Epsilon Canis Majoris and the ionization of the local cloud

Details Epsilon Canis Majoris and the ionization of the local cloud Epsilon Canis Majoris and the ionization of the local cloud

May 1995

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1995apj...444..702v&link_type=abstract

Astrophysical Journal, Part 1 (ISSN 0004-637X), vol. 444, no. 2, p. 702-707

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

31

Interstellar Matter, Molecular Clouds, Photoionization, Ultraviolet Astronomy, Absorption Spectra, Electron Density (Concentration), Lyman Alpha Radiation, Spectrum Analysis

Scientific paper

The Lyman continuum radiation from the brightest extreme ultraviolet (EUV) source, the B2 II star epsilon Canis Majoris (Adara), is so intense that it dominates the local stellar EUV radiation field at wavelengths longer than 450 A and therefore sets a lower limit to the ionization of hydrogen in the Local Cloud. Using the EUV (70-730 A) spectrum of epsilon CMa taken with the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer Satellite (EUVE) and simple models that extrapolate this spectrum to the Lyman edge at 912 A, we have determined the local interstellar hydrogen photionizatin parameter Gamma solely from epsilon CMa to be 1.1 x 10-15/s. This figure is a factor of 7 greater than previous estimates of Gamma calculated for all nearby stars combined (Bruhweiler & Cheng 1988). Using measured values of the density and temperature of neutral interstellar hydrogen gas in the Local Cloud, we derive a particle density of ionized hydrogen n(H(+)) and electrons ne of 0.015-0.019/cu cm assuming ionization equilibrium and a helium ionization fraction of less than 20%. These values correspond to a hydrogen ionizatin fraction, chiH from 19% to 15%, respectively. The range of these derived quantities is due to the uncertainties in the local values of the neutral hydrogen and helium interstellar densities derived from both (1) solar backscatter measurements of Ly alpha lines of hydrogen and helium (1216 and 584 A), and (2) the average neutral densities along the line of sight to nearby stars. The local proton density produced by epsilon CMa is enough to allow the ionization mechanism of Ripken & Fahr (1983) to work at the heliopause and explain the discrepancy between the neutral hydrogen density derived from solar backscatter measurements and line-of-sight averages to nearby stars. A large value of electron density in the Local Cloud of ne is approximately 0.3-0.7/cu cm (T = 7000 K) has recently been reported by Lallement et al. (1994) using observations of Mg II and Mg I toward Sirius A. We show that if such a high value exists, it cannot result from the EUV stellar radiation field and, therefore, must be due to a strong diffuse source of EUV radiation.

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