Year: 2013
Type: article
Abstract: We constrain the light extinction properties of Milky Way dust. We investigated the correlations between dust column density as inferred from infrared data and the observed colours of celestial objects at cosmological distances with low levels of colour dispersion. Results derived using colours of quasars, brightest central galaxies, and luminous red galaxies are broadly consistent, indicating a proportionality constant between the reddening E(B − V) ≡ AB − AV and the dust column density DT (given in units of MJy/sr) of p = E(B − V)/DT ~ 0.02 and a reddening parameter RV ≡ AV/E(B − V) ~ 3 with fractional uncertainties of approximately 10%. The data do not provide any evidence for spatial variations in the dust properties, except for a possible hint of scatter in the dust extinction properties at the longest optical wavelengths.
Source: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Author: E. Mörtsell
Institutions: Stockholm University, AlbaNova
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funders: National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Princeton University, Ohio State University, University of Washington, Johns Hopkins University, University of Pittsburgh, Case Western Reserve University, Drexel University, Universität Basel, University of Portsmouth, New Mexico State University, University of Cambridge, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Vetenskapsrådet, Max-Planck-Institut für Astrophysik, Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, U.S. Naval Observatory, Fermilab, Los Alamos National Laboratory
OpenAlex ID: W1995256740