Dust in the Galactic Environment

Dust is a ubiquitous feature of the cosmos, impinging directly or indirectly on most fields of modern astronomy and astrophysics. This book provides a thorough overview of the subject, covering general concepts, methods of investigation, important results and their significance, relevant literature, and some suggestions for promising avenues of future research.
Since the publication of the first edition of this popular graduate text, major advances have been made in our understanding of astrophysical dust, especially in the light of exciting new results from space and ground-based telescopes, together with advances in laboratory astrophysics and theoretical modelling. This new, expanded edition highlights the latest results and provides a context for future research opportunities.
The first chapter provides a historical perspective for current research, together with an overview of interstellar environments and the role of dust in astrophysical processes. Chapter 2 discusses the cosmic history of the chemical elements expected to be present in dust, and examines the effect of gas-dust interactions on gas phase abundances. Chapters 3-6 describe the observed properties of interstellar grains, i.e., their extinction, polarization, absorption and emission characteristics. Chapters 7-9, discuss the origin and evolution of the dust, tracing its life cycle in a succession of environments from circumstellar shells to diffuse interstellar clouds, molecular clouds, protostars and protoplanetary disks. The final chapter summarizes progress toward a unified model. Dust in other galaxies is discussed as an integral part of the text rather than as a distinct topic requiring separate chapters.
Containing extensive references and problems to aid understanding and illustrate basic principles, the book is ideally suited for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses. It will also be an invaluable reference for postgraduate students and researchers working in this important field.

• Dust in the Galaxy: Our view from within.
• Abundances and depletions.
• Extinction and scattering.
• Polarization and grain alignment.
• Infrared absorption features.
• Continuum and line emission.
• Dust in stellar ejecta.
• Evolution of dust in the interstellar medium.
• The early phases of stellar evolution.
• Towards a unified model for interstellar dust.
• Appendices.
• References.
• Index