Galactic Extinction Research Articles

We present a new model of interstellar dust in which large grains are a single composite material, “astrodust,” and nanoparticle-sized grains come in distinct varieties including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). We argue that a single-composition model for grains larger than ∼0.02 μm most naturally explains the lack of frequency dependence in the far-infrared (FIR) polarization fraction and the characteristic ratio of optical to FIR polarization. We derive a size distribution and alignment function for 1.4:1 oblate astrodust grains that, with PAHs, reproduce the mean wavelength dependence and polarization of Galactic extinction and emission from the diffuse interstellar medium while respecting constraints on solid-phase abundances. All model data and Python-based interfaces are made publicly available.

Wide-field searches for young stellar objects (YSOs) can place useful constraints on the prevalence of clustered versus distributed star formation. The Spitzer/IRAC Candidate YSO (SPICY) catalog is one of the largest compilations of such objects (∼120,000 candidates in the Galactic midplane). Many SPICY candidates are spatially clustered, but, perhaps surprisingly, approximately half the candidates appear spatially distributed. To better characterize this unexpected population and confirm its nature, we obtained Palomar/DBSP spectroscopy for 26 of the optically bright (G < 15 mag) “isolated” YSO candidates. We confirm the YSO classifications of all 26 sources based on their positions on the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram, H and Ca ii line emission from over half the sample, and robust detection of infrared excesses. This implies a contamination rate of <10% for SPICY stars that meet our optical selection criteria. Spectral types range from B4 to K3, with A-type stars being the most common. Spectral energy distributions, diffuse interstellar bands, and Galactic extinction maps indicate moderate-to-high extinction. Stellar masses range from ∼1 to 7 M ⊙, and the estimated accretion rates, ranging from 3 × 10−8 to 3 × 10−7 M ⊙ yr−1, are typical for YSOs in this mass range. The 3D spatial distribution of these stars, based on Gaia astrometry, reveals that the “isolated” YSOs are not evenly distributed in the Solar neighborhood but are concentrated in kiloparsec-scale dusty Galactic structures that also contain the majority of the SPICY YSO clusters. Thus, the processes that produce large Galactic star-forming structures may yield nearly as many distributed as clustered YSOs.

Abstract We have made a lot of progress in the study of the MW. In spite of this, much of our Galaxy remains unknown, and amazing breakthroughs await to be made in the exploration of the far side of the Galaxy. Focussing on the Galactic extinction horizon problem with current surveys like the Two Micron All-Sky Survey (2MASS) and the Vista Variables in the Via Lactea Survey (VVV) and its extension VVVX, the extinction horizon is a fundamental difficulty, and it is my intention here to reveal how profound is our ignorance, and also to try to suggest ways for improvement with future near-IR Galactic surveys.

Quasars behind the Galactic plane (GPQs) are important astrometric references and valuable probes of Galactic gas, yet the search for GPQs is difficult due to severe extinction and source crowding in the Galactic plane. In this paper, we present a sample of 204 spectroscopically confirmed GPQs at ∣b∣ < 20°, 191 of which are new discoveries. This GPQ sample covers a wide redshift range from 0.069 to 4.487. For the subset of 230 observed GPQ candidates, the lower limit of the purity of quasars is 85.2%, and the lower limit of the fraction of stellar contaminants is 6.1%. Using a multicomponent spectral fitting, we measure the emission line and continuum flux of the GPQs, and estimate their single-epoch virial black hole masses. Due to selection effects raised from Galactic extinction and target magnitude, these GPQs have higher black hole masses and continuum luminosities in comparison to the SDSS DR7 quasar sample. The spectral-fitting results and black hole mass estimates are compiled into a main spectral catalog, and an extended spectral catalog of GPQs. The successful identifications prove the reliability of both our GPQ selection methods and the GPQ candidate catalog, shedding light on the astrometric and astrophysical programs that make use of a large sample of GPQs in the future.

Precise correction of dust reddening is fundamental to obtain the intrinsic parameters of celestial objects. The Schlegel et al. (SFD) and the Planck 2D extinction maps are widely used for reddening correction. In this work, using accurate reddening determinations of about 2 million stars from the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) Data Release 5 and Gaia DR2, we check and calibrate the SFD and Planck maps in the middle and high Galactic latitudes. The maps show similar precision in reddening correction. We find small yet significant spatially dependent biases for the four maps, which are similar between the SFD and Planck2014-R maps, and between the Planck2014-Tau and Planck2019-Tau maps. The biases show a clear dependence on the dust temperature and extinction for the SFD and Planck2014-R maps. While those of the Planck2014-Tau and Planck2019-Tau maps have a weak dependence on the dust temperature, they both strongly depend on the dust spectral index. Finally, we present corrections of the SFD and Planck extinction maps within the LAMOST footprint, along with empirical relations for corrections outside the LAMOST footprint. Our results provide important clues for the further improvement of the Galactic all-sky extinction maps and lay a significant foundation for accurate extinction correction in the era of precision astronomy.

Abstract While it is well recognized that both the Galactic interstellar extinction curves and the gas-phase abundances of dust-forming elements exhibit considerable variations from one sight line to another, as yet most of the dust extinction modeling efforts have been directed to the Galactic average extinction curve, which is obtained by averaging over many clouds of different gas and dust properties. Therefore, any details concerning the relationship between the dust properties and the interstellar environments are lost. Here we utilize the wealth of extinction and elemental abundance data obtained by space telescopes and explore the dust properties of a large number of individual sight lines. We model the observed extinction curve of each sight line and derive the abundances of the major dust-forming elements (i.e., C, O, Si, Mg, and Fe) required to be tied up in dust (i.e., dust depletion). We then confront the derived dust depletions with the observed gas-phase abundances of these elements and investigate the environmental effects on the dust properties and elemental depletions. It is found that for the majority of the sight lines the interstellar oxygen atoms are fully accommodated by gas and dust and therefore there does not appear to be a “missing oxygen” problem. For those sight lines with an extinction-to-hydrogen column density A V /N H ≳ 4.8 × 10−22 mag cm2 H−1 there are shortages of C, Si, Mg, and Fe elements for making dust to account for the observed extinction, even if the interstellar C/H, Si/H, Mg/H, and Fe/H abundances are assumed to be protosolar abundances augmented by Galactic chemical evolution.

Abstract We report on the extinction properties in the fields around the clusters NGC 1854, NGC 1856, and NGC 1858 in the bar of the Large Magellanic Cloud. The color–magnitude diagrams of the stars in all these regions show an elongated red giant clump that reveals a variable amount of extinction across these fields, ranging from A V ≃ 0.2 to A V ≃ 1.9, including Galactic foreground extinction. The extinction properties nonetheless are remarkably uniform. The slope of the reddening vectors measured in the (V − I, V) and (B − I, B) color–magnitude planes is fully in line with the A V /E(B − V) ≃ 5.5 value found in the outskirts of 30 Dor. This indicates the presence of an additional gray extinction component in the optical requiring big grains to be about twice as abundant as in the diffuse Galactic interstellar medium (ISM). Areas of higher extinction appear to be systematically associated with regions of more intense star formation, as measured by the larger number of stars more massive than 8 M ⊙, thus making injection of big grains into the ISM by a SNII explosion the likely mechanism at the origin of the observed gray extinction component.

Abstract The high cosmological precision offered by the next generation of galaxy surveys hinges on improved corrections for Galactic dust extinction. We explore the possibility of estimating both the dust extinction and large-scale structure from a single photometric galaxy survey, making use of the predictable manner in which Milky Way dust affects the measured brightness and colors of galaxies in a given sky location in several redshift bins. To test our method, we use a synthetic catalog from a cosmological simulation designed to model the Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time. At high Galactic latitude (∣b∣ ≳ 20°) and a resolution of 1° ( 7 ′ ), we predict the uncertainty in the measurement of dust extinction, E(B − V), to be 0.005 mag (0.015 mag). This is similar to the uncertainty of existing dust maps, illustrating the feasibility of our method. Simultaneous estimation of large-scale structure is predicted to recover the galaxy overdensity δ with a precision of ∼0.01 (∼0.05) at 1° ( 7 ′ ) resolution. We also introduce a Bayesian formalism that combines prior information from existing dust maps with the likelihood of Galactic dust extinction determined from the excursion of observed galaxy properties.

Abstract There is a long-standing discrepancy between the observed Galactic classical nova rate of ∼10 yr−1 and the predicted rate from Galactic models of ∼30–50 yr−1. One explanation for this discrepancy is that many novae are hidden by interstellar extinction, but the degree to which dust can obscure novae is poorly constrained. We use newly available all-sky three-dimensional dust maps to compare the brightness and spatial distribution of known novae to that predicted from relatively simple models in which novae trace Galactic stellar mass. We find that only half (53%) of the novae are expected to be easily detectable (g ≲ 15) with current all-sky optical surveys such as the All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN). This fraction is much lower than previously estimated, showing that dust does substantially affect nova detection in the optical. By comparing complementary survey results from the ASAS-SN, OGLE-IV, and Palomar Gattini IR surveys using our modeling, we find a tentative Galactic nova rate of ∼30 yr−1, though this could be as high as ∼40 yr−1, depending on the assumed distribution of novae within the Galaxy. These preliminary estimates will be improved in future work through more sophisticated modeling of nova detection in ASAS-SN and other surveys.

Context. Globular clusters (GCs) in the Milky Way (MW) bulge are very difficult to study for the following reasons: (i) they suffer from the severe crowding and Galactic extinction, which are characteristic of these inner Galactic regions; (ii) they are more prone to the effects of dynamical processes. Therefore, they are relatively faint and difficult to map. However, deep, near-infrared photometry like that provided by the VISTA variables in the Via Láctea Extended Survey (VVVX) allows us to map GCs in this crucial yet relatively uncharted region. Aims. Our main goals are to study the true nature of the GC candidates FSR 19 and FSR 25 and measure their physical parameters. Methods. We used the near-infrared VVVX database, in combination with the Two Micron All Sky Survey and Gaia EDR3 proper motions (PMs) and photometry to study ages, metallicities, distances, reddening, mean PMs, sizes, and integrated luminosities for FSR 19 and FSR 25. A robust combination of selection criteria allowed us to effectively clean interlopers among our samples. Results. Our results confirm with a high level of confidence that both FSR 19 and FSR 25 are genuine MW bulge GCs. Each of the performed tests and resulting parameters provide clear evidence of the GC nature of these targets. We derive distances of 7.2 ± 0.7 kpc and D = 7.0 ± 0.6 (corresponding to distance moduli of 14.29 ± 0.08 and 14.23 ± 0.07) for FSR 19 and FSR 25, respectively. Their ages and metallicities are 11 Gyr and [Fe/H] = −0.5 dex for both clusters, which were determined from Dartmouth and PARSEC isochrone fitting. The integrated luminosities are MKs(FSR 19) = −7.72 mag and MKs(FSR 25) = −7.31 mag, which places them in the faint tail of the GC luminosity function. By adopting a King profile for their number distribution, we determine their core and tidal radii (rc, rt). For FSR 19, rc = 2.76 ± 0.36 pc and rt = 5.31 ± 0.49 pc, while FSR 25 appears more extended with rc = 1.92 ± 0.59 pc and rt = 6.85 ± 1.78 pc. Finally, their mean GC PMs (from Gaia EDR3) are μα* = −2.50 ± 0.76 mas yr−1, μδ = −5.02 ± 0.47 mas yr−1 for FSR 19 and μα* = −2.61 ± 1.27 mas yr−1, μδ = −5.23 ± 0.74 mas yr−1 for FSR 25. Conclusion. We demonstrate and confirm, based on the measured astrophysical parameters, that the two target clusters are indeed genuine and of low luminosity relatively metal-rich old GCs in the bulge of the MW.

Abstract We present a deep far and near-ultraviolet (FUV and NUV) wide-field imaging survey of galaxies in the Bootes void using the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope on board AstroSat. Our data reach 5σ limiting magnitudes for point sources at 23.0 and 24.0 AB mag in the FUV and NUV, respectively. We report a total of six star-forming galaxies residing in the Bootes void alongside the full catalog, and of these, three are newly detected in our FUV observation. Our void galaxy sample spans a range of UV colors (−0.35 mag ≤ FUV−NUV ≤ 0.68 mag) and absolute magnitudes (−14.16 mag ≤ M NUV ≤ −18.65 mag). In addition, Sloan Digital Sky Survey and Two Micron All Sky Survey archival data are being used to study UV, optical, and infrared color–magnitude relations for our galaxies in the void. We investigate the nature of bimodal color distribution, morphologies, and star formation of the void galaxies. Most of the galaxies in our sample are fainter and less massive than L* galaxies, with M r &gt; −20 mag. Our analysis reveals a dominant fraction of bluer galaxies over the red ones in the void region probed. The internal and Galactic extinction corrected FUV star formation rates (SFRs) in our void galaxy catalog varies in a large range of 0.05–51.01 M ⊙ yr−1, with a median of 3.96 M ⊙ yr−1. We find a weak effect of the environment on the SFRs of galaxies. Implications of our findings are discussed.

The distribution of visual interstellar extinction \(A_V\) has been mapped in selected areas over the Northern sky, using available LAMOST DR5 and Gaia DR2/EDR3 data. \(A_V\) was modelled as a barometric function of galactic latitude and distance. The function parameters were then approximated by spherical harmonics. The resulting analytical tridimensional model of the interstellar extinction can be used to predict \(A_V\) values for stars with known parallaxes, as well as the total Galactic extinction in a given location in the sky.

ABSTRACT We use a sample of 78 340 star-forming galaxies at z ≃ 0.04–0.1 from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) data release (DR8) survey to calculate the average nebular dust attenuation curve and its variation with the physical properties of galaxies. Using the first four low-order Balmer emission lines (H α, H β, H γ, and H δ) detected in the composite spectrum of all galaxies in the sample, we derive a nebular attenuation curve in the range of 0.41 to $0.66\, \mu$m that has a similar shape and normalization to that of the Galactic extinction curve (Milky Way curve), the SMC curve and the nebular attenuation curve derived recently for typical star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 2. We divide the galaxies into bins of stellar mass, gas-phase metallicity, and specific star formation rate, and derive the nebular attenuation curve in each of these bins. This analysis indicates that there is very little variation in the shape of the nebular dust attenuation curve with the properties used to bin the galaxies, and suggests a near universal shape of the nebular dust attenuation curve at least among the galaxies and the range of properties considered in our sample.

Previous studies of the galaxy and galaxy cluster distribution in the local Universe found indications for a large extension of the Local Supercluster up to a radius of 190 h70−1 Mpc. We are using our large and highly complete CLASSIX survey of X-ray luminous galaxy clusters detected in the ROSAT All Sky Survey to trace the matter distribution in the local Universe and to explore the size of the flattened local density structure associated with the Local Supercluster. The Local Supercluster is oriented almost perpendicular to the Galactic plane. Since Galactic extinction increases towards the Galactic plane, objects are on average more easily visible perpendicular to the plane than close to it, also producing an apparent concentration of objects along the Local Supercluster. We can correct for this bias by a careful treatment of the survey selection function. We find a significant overdensity of clusters in a flattened structure along the Supergalactic plane with a thickness of about 50 Mpc and an extent of about 100 Mpc radius. Structures at a distance larger than 100 Mpc are not correlated to the Local Supercluster any more. The matter density contrast of the local superstructure to the surroundings is about a factor of 1.3−2.3. Within the Supergalactic plane the matter is concentrated mostly in two superclusters, the Perseus-Pices Chain and Hydra-Centaurus supercluster. We have shown in our earlier work that the local Universe in a region with a radius of 100−170 Mpc has a lower density than the cosmic mean. For this reason, the Local Supercluster is not overdense with respect to the cosmic mean density. Therefore this local superstructure will not collapse as a whole in the future, but rather fragment.

We present a new method for the mitigation of observational systematic effects in angular galaxy clustering through the use of corrective random galaxy catalogues. Real and synthetic galaxy data from the Kilo Degree Survey’s (KiDS) 4th Data Release (KiDS-1000) and the Full-sky Lognormal Astro-fields Simulation Kit package, respectively, are used to train self-organising maps to learn the multivariate relationships between observed galaxy number density and up to six systematic-tracer variables, including seeing, Galactic dust extinction, and Galactic stellar density. We then create ‘organised’ randoms; random galaxy catalogues with spatially variable number densities, mimicking the learnt systematic density modes in the data. Using realistically biased mock data, we show that these organised randoms consistently subtract spurious density modes from the two-point angular correlation function w(ϑ), correcting biases of up to 12σ in the mean clustering amplitude to as low as 0.1σ, over an angular range of 7 − 100 arcmin with high signal-to-noise ratio. Their performance is also validated for angular clustering cross-correlations in a bright, flux-limited subset of KiDS-1000, comparing against an analogous sample constructed from highly complete spectroscopic redshift data. Each organised random catalogue object is a clone carrying the properties of a real galaxy, and is distributed throughout the survey footprint according to the position of the parent galaxy in systematics space. Thus, sub-sample randoms are readily derived from a single master random catalogue through the same selection as applied to the real galaxies. Our method is expected to improve in performance with increased survey area, galaxy number density, and systematic contamination, making organised randoms extremely promising for current and future clustering analyses of faint samples.

ABSTRACT We use near-infrared (J − K) colours of bright 2MASS galaxies, measured within a 7- arcsec-radius aperture, to calibrate the Schlegel, Finkbeiner &amp; Davis DIRBE/IRAS Galactic extinction map at low Galactic latitudes (|b| &amp;lt; 10°). Using 3460 galaxies covering a large range in extinction (up to AK$=1{_{.}^{\rm m}}15$ or E(B − V) $\simeq 3{_{.}^{\rm m}}19$), we derive a correction factor f = 0.83 ± 0.01 by fitting a linear regression to the colour-extinction relation, confirming that the Schlegel et al. maps overestimate the extinction. We argue that the use of only a small range in extinction (e.g., AK$\lt 0{_{.}^{\rm m}}4$) increases the uncertainty in the correction factor and may overestimate it. Our data confirm the Fitzpatrick extinction law for the J- and K-band. We also tested four all-sky extinction maps based on Planck satellite data. All maps require a correction factor as well. In three cases, the application of the respective extinction correction to the galaxy colours results in a reduced scatter in the colour-extinction relation, indicating a more reliable extinction correction. Finally, the large galaxy sample allows an analysis of the calibration of the extinction maps as a function of Galactic longitude and latitude. For all but one extinction map, we find a marked offset between the Galactic Centre and Anticentre region, but not with the dipole of the cosmic microwave background. Based on our analysis, we recommend the use of the GNILC extinction map by Planck Collaboration XLVIII with a correction factor f = 0.86 ± 0.01.

Abstract We use a sample of 532 star-forming galaxies at redshifts z ≃ 1.4–2.6 with deep rest-frame optical spectra from the MOSFIRE Deep Evolution Field (MOSDEF) survey to place the first constraints on the nebular attenuation curve at high redshift. Based on the first five low-order Balmer emission lines detected in the composite spectra of these galaxies (Hα through ), we derive a nebular attenuation curve that is similar in shape to that of the Galactic extinction curve, suggesting that the dust covering fraction and absorption/scattering properties along the lines of sight to massive stars at high redshift are similar to those of the average Milky Way sight line. The curve derived here implies nebular reddening values that are, on average, systematically larger than those derived for the stellar continuum. In the context of stellar population synthesis models that include the effects of stellar multiplicity, the difference in reddening of the nebular lines and stellar continuum may imply molecular cloud crossing timescales that are a factor of longer than those inferred for local molecular clouds, star formation rates that are constant or increasing with time such that newly formed and dustier OB associations always dominate the ionizing flux, and/or that the dust responsible for reddening the nebular emission may be associated with nonmolecular (i.e., ionized and neutral) phases of the interstellar medium. Our analysis points to a variety of investigations of the nebular attenuation curve that will be enabled with the next generation of ground- and space-based facilities.

ABSTRACT We have detected a broad interstellar absorption band centred close to 7700 Å and with a full width at half-maximum (FWHM) of 176.6 ± 3.9 Å. This is the first such absorption band detected in the optical range and is significantly wider than the numerous diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs). It remained undiscovered until now because it is partially hidden behind the A telluric band produced by O2. The band was discovered using STIS@HST spectra and later detected in a large sample of stars of diverse type (OB stars, BA supergiants, red giants), using further STIS and ground-based spectroscopy. The EW of the band is measured and compared with our extinction and K i λλ7667.021, 7701.093 measurements for the same sample. The carrier is ubiquitous in the diffuse and translucent Galactic interstellar medium (ISM) but is depleted in the environment around OB stars. In particular, it appears to be absent or nearly so in sightlines rich in molecular carbon. This behaviour is similar to that of the σ-type DIBs, which originate in the low/intermediate-density UV-exposed ISM but are depleted in the high-density UV-shielded molecular clouds. We also present an update on our previous work on the relationship between E(4405–5495) and R5495 and incorporate our results into a general model of the ISM.

ABSTRACT We have started an ambitious program to determine if the full diversity of extinction laws is real or if some of it is due to calibration or methodological issues. Here we start by analysing the information on near-infrared (NIR) extinction in a Two Micron All-Sky Survey (2MASS) stellar sample with good quality photometry and very red colours. We calculate the extinction at 1 μm, A1, and the power-law exponent, α (Aλ = A1λ−α), for the 2MASS stars located in the extinction trajectory in the H − K versus J − H plane expected for red giants with A1 &amp;gt; 5 mag. We test the validity of the assumption about the nature of those stars, whether a single or multiple values of α are needed, and the spatial variations of the results. Most (∼83 per cent) of those stars can indeed be explained by high-extinction red giants and the rest are composed of extinguished asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars (mostly O-rich), blended sources, and smaller numbers of other objects, a contaminant fraction that can be reduced with the help of Gaia Data Release 2 (DR2) data. Galactic red giants experience a NIR extinction with α ∼ 2.27 and an uncertainty of a few hundredths of a magnitude. There is no significant spread in α even though our sample is widely distributed and has a broad range of extinctions. Differences with previous results are ascribed to the treatment of non-linear photometric effects and/or the contaminant correction. Future research should concentrate in finding the correct functional form for the NIR extinction law. In the appendix, we detail the treatment of non-linear photometric effects in the 2MASS bands.

ABSTRACT We evaluate the impact of imaging systematics on the clustering of luminous red galaxies (LRG), emission-line galaxies (ELG), and quasars (QSO) targeted for the upcoming Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) survey. Using Data Release 7 of the DECam Legacy Survey, we study the effects of astrophysical foregrounds, stellar contamination, differences between north galactic cap and south galactic cap measurements, and variations in imaging depth, stellar density, galactic extinction, seeing, airmass, sky brightness, and exposure time before presenting survey masks and weights to mitigate these effects. With our sanitized samples in hand, we conduct a preliminary analysis of the clustering amplitude and evolution of the DESI main targets. From measurements of the angular correlation functions, we determine power law fits $r_0 = 7.78 \pm 0.26\, h^{-1}$Mpc, γ = 1.98 ± 0.02 for LRGs and $r_0 = 5.45 \pm 0.1\, h^{-1}$Mpc, γ = 1.54 ± 0.01 for ELGs. Additionally, from the angular power spectra, we measure the linear biases and model the scale-dependent biases in the weakly non-linear regime. Both sets of clustering measurements show good agreement with survey requirements for LRGs and ELGs, attesting that these samples will enable DESI to achieve precise cosmological constraints. We also present clustering as a function of magnitude, use cross-correlations with external spectroscopy to infer dN/dz and measure clustering as a function of luminosity, and probe higher order clustering statistics through counts-in-cells moments.