Using Stellar Spectra to Constrain the Distribution of Galactic Dust

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We use stellar spectra from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) to create a high- latitude extinction map of the local Galaxy. Our technique compares spectra from SDSS stars in low-extinction lines of sight, as determined by Schlegel, Finkbeiner, & Davis, to other SDSS spectra in order to derive improved distance estimates and accurate line-of-sight extinctions. Unlike most previous studies, which have used a two-color method to determine extinction, we fit extinction curves to fluxes across a large spectral range. We apply this method to SDSS K dwarfs, nearby L dwarfs, and stars in the DR7 M dwarf sample. Our result is an extinction map that extends from tens of pc to several kpc away from the sun. We also use a similar technique to create a map of RV values within approximately 1 kpc of the sun, and find they are consistent with the widely accepted diffuse interstellar medium value of 3.1. Using our extinction data, we derive a dust scale height for the local galaxy of 119 ± 15 parsecs and find evidence for a local dust cavity.

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