Related papers: The Interstellar Medium of our Galaxy
The interstellar medium (ISM) is the material that fills the space between the stars in all galaxies; it is a multi-phase medium in pressure equilibrium, with densities and temperatures covering over 6 orders of magnitude. Although…
The physical properties and kinematics of the partially ionized interstellar material near the Sun are typical of warm diffuse clouds in the solar vicinity. The interstellar magnetic field at the heliosphere and the kinematics of nearby…
Stellar halos may hold some of the best preserved fossils of the formation history of galaxies. They are a natural product of the merging processes that probably take place during the assembly of a galaxy, and hence may well be the most…
The interstellar medium (ISM) of galaxies very often contains a gas component that reaches the temperature of several million degrees, whose physical and chemical properties can be investigated through imaging and spectroscopy in the…
In this chapter, we give an overview of the major components of the interstellar medium (ISM) in galaxies at a level appropriate for upper level undergraduates or beginning graduate students. We discuss the major constituents of the the ISM…
We use a series of high-resolution N-body simulations of a `Milky-Way' halo, coupled to semi-analytic techniques, to study the formation of our own Galaxy and of its stellar halo. Our model Milky Way galaxy is a relatively young system…
We use a series of high-resolution simulations of a `Milky-Way' halo coupled to semi-analytic methods to study the formation of our own Galaxy and of its stellar halo. The physical properties of our model Milky Way, as well as the age and…
This article reviews observations and models of the diffuse ionized gas that permeates the disk and halo of our Galaxy and others. It was inspired by a series of invited talks presented during an afternoon scientific session of the 65th…
The interstellar medium of galaxies is composed of multiple phases, including molecular, atomic, and ionized gas, as well as dust. Stars are formed within this medium from cold molecular gas clouds, which collapse due to their gravitational…
An overview is presented of the main properties of the interstellar medium. Evidence is summarized that the interstellar medium is highly turbulent, driven on different length scales by various energetic processes. Large-scale turbulence…
The interstellar medium is the engine room for galactic evolution. While much is known about the conditions within the ISM, many important areas regarding the formation and evolution of the various phases of the ISM leading to star…
The formation of stars, particularly the high-mass star formation, poses several still open questions. Nowadays, thanks to the most modern telescopes and instruments, we are able to observe and analyse many physical and chemical processes…
We review the present observational knowledge on the spatial distribution and the physical state of the different (molecular, atomic and ionized) components of the interstellar gas in the innermost 3 kpc of our Galaxy -- a region which we…
Because of the dynamic nature of the interstellar medium, the Sun should have encountered a variety of different interstellar environments in its lifetime. As the solar wind interacts with the surrounding interstellar medium to form a…
The flux of neutrinos and photons originating from cosmic ray interactions with the interstellar medium in the galaxy is calculated based on current models for high energy particle interactions. The contribution from a possible dark matter…
This paper describes some interesting properties of waves in, and oscillations of, the interstellar medium in the direction normal to the plane of the Galaxy. Our purpose is to examine possible reasons for four observed phenomena: the…
The intergalactic medium - the cosmic gas that fills the great spaces between the galaxies - is affected by processes ranging from quantum fluctuations in the very early universe to radiative emission from newly-formed stars. This gives the…
The definition of nearby star systems is incomplete without an understanding of the dynamical interaction between the stars and ambient interstellar material. The Sun itself has been immersed in the Local Bubble interior void for millions…
This review describes our current understanding of interstellar extinction. This differ substantially from the ideas of the 20th century. With infrared surveys of hundreds of millions of stars over the entire sky, such as 2MASS,…
Speculations that encounters with interstellar clouds modify the terrestrial climate have appeared in the scientific literature for over 85 years. This article introduces a series of articles that seek to give substance to these…