Submillimetre-wave surveys: first results and prospects

The population of distant dusty submm-luminous galaxies was first detected last year (Smail, Ivison and Blain 1997). Forms of evolution required to account for both this population and the intensity of background radiation have now been determined (Blain, Smail, Ivison and Kneib 1998), and are used to investigate the most efficient observing strategies for future surveys