spectrum is descriptive of the bulk properties of the galaxy. At such a high temperature, cooling is dominated by molecular hydrogen. Photon-dominated region (PDR) models require higher densities than those indicated by our Bayesian likelihood analysis in order to explain the high-J CO line ratios, though cosmic-ray enhanced PDR models can do a better job reproducing the emission at lower densities. Shocks and turbulent heating are likely required to explain the bright high-J emission.