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NASA NTRS1995

Interstellar Dust Connections to Interplanetary Dust

The organic component of the interstellar medium, which has revealed itself through the ubiquitous 3.4 micrometer hydrocarbon absorption feature, is widespread throughout the disk of our galaxy and has been attributed to dust grains residing in the diffuse interstellar medium. The absorption band positions near 3.4 micrometers are characteristic of C-H stretching vibrations in the -CH3 and -CH2- groups of saturated aliphatic hydrocarbons associated with perturbing chemical groups. The production of complex molecules is thought to occur within dense molecular clouds when ice- mantled grains are processed by various energetic mechanisms. Studies of the processing of interstellar ices and the subsequent production of organic residues have relevance to studies of interplanetary dust, because primitive solar system bodies are likely reservoirs of organic material, either preserved from the interstellar medium or produced in situ. A comparison of the interstellar organics and the Murchison meteorite illustrates the importance of probing the interstellar connection to the solar system, because although the carbonaceous meteorites are undoubtedly highly processed, they do retain specific interstellar signatures (such as diamonds, SiC grains, graphite and enriched D/H). The organic component, while not proven interstellar, has a remarkable similarity to the interstellar organics observed in over a dozen sightlines through our galaxy. This paper compares spectra from laboratory organics produced through the processing of interstellar ice analog materials with the high resolution infrared observations of the interstellar medium in order to investigate the mechanisms (such as ion bombardment, plasma processing, and UV photolysis) that may be producing the organics in the ISM. Comparisons to interplanetary dust particles, comets, and meteorites are discussed.

Pendleton, Y. J.↗

NASA NTRS1978

Helium glow detector experiment, MA-088

Of the two 584 A channels in the helium glow detector, channel #1 appeared to provide data with erratic count rates and undue susceptibility to dayglow and solar contamination possibly because of filter fatigue or failure. Channel #3 data appear normal and of high quality. For this reason only data from this last channel was analyzed and used for detailed comparison with theory. Reduction and fitting techniques are described, as well as applications of the data in the study of nighttime and daytime Hel 584 A emission. A hot model of the interstellar medium is presented. Topics covered in the appendix include: observations of interstellar helium with a gas absorption cell: implications for the structure of the local interstellar medium; EUV dayglow observations with a helium gas absorption cell; and EUV scattering from local interstellar helium at nonzero temperatures: implications for the derivations of interstellar medium parameters.

Bowyer, C. S.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Formation of the dark bays in the Crab optical synchrotron nebula - Is the Crab pulsar wind bubble interacting with its progenitor's wind?

Models are presented for the formation of the two dark bays in the Crab optical synchrotron nebula, from which the optical synchrotron-emitting particles seem to be excluded. It is proposed that the bays are formed by the advance of the Crab pulsar's wind bubble into an ambient medium possessing a stratified density distribution with higher density in the plane of the bays than in other directions. The ambient density and degree of stratification required to produce the bays depends on whether the medium consists of a general interstellar medium, a progenitor stellar wind, or fast-moving supernova ejecta. In the case of an interstellar medium, the bays would be expected to move apart much more slowly than observed, and the required density would have to be implausibly high. It is concluded that the pulsar wind bubble is probably interacting with the slow wind from its progenitor, and it is shown that bays formed in this way agree with the observations reasonably well.

Li, Zhi-Yun↗

NASA NTRS1994

Ultraviolet spectra of quenched carbonaceous composite derivatives: Comparison to the '217 nanometer' interstellar absorption feature

QCCs (quenched carbonaceous composite) are amorphus carbonaceous material formed from a hydrocarbon plasma. We present the UV-visible spectra of 'filmy QCC; (obtained outside of the beam ejected from the hydrocarbon plasma) and 'dark QCC' (obtained very near to the beam) for comparison to the stellar extinction curve. When filmy QCC is heated to 500-700 C (thermally altered), the wavelength of the absorption maximum increases form 204 nm to 220-222 nm. The dark QCC has an absorption maximum at 217-222 nm. In addition, the thermally altered filmy QCC has a slope change at about 500 nm which resmbles that in the interstellar extinction curve. The resemblance of the extinction curve of the QCCs to that of the interstellar medium suggests that QCC derivatives may be representative of the type of interstellar material that produces the 217 nm interstellar medium feature. The peak extinction of the dark QCC is higher than the average interstellar extinction curve while that of the thermally altered filmy QCC is lower, so that a mixture of dark and thermally altered filmy QCC can match the peak extinction observed in the interstellar medium. It is shown from electron micrographs that most of the thermally altered flimy QCC is in the form of small grainy structure less than 4 nm in diameter. This shows that the structure unit causing the 217-222 nm feature in QCC is very small.

Sakata, Akira↗

NASA NTRS1982

Chemical evolution of OB associations

It is determined that the existence of Al-26 and Pd-107 in meteorites in the early solar system indicates that our solar system probably formed inside an OB association that had been contaminated by the debris of at least one supernova. In addition to these radioactive tracers, the contamination of the material out of which the solar system formed would have significantly enriched the heavy element composition of the solar system relative to that of the average interstellar medium. It is found that the solar system would be enriched in those isotopes which are produced by the more massive stars, such as O-16, C-12, Ne-20, and some other r-process material. It is proposed that specific isotopic ratios and elemental ratios reflecting these differences would include the Ne-20/Ne-22 ratio, which would be higher in the solar system than in the interstellar medium and the cosmic rays, the C-12/C-13 ratio which would be higher in the solar system than in the interstellar medium, and the oxygen-to-carbon ratio, which would also be higher in the solar system than in the typical interstellar medium.

Schramm, D. N.↗

NASA NTRS2020

Carbon isotope evidence for the substrates and mechanisms of prebiotic synthesis in the early solar system

Meteorites contain prebiotic, bio-relevant organic compounds including amino acids. Their syntheses could result from diverse sources and mechanisms and provide a window on the conditions and materials present in the early solar system. Here we constrain alanine’s synthetic history in the Murchison meteorite using site-specific 13C/12C measurements, reported relative to the VPDB standard. The δ13CVPDB values of −29 ± 10‰, 142 ± 20‰, and −36 ± 20‰ for the carboxyl, amine-bound, and methyl carbons, respectively, are consistent with Strecker synthesis of interstellar-medium-derived aldehydes, ammonia, and low-δ13C nebular or interstellar-medium-derived CN. We report experimentally measured isotope effects associated with Strecker synthesis, and use them to constrain the δ13C values of the alanine precursors, which we then use to construct a model that predicts the molecular-average δ13C values of 19 other organic compounds of prebiotic significance found in Murchison if they were made by our proposed synthetic network. Most of these predictions agree with previous measurements, suggesting that interstellar-medium-derived aldehydes and nebular and/or pre-solar CN could have served as substrates for synthesis of a wide range of prebiotic compounds in the early solar system.

L.Chimiak↗

NASA NTRS1975

Particles and fields in the outer solar system

Use of the MJS77 and MJU missions to perform on site studies of the outer heliosphere and the local interstellar medium is discussed. Subjects for investigation are described, including fluctuations and instabilities of the solar wind in the outer solar system, profiles of the interstellar medium, and interactions between the solar wind and the interstellar medium. On site studies of interstellar cosmic rays are proposed, in particular obtaining interstellar spectra of cosmic ray nuclei and electrons and determining the cosmic-ray modulation region of the heliosphere. The general goals and requirements of the MJS77 and MJU missions are outlined.

Vogt, R. E.↗

NASA NTRS1999

A Plasma Instability Theory of Gamma-Ray Burst Emission

A plasma instability theory is presented for the prompt radiation from gamma-ray bursts. In the theory, a highly relativistic shell interacts with the interstellar medium through the filamentation and the two-stream instabilities to convert bulk kinetic energy into electron thermal energy and magnetic field energy. The processes are not efficient enough to satisfy the Rankine-Hugoniot conditions, so a shock cannot form through this mechanism. Instead, the interstellar medium passes through the shell, with the electrons radiating during this passage. Gamma-rays are produced by synchrotron self-Compton emission. Prompt optical emission is also produced through this mechanism, while prompt radio emission is produced through synchrotron emission. The model timescales are consistent with the shortest burst timescales. To emit gamma-rays, the shell's bulk Lorentz factor must be $\simg 10(exp 3)$. For the radiative processes to be efficient, the interstellar medium density must satisfy a lower limit that is a function of the bulk Lorentz factor. Because the limits operate as selection effects, bursts that violate them constitute new classes. In particular, a class of optical and ultraviolet bursts with no gamma-ray emission should exist. The lower limit on the density of the interstellar medium is consistent with the requirements of the Compton attenuation theory, providing an explanation for why all burst spectra appear to be attenuated. Several tests of the theory are discussed, as are the next theoretical investigations that should be conducted.

Brainerd, Jerome J.↗

NASA NTRS1984

X-ray astronomy and plasma astrophysics

X-ray astronomy studies of thin, thermal plasmas in stellar coronas, supernova remnants, and clusters of galaxies are reviewed. Plasma diagnostics for density, temperature and elemental abundance, as well as for departures from ionization equilibrium are described. These were used in analyses of data from imaging and spectroscopic intruments on the Einstein satellite. Results of these diagnostics were used to study the nature of coronal loops in RS CVn stars; the masses and abundances in Type I and Type II supernova remnants with implications for stellar evolution and the enrichment of the interstellar medium; the structure of the interstellar medium; the quantity and distribution of dark matter in galaxy halos; and the existence of cooling accretion flow in clusters.

Canizares, C. R.↗

NASA NTRS2003

Small-Scale Interstellar Structure Toward the Open Cluster CHI Persei-Fuse II

The purpose of this study was to measure the physical conditions of gas along sight lines toward 6 stars in the core Chi Persei open cluster. These sight lines traverse gas in both the Orion and Perseus spiral arms of the Galaxy, at distances of 500 and 2000 pc, respectively. The stars have angular separations ranging from 45 to 280 arcsec; 60 arcsec corresponds to linear distances of 0.15 and 0.6 pc in the two arms. Thus, abundance variations in these observations would constitute evidence for small-scale variations in the properties of the interstellar medium. Ground-based Na I observations at high resolution (approx. 15 km/sec) toward 172 stars (including the 6 in this study) in the double open cluster h and Chi Persei have revealed complex spatial variation. These variations are especially evident in the gas at velocities of -40 and -55 km/sec, corresponding to the Perseus spiral arm. 21 cm observations of HI emission using the Low Resolution DRAO Survey, with a 12-arcmin beam, also show variations. Averaging the Na I apparent optical depth profiles of neighboring sight lines in order to mimic such a beam size reduces the variation, as compared to the individual Na I measurements, but still show variations larger than seen in the 21 cm profiles. Na I is not the dominant ionization state of Na in the interstellar medium. Thus, it is possible that the variations seen really trace physical structures in the interstellar medium, or they may simply result from variations in the radiation field seen by the gas, or be due to some other environmental circumstance. To distinguish among these possibilities in the present study we obtained FUSE spectra toward the 6 targets in order to measure the molecular hydrogen absorption profiles along these sight lines. The higher J states of H2 are populated by the ambient W radiation field, and thus can provide insight into the environment affecting the gas. If both the high and low J states reveal absorption line profiles with variations similar to that observed in Na I, this would indicate that the variations are due to real structures in the interstellar medium. On the other hand, if the only the high J profiles mimicked the Na I profiles, then the variations may be attributable to environmental effects. We found that the H2 profiles showed considerable variation over the 6 sight lines, and that the profiles, despite having somewhat lower velocity resolution, resemble the Na I profiles. Thus, it appears that the gas really does exhibit variations in physical structures along these sight lines. Useful follow-up work would be to obtain higher signal-to-noise FUSE observations of H2, since the present data are of only moderate quality, and to obtain data on additional targets in this double cluster, in order to map out in more detail the extent and magnitude of the small-scale variations.

Sonneborn, George↗

NASA NTRS1987

Asymmetry of the heliosphere

The outflowing solar wind interacts with the local interstellar medium to form the heliospheric cavity within which the solar wind is supersonic. Because the interstellar medium is moving with respect to the sun, and because the solar wind has a latitude dependence, the heliosphere is asymmetric. The flow of the interstellar medium past the heliosphere produces an asymmetry because of the Bernoulli effect, which draws the heliosphere out in a direction orthogonal to the upstream-downstream axis, and because of a viscous interaction, which draws out the heliosphere downstream. A variety of cases are considered and the effects are found to be significant with, typically, the upstream direction having a heliospheric dimension that is 2/3 the downstream dimension. Suggestions have been put forth to the effect that a spacecraft penetration of the heliospheric shock wave may be imminent. Because one of the most distant spacecraft is moving roughly in the upstream direction relative to the interstellar flow, and the other is moving in the downstream direction, the distance to their encounters with the heliospheric shock may differ by as much as 40 AU.

Suess, S. T.↗

NASA NTRS1987

The Milky Way as a Galaxy

The physical conditions in the interstellar medium of the Milky Way are briefly reviewed. It is noted that the local interstellar medium shows relatively uniform abundances and dust/gas ratios; in fact recent measurements of the C-12/C-13 ratio indicate that the gas is homogeneous to better than 15 percent. Observations of external galaxies similar to the Milky Way can provide useful insight into the nature of the interstellar medium of the Galaxy.

Jura, M.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Circumstellar dust

The presence of dust in the general interstellar medium is inferred from the extinction, polarization, and scattering of starlight; the presence of dark nebulae; interstellar depletions; the observed infrared emission around certain stars and various types of interstellar clouds. Interstellar grains are subject to various destruction mechanisms that reduce their size or even completely destroy them. A continuous source of newly formed dust must therefore be present for dust to exist in the various phases of the interstellar medium (ISM). The working group has the following goals: (1) review the evidences for the formation of dust in the various sources; (2) examine the clues to the nature and composition of the dust; (3) review the status of grain formation theories; (4) examine any evidence for the processing of the dust prior to its injection into the interstellar medium; and (5) estimate the relative contribution of the various sources to the interstellar dust population.

Dwek, E.↗

NASA NTRS1973

Spectrophotometric results from the Copernicus satellite. III - Ionization and composition of the intercloud medium.

Interstellar lines have been studied in the unreddened stars lambda Sco, upsilon Sco, alpha Leo, and alpha Eri, which are located between 20 and 150 pc from the sun. The lines are on the linear and saturated Doppler portions of the curve of growth. Preliminary analysis shows that processes producing large amounts of highly ionized species are not dominant. Doubly ionized C, N, Si, and S have been detected, but are all quite weak relative to the singly ionized species. Abundances relative to nitrogen are in the cosmic ratios or slightly lower, with some indication of general depletion of the heavier elements. Hydrogen number densities range from a measured value of 0.22 per cu cm for lambda Sco to a derived value of 0.02 per cu cm for alpha Leo assuming nitrogen to have its solar abundance relative to hydrogen.

Rogerson, J. B.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Interstellar absorption lines in high-resolution IUE spectra of cataclysmic variables

High-resolution ultraviolet spectra of five cataclysmic variables obtained with the IUE are used to investigate the character of the interstellar medium in the vicinity of the sun. These spectra reveal narrow absorption features of neutral and singly ionized interstellar species, and, in SS Cyg, narrow velocity-shifted absorption features of C IV, Si IV, and Si III. Using the column densities implied by the absorption features of the neutral and singly ionized species, values for the depletion of Si, Mg, Mn, and Fe from the gas phase of the interstellar medium in the vicinity of the sun are obtained. These hydrogen column densities are of particular importance in constraining the soft X-ray luminosity of cataclysmic variables because of the severe attenuation of the soft X-ray flux of cataclysmic variables by photoelectric absorption in the interstellar medium. In addition, using the column densities implied by the absorption features of C IV, Si IV, and Si III in the spectrum of SS Cyg, the existence of an expanding H II region of interstellar gas photoionized by he EUV and soft X-ray flux of this cataclysmic variable are inferred.

Mauche, Christopher W.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Multifrequency Studies

The present report concerns the following projects 'Multifrequency observations of the BL Lacertae object MK 421"; "EUVE and multifrequency observations of the quasars 3C 273 and 3C 279"; "EUVE observations of the symbiotic star RAquarii"; and "Morphology of the local HI void and ionization of He in the local ISM". The common theme of the above projects is UV observations and analysis of a wide range of astrophysical classes or objects, from the diffuse interstellar medium, to symbiotic stars (R Aqr), to active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Understanding the local (primarily neutral hydrogen or HI) interstellar medium is of great importance to detecting nearby EUV sources. Specifically, the ionization of helium is strongly influencing the extinction in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and the optical depth can vary almost by an order of magnitude depending on the degree of ionization of various species including neutral helium Vel ) and singly ionized helium (Hell). The local interstellar medium (ISM) contains a giant void. Understanding the local ISM and the extent of the HI void engulfing the Sun is crucial to our understanding of the EUV emission from nearby strongly EUV-emitting stars like R Aqr, as well as subtracting local absorption effects from absorption effects in distant sources themselves such as quasars, BL Lacertae objects and AGNs in general. A compilation of known properties of the local ISM with appropriate references has been performed. R Aqr is a symbiotic stellar system comprised of a mass-losing approx.1 - 2 solar mass Mira- like long period variable with a 387 day period and a approx. solar mass,) hot companion/accretion disk that is believed to give rise to the symmetrical jet seen at UV, optical radio wavelengths. Recent observations of R Aqr have been conducted at continuum wavelengths with the Very Large Array (VLA) at 7 mm that have resolved the stellar components in RAqr and a geometrical distance of approx. 200pc has been obtained, confirming that R Aqr is the nearest symbiotic star system to the Sun. The status of the local ISM is, therefore, of great importance in attempting to understand the UV properties of the hot companion in R Aqr and its prominent jet. Here a multifrequency approach is required from both ground observations (e.g. with the VLA) as well as from space-borne observations (with the International Ultraviolet Explorer-IUE; and the Hubble Space Telescope-HST). The R Aqr jet has been observed with the VLA B-configuration at two epochs separated by approx. 13.2 yr. Comparison of the resulting 6 cm continuum images show that the radio jet has undergone a lateral counterclockwise rotation of approx. 6 deg - 12 deg on the plane of the sky. Comparison of the most recent radio image with a nearly contemporaneous HSTIFOC ultraviolet image at approx 2330 A suggests that the UV emission lies along the leading edge of the rotating radio jet.

Kafatos, Menas↗

NASA NTRS1990

Evidence against a simple two-component model for the far-infrared emission from galaxies

Two of the first Infrared Astronomy Satellite (IRAS) results were that galaxies have a wide range of values for the ratio of 60 micron to 100 micron flux density (0.2 less than or equal to S sub 60/S sub 100 less than or equal to 1.0) and that this ratio is correlated with L sub fir, L sub b, L sub fir being the total far-infrared luminosity and L sub b being the luminosity at visible wavelengths (de Jong et al. 1984; Soifer et al. 1984). From these results arose the following simple model for the far-infrared emission from galaxies (de Jong et al. 1984), which has remained the standard model ever since. In this model, the far-infrared emission comes from two dust components: warm dust (T approx. equals 50 K) intermingled with, and heated by, young massive OB stars in molecular clouds and HII regions, and colder dust (T approx. equals 20 K) associated with the diffuse atomic hydrogen in the interstellar medium and heated by the general interstellar radiation field. As the number of young stars in a galaxy increases, S sub 60/S sub 100 increases, because there is a greater proportion of warm dust, and so does L sub fir/L sub b, because most of the radiation from the young stars is absorbed by the dust, leading to a swifter increase in far-infrared emission than in visible light. Although this model explains the basic IRAS results, it is inelegant. It uses two free parameters to fit two data (the 60 and 100 micron flux densities)-and there are now several observations that contradict it. Despite these major problems with the two-component model, it is not clear what should be put in its place. When considering possible models for the far-infrared emission from galaxies, the observational evidence for our own galaxy must be considered. Researchers suspect that the study by Boulanger and Perault (1988) of the far-infrared properties of the local interstellar medium may be particularly relevant. They showed that molecular clouds are leaky - that most of the light from OB stars in molecular clouds does not heat the dust in the clouds, but instead leaks out. The consequence of this is that that while most of the far-infrared emission from the solar neighborhood is from dust associated with diffuse HI, this dust is mostly heated by young stars.

Eales, Stephen A.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Dust Destruction in the ISM: A Re-Evaluation of Dust Lifetimes

There is a long-standing conundrum in interstellar dust studies relating to the discrepancy between the time-scales for dust formation from evolved stars and the apparently more rapid destruction in supernova-generated shock waves. Aims. We re-examine some of the key issues relating to dust evolution and processing in the interstellar medium. Methods. We use recent and new constraints from observations, experiments, modelling and theory to re-evaluate dust formation in the interstellar medium (ISM). Results. We find that the discrepancy between the dust formation and destruction time-scales may not be as significant as has previously been assumed because of the very large uncertainties involved. Conclusions. The derived silicate dust lifetime could be compatible with its injection time-scale, given the inherent uncertainties in the dust lifetime calculation. The apparent need to re-form significant quantities of silicate dust in the tenuous interstellar medium may therefore not be a strong requirement. Carbonaceous matter, on the other hand, appears to be rapidly recycled in the ISM and, in contrast to silicates, there are viable mechanisms for its re-formation in the ISM.

Jones, A. P.↗