Is the temperature of the interstellar medium stratified like that in the solar atmosphere?
Abstract
Under the assumption that the Galactic ISM is plane-parallel stratified, the equation of radiative transfer is inverted in order to calculate the source function Q for soft X-ray emission perpendicular to the plane. Q is found to increase strongly as a function of optical depth. The gradient of Q can be expressed as a temperature gradient when Q is approximately identified with the Planck function. A rough value for this gradient is 40,000 K/pc. This result supports the idea of a Galactic halo.
- Publication:
-
Kleinheubacher Berichte
- Pub Date:
- 1991
- Bibcode:
- 1991KlBer..34..399H
- Keywords:
-
- Interstellar Matter;
- Stratification;
- Temperature Gradients;
- X Ray Sources;
- Halos;
- Radiative Transfer;
- Solar Atmosphere;
- Temperature Dependence;
- Astrophysics