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Dust and Diffuse Interstellar Bands in the z{sub a} = 0.524 Absorption System toward AO 0235+164

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/829700· OSTI ID:829700
The authors present new HST STIS NUV-MAMA and STIS CCD observations of the BL Lac object AO 0235+164 and the intervening damped Ly {alpha} (DLA) line at z{sub {alpha}} = 0.524. The line profile gives N(HI) = 5 {+-} 1 x 10{sup 21} cm{sup -2} and, combined with the H I 21 cm absorption data leads to a spin temperature of Ts = 220 K {+-} 60 K. Those spectra also show a strong, broad feature at the expected position of the 2175 {angstrom} graphitic dust feature at z{sup {alpha}} = 0.524. Assuming a Galactic type dust extinction curve at z{sub {alpha}} = 0.524 gives a dust-to-gas ratio of 0.19 Galactic, but the fit, assuming the underlying, un-reddened spectrum is a single power-law, is poor in the far-UV. A dust-to-gas ratio of 0.19 Galactic is similar to the LMC, but the AO 0235+164 spectrum does not fit the LMC extinction curve, or the SMC extinction curve (which has practically no 2175 {angstrom} feature). A possible interpretation includes dust similar to Galactic, but with less of the small particles that produce the far-UV extinction. The metallicity of the z{sub {alpha}} = 0.524 absorber, estimated from the observed N(HI) and excess X-ray absorption (beyond Galactic) derived from contemporaneous and archival ASCA and ROSAT.
Research Organization:
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Menlo Park, CA (US)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (US)
DOE Contract Number:
AC03-76SF00515;
OSTI ID:
829700
Report Number(s):
SLAC-PUB-10599
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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