Penetration of diffuse ultraviolet radiation into interstellar clouds

Journal Article · Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 1980 · Astrophys. J.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1086/157778· OSTI ID:5406768

Flannery, B P; Roberge, W; Rybicki, G B

We show that the solution of the transfer equation appropriate for models of the penetration of diffuse UV radiation into interstellar clouds, subject to attenuation by coherent, nonconservative, anisotropic scattering from grains, can be expressed analytically, with arbitrary accuracy, by means of the spherical harmonics method. Models of plane-parallel and homogeneous spherical clouds are given as functions of three parameters: tau/sub c/ the central optical depth, ..omega.. the single scattering albedo, and g the parameter in the Henyey-Greenstein phase function. These models qualitatively confirm the results of earlier Monte Carlo simulations of dust scattering, but reveal quantitative discrepancies: the earlier results overestimated the actual mean intensity, often by more than an order of magnitude.

• Research Organization: Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
• OSTI ID: 5406768
• Journal Information: Astrophys. J.; (United States), Vol. 236:2
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
INTERSTELLAR GRAINS
ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION
ATTENUATION
BOUNDARY CONDITIONS
COSMIC DUST
INTERSTELLAR SPACE
LEGENDRE POLYNOMIALS
OPACITY
RADIATION TRANSPORT
SCATTERING
SPHERICAL HARMONICS METHOD
DUSTS
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
FUNCTIONS
OPTICAL PROPERTIES
PARTICLES
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
POLYNOMIALS
RADIATIONS
SPACE
640105* - Astrophysics & Cosmology- Galaxies