A Corona Australis cloud filament seen in NIR scattered light

Context. LDN 1642 is a rare example of a star-forming, high-latitude molecular cloud. The dust emission of LDN 1642 has already been studied extensively in the past, but its location also makes it a good target for studies of light scattering. Aims. We wish to study the near-infrared (NIR) light scattering in LDN 1642, its correlation with the cloud structure, and the ability of dust models to simultaneously explain observations of sub-millimetre dust emission, NIR extinction, and NIR scattering. Methods. We used observations made with the HAWK-I instrument to measure the NIR surface brightness and extinction in LDN 1642. These data were compared with Herschel observations of dust emission and, with the help of radiative transfer modelling, with the predictions calculated for different dust models. Results. We find, for LDN 1642, an optical depth ratio τ(250 μm)∕τ(J) ≈ 10−3, confirming earlier findings of enhanced sub-millimetre emissivity. The relationships between the column density derived from dust emission and the NIR colour excesses are linear and consistent with the shape of the standard NIR extinction curve. The extinction peaks at AJ = 2.6 mag, and the NIR surface brightness remains correlated with N(H2) without saturation. Radiative transfer models are able to fit the sub-millimetre data with any of the tested dust models. However, these predict an NIR extinction that is higher and an NIR surface brightness that is lower than based on NIR observations. If the dust sub-millimetre emissivity is rescaled to the observed value of τ(250 μm)∕τ(J), dust models with high NIR albedo can reach the observed level of NIR surface brightness. The NIR extinction of the models tends to be higher than in the direct extinction measurements, which is also reflected in the shape of the NIR surface brightness spectra. Conclusions. The combination of emission, extinction, and scattering measurements provides strong constraints on dust models. The observations of LDN 1642 indicate clear dust evolution, including a strong increase in the sub-millimetre emissivity, which has not been fully explained by the current dust models yet.

This paper presents the first results from a comparison of Planck dust maps at 353, 545 and 857 GHz, along with IRAS data at 3000 (100 m) and 5000 GHz (60 m), with Green Bank Telescope 21-cm observations of H i in 14 fields covering more than 800 deg 2 at high Galactic latitude. The main goal of this study is to estimate the far-infrared to sub-millimeter (submm) emissivity of dust in the diffuse local interstellar medium (ISM) and in the intermediate-velocity (IVC) and high-velocity clouds (HVC) of the Galactic halo. Galactic dust emission for fields with average H i column density lower than 2 10 20 cm -2 is well correlated with 21-cm emission because in such diffuse areas the hydrogen is predominantly in the neutral atomic phase. The residual emission in these fields, once the H i-correlated emission is removed, is consistent with the expected statistical properties of the cosmic infrared background fluctuations. The brighter fields in our sample, with an average H i column density greater than 2 10 20 cm -2 , show significant excess dust emission compared to the H i column density. Regions of excess lie in organized structures that suggest the presence of hydrogen in molecular form, though they are not always correlated with CO emission. In the higher H i column density fields the excess emission at 857 GHz is about 40% of that coming from the H i, but over all the high latitude fields surveyed the molecular mass faction is about 10%. Dust emission from IVCs is detected with high significance by this correlation analysis. Its spectral properties are consistent with, compared to the local ISM values, significantly hotter dust (T 20 K), lower submm dust opacity normalized per H-atom, and a relative abundance of very small grains to large grains about four times higher. These results are compatible with expectations for clouds that are part of the Galactic fountain in which there is dust shattering and fragmentation. Correlated dust emission in HVCs is not detected; the average of the 99.9% confidence upper limits to the emissivity is 0.15 times the local ISM value at 857 and 3000 GHz, in accordance with gas phase evidence for lower metallicity and depletion in these clouds. Unexpected anti-correlated variations of the dust temperature and emission cross-section per H atom are identified in the local ISM and IVCs, a trend that continues into molecular environments. This suggests that dust growth through aggregation, seen in molecular clouds, is active much earlier in the cloud condensation and star formation processes.

This paper reports on the effect of artificial aging on the machinability of Al-7Si-Mg (A356) cast alloys for the as-received alloy, solution heat-treated (SHT) alloy and then aged SHT alloy at 155, 180, and 220˚C, respectively. The influence of heat treatment on the machinability of the alloys studied was considered using innovative criteria such as dust emission. The effect of various lubrication modes including dry, mist, and wet process, as well as cutting speed and feed rate, was also investigated. The results obtained from the statistically designed experiments indicate that at the same cutting conditions, the A356-T7 heat treatment generates less dust emission level compared to other various heat treatments (there is 32%less airborne swarf produced than with A356-T6). Aging at low temperature was observed to produce the greatest level of the dust emission while the aging at higher temperatures is accompanied by a reduction in the dust emission level. Fracture surface analysis using scanning electron microscope, has shown that dust emission levels were strongly dependent on the nature of the fracture surface of the alloys studied, with different heat treatments. A change in chip formation was also found to be a function of age hardening and dust emission during machining of the tested aluminum alloy. A correlation was established between the cutting speed, the feed rate, and the dust emission, which is useful for determining the conditions required for minimal dust emission.

Context. Light scattering at near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths has been used to study the optical properties of the interstellar dust grains, but these studies are limited by the assumptions on the strength of the radiation field. On the other hand, thermal dust emission can be used to constrain the properties of the radiation field, although this is hampered by uncertainty about the dust emissivity. Aims. Combining light scattering and emission studies allows us to probe the properties of the dust grains in detail. We wish to study if current dust models allow us to model a molecular cloud simultaneously in the NIR and far-infrared (FIR) wavelengths and compare the results with observations. Our aim is to place constraints on the properties of the dust grains and the strength of the radiation field. Methods. We present computations of dust emission and scattered light of a quiescent molecular cloud LDN1512. We use NIR observations covering the J, H, and KS bands, and FIR observations between 250 and 500 μm from the Herschel space telescope. We constructed radiative transfer models for LDN1512 that include an anisotropic radiation field and a three-dimensional cloud model. Results. We are able to reproduce the observed FIR observations, with a radiation field derived from the DIRBE observations, with all of the tested dust models. However, with the same density distribution and the assumed radiation field, the models fail to reproduce the observed NIR scattering in all cases except for models that take into account dust evolution via coagulation and mantle formation. The intensity from the diffuse interstellar medium like, dust models can be increased to match the observed one by reducing the derived density, increasing the intensity of the background sky and the strength of the radiation field between factors from two to three. We find that the column densities derived from our radiative transfer modelling can differ by a factor of up to two, compared to the column densities derived from the observations with modified blackbody fits. The discrepancy in the column densities is likely caused because of a temperature difference between a modified blackbody fit and the real spectra. The difference between the fitted temperature and the true temperature could be as high as ΔT = +1.5 K. Conclusions. We show that the observed dust emission can be reproduced with several different assumptions about the properties of the dust grains. However, in order to reproduce the observed scattered surface brightness, dust evolution must be taken into account.

Aims. We have explored the capabilities of dust extinction and γ rays to probe the properties of the interstellar medium in the nearby anti-centre region. In particular, we aim at quantifying the variations of the dust properties per gas nucleon across the different gas phases and different clouds. The comparison of dust extinction and emission properties with other physical quantities of large grains (emission spectral index β, dust colour temperature Tdust, total-to-selective extinction factor RV) helps the theoretical modelling of grains as they evolve from diffuse to dense cloud environments. Methods. We have jointly modelled the γ-ray intensity, recorded between 0.4 and 100 GeV with the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT), and the stellar reddening, E(B − V), inferred from Pan-STARRS and 2MASS photometry, as a combination of HI-bright, CO-bright, and ionised gas components. The complementary information from dust reddening and γ rays is used to reveal the gas not seen, or poorly traced, by HI, free-free, and 12CO emissions, namely (i) the opaque HI and diffuse H2 present in the dark neutral medium (DNM) at the atomic-molecular transition, and (ii) the dense H2 to be added where 12CO lines saturate (COsat). We compare the total gas column densities, NH, derived from the γ rays and stellar reddening with those inferred from a similar, previously published analysis of γ rays and of the optical depth of the thermal dust emission, τ353, at 353 GHz. We can therefore compare environmental variations in specific dust reddening, E(B − V)∕NH, and in dust emission opacity (dust optical depth per gas nucleon), τ353∕NH. Results. The gas column densities obtained when combining γ rays with either dust reddening or dust emission compare reasonably well in the atomic and DNM gas phases and over most of the CO-bright phase, but we find localised differences in the dense media (COsat component) due to differences in the two dust tracers. Over the whole anti-centre region, we find an average E(B − V)∕NH ratio of (2.02 ± 0.48) ×10−22 mag cm2, with maximum local variations of about ± 30% at variance with the two to six fold coincident increase seen in emission opacity as the gas column density increases. We show how the specific reddening and opacity vary with the colour temperature and spectral index of the thermal emission of the large grains. Additionally, we find a better agreement between the XCO = N(H2)/WCO conversion factors derived with dust reddening or with γ rays than with those inferred from dust emission, especially towards clouds with large τ353 optical depths. The comparison confirms that the high XCO values found with dust emission are biased by the significant rise in emission opacity inside molecular clouds. Conclusions. In the diffuse medium, we find only small variations in specific reddening, E(B − V)∕NH, compatible with the dispersion in the RV factor reported by other studies. This implies a relatively uniform dust-to-gas mass ratio in the diffuse parts of the anti-centre clouds. The small amplitude of the E(B − V)∕NH variations with increasing NH column density confirms that the large opacity τ353∕NH rise seen towards dense CO clouds is primarily due to changes in dust emissivity. The environmental changes are qualitatively compatible with model predictions based on mantle accretion on the grains and the formation of grain aggregates.

We report a study of the relation between dust and gas over a 100 deg2 area in the Taurus molecular cloud. We compare the H2 column density derived from dust extinction with the CO column density derived from the 12CO and 13CO J = 1 → 0 lines. We derive the visual extinction from reddening determined from 2MASS data. The comparison is done at an angular size of 200'' corresponding to 0.14 pc at a distance of 140 pc. We find that the relation between visual extinction A V and N(CO) is linear between A V 3 and 10 mag in the region associated with the B213-L1495 filament. In other regions, the linear relation is flattened for A V 4 mag. We find that the presence of temperature gradients in the molecular gas affects the determination of N(CO) by ~30%-70% with the largest difference occurring at large column densities. Adding a correction for this effect and accounting for the observed relation between the column density of CO and CO2 ices and A V, we find a linear relationship between the column of carbon monoxide and dust for observed visual extinctions up to the maximum value in our data 23 mag. We have used these data to study a sample of dense cores in Taurus. Fitting an analytical column density profile to these cores we derive an average volume density of about 1.4 × 104 cm–3 and a CO depletion age of about 4.2 × 105 yr. At visual extinctions smaller than ~3 mag, we find that the CO fractional abundance is reduced by up to two orders of magnitude. The data show a large scatter suggesting a range of physical conditions of the gas. We estimate the H2 mass of Taurus to be about 1.5 × 104 M , independently derived from the A V and N(CO) maps. We derive a CO integrated intensity to H2 conversion factor of about 2.1 × 1020 cm–2 (K km s–1)–1, which applies even in the region where the [CO]/[H2] ratio is reduced by up to two orders of magnitude. The distribution of column densities in our Taurus maps resembles a log-normal function but shows tails at large and low column densities. The length scale at which the high column density tail starts to be noticeable is about 0.4 pc.

Context. The scarcity of spectroscopic data with a high signal-to-noise ratio in the interstellar medium between 20 and 100 μm has led to the development of several dust models with distinct dust properties that are poorly constrained in this broad wavelength range. Some of them require the presence of graphites, whereas others consider small amorphous or small aromatic carbon grains, with various dust sizes. Aims. We aim to constrain the dust emission in the mid- to far-infrared domain in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) for the first time with the use of the Spitzer IRS and MIPS spectral energy distribution (SED) data, combined with Herschel data. We also consider ultraviolet extinction predictions derived from modeling. Methods. We selected ten regions that were observed as part of the SAGE-Spec program (PI: F. Kemper) to probe dust properties in various environments (diffuse, molecular, and ionized regions). All data were smoothed to the 40″ angular resolution before we extracted the dust emission spectra and photometric data. The SEDs were modeled with dust models available in the DustEM package, using the standard Mathis radiation field, as well as three additional radiation fields, with stellar clusters ages ranging from 4 Myr to 600 Myr. Results. Previous analyses of molecular clouds in the LMC have reasonably well reproduced the SEDs of the different phases of the clouds constructed from near- to far-infrared photometric data using the DustEM models. However, only by using spectroscopic data and by changing the dust abundances and size distributions in comparison with our Galaxy we were able to derive new constraints on the small- grain component. Standard dust models (with free dust abundances) that were used to reproduce the Galactic diffuse medium are clearly not able to reproduce the dust emission in the mid-infrared wavelength domain. This analysis shows the need of adjusting the parameters describing the dust size distribution, which shows a clearly distinct behavior depending on the type of environment. In addition, whereas the small-grain emission always seems to be negligible at long wavelengths in our Galaxy, the contribution of this small-dust component might be stronger than expected in the submillimeter to millimeter range in the LMC-averaged SED. Conclusions. The properties of the small-dust component of the LMC are clearly different from those of our Galaxy. Its abundance, which is significantly enhanced, might be the result of the shattering of large grains through strong shocks or turbulence. In addition, this grain component in the LMC systematically shows smaller grain sizes in the ionized regions than in the diffuse medium. Predictions of extinction curves show significantly distinct behaviors depending on the dust models, but they are also different from one region to the next. A comparison of model predictions with the LMC mean extinction curve shows that no model agrees satisfactorily when the Mathis radiation field is used, but a harder radiation field tends to improve the agreement.

To test the theoretical understanding that finding bright CO emission depends\nprimarily on dust shielding, we investigate the relationship between CO\nemission ($I_{\\rm CO}$) and the amount of dust (estimated from IR emission and\nexpressed as "$A_V$") across the Large Magellanic Cloud, the Small Magellanic\nCloud, and the Milky Way. We show that at our common resolution of 10 pc\nscales, $I_{\\rm CO}$ given a fixed line-of-sight $A_V$ is similar across all\nthree systems despite the difference in metallicity. We find some evidence for\na secondary dependence of $I_{\\rm CO}$ on radiation field; in the LMC, $I_{\\rm\nCO}$ at a given $A_V$ is smaller in regions of high $T_{\\rm dust}$, perhaps\nbecause of an increased photodissociating radiation field. We suggest a simple\nbut useful picture in which the CO-to-H$_2$ conversion factor (\\xco) depends on\ntwo separable factors: (1) the distribution of gas column densities, which maps\nto an extinction distribution via a dust-to-gas ratio; and (2) the dependence\nof $I_{\\rm CO}$ on $A_V$. Assuming that the probability distribution function\n(PDF) of local Milky Way clouds is universal, this approach predicts a\ndependence of \\xco\\ on $Z$ between $Z^{-1}$ and $Z^{-2}$ above about a third\nsolar metallicity. Below this metallicity, CO emerges from only the high column\ndensity parts of the cloud and so depends very sensitively on the adopted PDF\nand the H$_2$/{\\sc Hi} prescription. The PDF of low metallicity clouds is thus\nof considerable interest and the uncertainty associated with even an ideal\nprescription for \\xco\\ at very low metallicity will be large.\n

Context. The far-infrared (FIR) and sub-millimeter (submm) emissivity, ϵν, of the Milky Way (MW) cirrus is an important benchmark for dust grain models. Dust masses in other galaxies are generally derived from the FIR/submm using the emission properties of these MW-calibrated models. Aims. We seek to derive the FIR/submm ϵν in nine nearby spiral galaxies to check its compatibility with MW cirrus measurements. Methods. We obtained values of ϵν at 70–500 μm, using maps of dust emission from the Herschel satellite and of gas surface density from the THINGS and HERACLES surveys on a scale generally corresponding to 440 pc. We studied the variation of ϵν with the surface brightness ratio Iν(250 μm)/Iν(500 μm), a proxy for the intensity of the interstellar radiation field heating the dust. Results. We find that the average value of ϵν agrees with MW estimates for pixels sharing the same color as the cirrus, namely, for Iν(250 μm)/Iν(500 μm)=4.5. For Iν(250 μm)/Iν(500 μm)> 5, the measured emissivity is instead up to a factor ∼2 lower than predicted from MW dust models heated by stronger radiation fields. Regions with higher Iν(250 μm)/Iν(500 μm) are preferentially closer to the galactic center and have a higher overall (stellar+gas) surface density and molecular fraction. The results do not depend strongly on the adopted CO-to-molecular conversion factor and do not appear to be affected by the mixing of heating conditions. Conclusions. Our results confirm the validity of MW dust models at low density, but are at odds with predictions for grain evolution in higher density environments. If the lower-than-expected ϵν at high Iν(250 μm)/Iν(500 μm) is the result of intrinsic variations in the dust properties, it would imply an underestimation of the dust mass surface density of up to a factor ∼2 when using current dust models.

Results are presented for one-dimensional numerical hydrodynamics computations of the structure and evolution of Lya forest clouds gravitationally confined by dark matter minihalos. The clouds are developed from linear perturbations at high redshift and exposed to either a QSO- or galaxy-dominated metagalactic radiation field at moderate redshifts. While the emphasis is on spherical systems, slab symmetry is also considered. Three zones may be identified in a collapsed cloud: (1) a quasi-hydrostatic core in thermal equilibrium, (2) a nonhydrostatic intermediate zone out of thermal equilibrium, and (3) a cosmological accretion layer joining onto the Hubble expansion. Most of the measured Lya forest column densities arise in the intermediate zone. The development of the core would result in a flattening in the column density distribution near an HI column density of 10**15-10**16 cm**-2. The cloud diameters corresponding to an HI column density of 10**14 cm**-2 lie in the range 10-60 kpc, while systems with column densities exceeding 10**15 cm**-2 have diameters smaller than 10 kpc. Systems with circular velocities exceeding 50 km/s result in clouds which contract until they become Jeans unstable and collapse. The critical column density for collapse is 10**17-10**18 cm**-2. A mild correlation of Doppler parameter with neutral hydrogen column density is found in several models for systems with column densities less than 10**13.5 cm**-2, with Doppler parameters occurring as low as b > 20 km/s for 10**13 cm**-2 column density systems. No lines with b < 15 km/s are found.

Dust is an important tracer of the structure of interstellar clouds, as well as a central factor in the thermal balance and chemistry of the clouds. Our knowledge of the dust properties is nevertheless incomplete, especially regarding the dense star-forming clouds. The aim is to study dust evolution in the Orion Molecular Cloud 3 (OMC-3) and how uncertainty regarding dust properties affects estimates of the radiation field and the cloud mass. We constructed three-dimensional radiative transfer (RT) models to fit the far-infrared (FIR) observations of dust emission in the OMC-3 field and used near-infrared (NIR) extinction measurements as additional constraints. We examined fits to the dense star-forming filaments and to the surrounding cloud, including some tests with spatial dust property variations. The 160-250,μm observations of dust emission could be fitted moderately well with any of the dust models tested, but few models are consistent with the measured NIR extinction. The best match to observations is found with dust models such as the THEMIS model of large porous grains, with or without ice mantles, and with mean grain sizes up to ∼ 0.3,μm. The flattening of the NIR extinction curve excludes larger grain sizes, except possibly in the central ridge. Compared to models of lower column density clouds, the results were relatively insensitive to the line-of-sight (LOS) cloud size and the spectral shape of the heating radiation field. In addition, the effect of embedded stars remained very localised in OMC-3. The results suggest that the dust in the OMC-3 region is evolved with a grain of average size a=0.1-0.3,μm, potentially with ice mantles.

The far-infrared dust emission seen by the IRAS satellite in the Orion region is analyzed as a function of the local radiation field intensity, and the dust temperature and opacity are compared with (C-12)O and (C-13)O emission. The infrared radiation is interpreted within the framework of a single-component large grain model and a multicomponent grain model consisting of subpopulations of grains with size-dependent temperatures. A strong dependence of the 100-micron optical depth derived is found using the large grain model on the average line-of-sight dust temperature and radiation field. In the hot environment surrounding high-luminosity sources and H II regions, all dust along the line-of-sight radiates at 100 microns, and the dust-to-gas ratio, based on the 100-micron opacity and I(/C-13/O), appears to be in agreement with the standard value, about 1 percent by mass. A relationship is found between the inferred dust-to-gas ratio and the radiation field intensity responsible for heating the dust which can be used to estimate the gas column density from the dust opacity derived from the 60- and 100-micron IRAS fluxes.

Introduction to a Special Issue of Aeolian Research Airborne mineral dust contaminants: Impacts on human health and the environment.

The Planck and Herschel missions are currently measuring the far-infrared to millimeter emission of dust, which combined with existing IR data, will for the first time provide the full spectral energy distribution (SED) of the galactic interstellar medium dust emission, from the mid-IR to the mm range, with an unprecedented sensitivity and down to spatial scales ~30″. Such a global SED will allow a systematic study of the dust evolution processes (e.g. grain growth or fragmentation) that directly affect the SED because they redistribute the dust mass among the observed grain sizes. The dust SED is also affected by variations of the radiation field intensity. Here we present a versatile numerical tool, DustEM, that predicts the emission and extinction of dust grains given their size distribution and their optical and thermal properties. In order to model dust evolution, DustEM has been designed to deal with a variety of grain types, structures and size distributions and to be able to easily include new dust physics. We use DustEM to model the dust SED and extinction in the diffuse interstellar medium at high-galactic latitude (DHGL), a natural reference SED that will allow us to study dust evolution. We present a coherent set of observations for the DHGL SED, which has been obtained by correlating the IR and HI-21 cm data. The dust components in our DHGL model are (i) polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; (ii) amorphous carbon and (iii) amorphous silicates. We use amorphous carbon dust, rather than graphite, because it better explains the observed high abundances of gas-phase carbon in shocked regions of the interstellar medium. Using the DustEM model, we illustrate how, in the optically thin limit, the IRAS/Planck HFI (and likewise Spitzer/Herschel for smaller spatial scales) photometric band ratios of the dust SED can disentangle the influence of the exciting radiation field intensity and constrain the abundance of small grains (a ≲ 10 nm) relative to the larger grains. We also discuss the contributions of the different grain populations to the IRAS, Planck (and similarly to Herschel) channels. Such information is required to enable a study of the evolution of dust as well as to systematically extract the dust thermal emission from CMB data and to analyze the emission in the Planck polarized channels. The DustEM code described in this paper is publically available.

This paper presents an all-sky model of dust emission from the Planck 353, 545, and 857 GHz, and IRAS 100 m data. Using a modified blackbody fit to the data we present all-sky maps of the dust optical depth, temperature, and spectral index over the 353-3000 GHz range. This model is a good representation of the IRAS and Planck data at 5 between 353 and 3000 GHz (850 and 100 m). It shows variations of the order of 30% compared with the widely-used model of Finkbeiner, Davis, and Schlegel. The Planck data allow us to estimate the dust temperature uniformly over the whole sky, down to an angular resolution of 5 , providing an improved estimate of the dust optical depth compared to previous all-sky dust model, especially in high-contrast molecular regions where the dust temperature varies strongly at small scales in response to dust evolution, extinction, and/or local production of heating photons. An increase of the dust opacity at 353 GHz, 353 /N H , from the diffuse to the denser interstellar medium (ISM) is reported. It is associated with a decrease in the observed dust temperature, T obs , that could be due at least in part to the increased dust opacity. We also report an excess of dust emission at H column densities lower than 10 20 cm -2 that could be the signature of dust in the warm ionized medium. In the diffuse ISM at high Galactic latitude, we report an anticorrelation between 353 /N H and T obs while the dust specific luminosity, i.e., the total dust emission integrated over frequency (the radiance) per hydrogen atom, stays about constant, confirming one of the Planck Early Results obtained on selected fields. This effect is compatible with the view that, in the diffuse ISM, T obs responds to spatial variations of the dust opacity, due to variations of dust properties, in addition to (small) variations of the radiation field strength. The implication is that in the diffuse high-latitude ISM 353 is not as reliable a tracer of dust column density as we conclude it is in molecular clouds where the correlation of 353 with dust extinction estimated using colour excess measurements on stars is strong. To estimate Galactic E(B -V) in extragalactic fields at high latitude we develop a new method based on the thermal dust radiance, instead of the dust optical depth, calibrated to E(B-V) using reddening measurements of quasars deduced from Sloan Digital Sky Survey data.