• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.215-218
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• 2005

An atlas of high resolution (${\lambda}/{\Delta}{\lambda}$=45,000) profiles of interstellar atomic lines of K I (7665, 7699 ${\AA}$), Na I (D 1, D2), Ca II (H, K), Ca I (4227 ${\AA}$), molecular structures of CH, CH+, CN and the major diffuse interstellar bands at 5780 and 5797 ${\AA}$ based on ${\~}$300 echelle spectra of ${\~}$200 OB stars is presented. Relationships between the reddenings, distances and equivalent widths of NaI, CaII, KI, CH, CH+, CN and diffuse bands are discussed. The equivalent width of K I (7699 ${\AA}$) as well as of CH4300 ${\AA}$ / correlate very tightly with E(B- V) in contrast to the features of neutral sodium, ionized calcium and the molecular ion CH+. The equivalent widths of the Hand K lines of Call grow with distance at a rate ${\~}$250m${\AA}$ per 1 kpc. A similar relation for NaI is much less tight. The strengths of neutral potassium lines, molecular features and diffuse interstellar bands do not correlate practically with distance. These facts suggest that ionized calcium fills the interstellar space quite homogeneously while the other carriers mentioned above, especially K I, CH and these of diffuse bands occupy more and more compact volumes, also filled with dust grains. Apparently the carriers of narrow diffuse bands are spatially correlated with simple molecules and dust grains - all abundant in the so-called 'zeta' type clouds. The same environment seems to be hostile to the carriers of broad diffuse interstellar bands (DIEs) (like 5780 or 6284) and -to a certain extent - also to CaII, NaI and CH+.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.289-294
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• 2004

The main sources of interstellar dust are believed to be dust envelopes around AGB stars. The outflowing envelopes around the long period pulsating variables are very suitable place for massive dust formation. Oxygen-rich silicate dust grains or carbon-rich dust grains form in the envelopes around AGB stars depending on the chemical composition of the stellar surface. The dust grains expelled from AGB stars get mixed up and go through some physical and chemical changes in interstellar medium. There are similarities and differences between interstellar dust and dust grains in AGB stars. The mass cycle in the Galaxy may be best manifested by the fact that the dust grains at various regions have many similarities and understandable differences.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.77-81
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• 2017

A wide spectral coverage from near-infrared (NIR) to far-infrared (FIR) of AKARI both for imaging and spectroscopy enables us to efficiently study the emission from gas and dust in the interstellar medium (ISM). In particular, the Infrared Camera (IRC) onboard AKARI offers a unique opportunity to carry out sensitive spectroscopy in the NIR ($2-5{\mu}m$) for the first time from a spaceborn telescope. This spectral range contains a number of important dust bands and gas lines, such as the aromatic and aliphatic emission bands at 3.3 and $3.4-3.5{\mu}m$, $H_2O$ and $CO_2$ ices at 3.0 and $4.3{\mu}m$, CO, $H_2$, and H I gas emission lines. In this paper we concentrate on the aromatic and aliphatic emission and ice absorption features. The balance between dust supply and destruction suggests significant dust processing taking place as well as dust formation in the ISM. Detailed analysis of the aromatic and aliphatic bands of AKARI observations for a number of H ii regions and H ii region-like objects suggests processing of carbonaceous dust in the ISM. The ice formation process can also be studied with IRC NIR spectroscopy efficiently. In this review, dust processing in the ISM divulged by recent analysis of AKARI data is discussed.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.187-193
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• 2012

AKARI has 4 imaging bands in the far-infrared (FIR) and 9 imaging bands that cover the near-infrared (NIR) to mid-infrared (MIR) contiguously. The FIR bands probe the thermal emission from sub-micron dust grains, while the MIR bands observe emission from stochastically-heated very small grains and the unidentified infrared (UIR) band emissions from carbonaceous materials that contain aromatic and aliphatic bonds. The multi-band characteristics of the AKARI instruments are quite efficient to study the spectral energy distribution of the interstellar medium, which always shows multi-component nature, as well as its variations in the various environments. AKARI also has spectroscopic capabilities. In particular, one of the onboard instruments, Infrared Camera (IRC), can obtain a continuous spectrum from 2.5 to $13{\mu}m$ with the same slit. This allows us to make a comparative study of the UIR bands in the diffuse emission from the 3.3 to $11.3{\mu}m$ for the first time. The IRC explores high-sensitivity spectroscopy in the NIR, which enables the study of interstellar ices and the UIR band emission at $3.3-3.5{\mu}m$ in various objects. Particularly, the UIR bands in this spectral range contain unique information on the aromatic and aliphatic bonds in the band carriers. This presentation reviews the results of AKARI observations of the interstellar medium with an emphasis on the observations of the NIR spectroscopy.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.237-242
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• 2012

We have performed a systematic study of interstellar dust grains in various environments of galaxies. AKARI has revealed the detailed properties of dust grains not only in star-forming regions but also in regions not relevant to star formation, some of which are found not to follow our old empirical knowledge. Because of its unique capabilities, AKARI has provided new knowledge on the processing of large grains and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). For example, we detect PAHs from elliptical galaxies, which show unusual spectral features and spatial distributions, demonstrating importance of material processing in the interstellar space. We find that copious amounts of large grains and PAHs are flowing out of starburst galaxies by galactic superwinds, which are being shattered and destroyed in galactic haloes. We discover evidence for graphitization of carbonaceous grains near the center of our Galaxy, providing a clue to understanding the activity of the Galactic center. We review the results obtained from our AKARI program, focusing on the processing of carbonaceous grains in various environments of galaxies.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.56.3-56.3
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• 2017

The Breakthrough Starshot initiative aims to launch gram-scale spacecraft to a speed of v~0.2c, capable of reaching Alpha Centauri and seeing the Earth-like exoplanet, Proxima b, from close distance, in about 20 years. However, a critical challenge for the initiative is the effects of interstellar matter and magnetic field to the relativistic spacecraft during the journey. In this talk, I will first present our evaluation for the damage to the spacecraft by interstellar gas and dust based on a detailed analysis of the interaction of a relativistic spacecraft with the ISM. Second, I will discuss the deflection and oscillation of spacecraft by interstellar magnetic fields. Third, I will discuss the gas drag fore at high energy regime and quantify its effect on the slowing down of the relativistic lightsails. Finally, we will discuss practical strategies to mitigate the damage by interstellar dust and to maintain the spacecraft aiming at the intended target.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.193-197
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• 2004

Anomalies in the far-infrared [C II] 158 ${\mu}m$ line emission observed in the central one-kiloparsec regions of spiral galaxies are reviewed. Low far-infrared intensity ratios of the [C II] line to the continuum were observed in the center of the Milky Way, because the heating ratio of the gas to the dust is reduced by the soft interstellar radiation field due to late-type stars in the Galactic bulge. In contrast, such low line-to-continuum ratios were not obtained in the center of the nearby spiral M31, in spite of its bright bulge. A comparison with numerical simulations showed that a typical column density of the neutral interstellar medium between illuminating sources at $hv {\~} 1 eV $ is $N_H {\le}10^{21}\;cm^{-2}$ in the region; the medium is translucent for photons sufficiently energetic to heat the grains but not sufficiently energetic to heat the gas. This interpretation is consistent with the combination of the extremely high [C Il]/CO J = 1-0 line intensity ratios and the low recent star-forming activity in the region; the neutral interstellar medium is not sufficiently opaque to protect the species even against the moderately intense incident UV radiation. The above results were unexpected from classical views of the [C II] emission, which was generally considered to trace intense interstellar UV radiation enhanced by active star formation.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.117-122
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• 2012

The interstellar dust grains are formed and supplied to interstellar space from asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars or supernova remnants, and become constituents of the star- and planet-formation processes that lead to the next generation of stars. Both a qualitative, and a compositional study of this cycle are essential to understanding the origin of the pre-solar grains, the missing sources of the interstellar material, and the chemical evolution of our Galaxy. The AKARI/MIR all-sky survey was performed with two mid-infrared photometric bands centered at 9 and $18{\mu}m$. These data have advantages in detecting carbonaceous and silicate circumstellar dust of AGB stars, and the interstellar polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons separately from large grains of amorphous silicate. By using the AKARI/MIR All-Sky point source catalogue, we surveyed C-rich and O-rich AGB stars in our Galaxy, which are the dominant suppliers of carbonaceous and silicate grains, respectively. The C-rich stars are uniformly distributed across the Galactic disk, whereas O-rich stars are concentrated toward the Galactic center, following the metallicity gradient of the interstellar medium, and are presumably affected by the environment of their birth place. We will compare the distributions of the dust suppliers with the distributions of the interstellar grains themselves by using the AKARI/MIR All-Sky diffuse maps. To enable discussions on the faint diffuse interstellar radiation, we are developing an accurate AKARI/MIR All-Sky diffuse map by correcting artifacts such as the ionising radiation effects, scattered light from the moon, and stray light from bright sources.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.59.2-59.2
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• 2014

Radiative transfer models in a spherical, turbulent interstellar medium (ISM), in which the photon source is situated at the center, are calculated to investigate the correlation between the scattered light and the dust column density. The medium is modeled using fractional Brownian motion structures that are appropriate for turbulent ISM. The correlation plot between the scattered light and optical depth shows substantial scatter and deviation from simple proportionality. It was also found that the overall density contrast is smoothed out in scattered light. In other words, there is an enhancement of the dust-scattered flux in low-density regions, while the scattered flux is suppressed in high-density regions. The correlation becomes less significant as the scattering becomes closer to being isotropic and the medium becomes more turbulent. Therefore, the scattered light observed in near-infrared wavelengths would show much weaker correlation than the observations in optical and ultraviolet wavelengths. We also find that the correlation plot between scattered lights at two different wavelengths shows a tighter correlation than that of the scattered light versus the optical depth.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.151-153
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• 2017

Early-type galaxies (ETGs) are generally dominated by old low-mass stars, which are not very productive of dust, and hot interstellar plasmas, which are very destructive of dust. Thus ETGs provide harsh environments for survival of dust. It has been found that some ETGs contain a large amount of dust, and yet its supply mechanism is not understood well. We present the result of a systematic study of dust in ETGs with the AKARI mid- and far-infrared all-sky surveys. From the AKARI result and the Ks band data obtained by ground-based telescopes, we find that there is a global correlation between the dust mass and stellar luminosity. We also compare the AKARI all-sky survey result with the CO data to discuss origins of dust in ETGs.