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White dwarfs and the interstellar mediumRadiation emanating from hot (T greater than 40,000 K) white dwarfs can create large volumes of ionized material containing substantial column densities of highly ionized species, in particular Si IV and C IV. The ions N V and O VI can also be produced by hot, hydrogen-rich white dwarfs. These ionization spheres may be detectable around the nearby dwarfs. The relatively high space motions of these stars coupled with long recombination times in the interstellar medium suggest that a white dwarf leaves a region of ionized material - a fossil Stroemgren trail - that marks its progress through the galaxy. White dwarfs create a patchy substrate of ionized gas in the galactic plane and lead to extended ionized regions out of the plane. The spatial frequency of hot white dwarfs indicates that they contribute a radiative energy comparable to that provided by nondegenerate stars and by supernovae and capable of affecting the ionization balance of the interstellar medium.
Document ID
19840034742
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
External Source(s)
Authors
Dupree, A. K.
(Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Cambridge, MA, United States)
Raymond, J. C.
(Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Cambridge, MA, United States)
Date Acquired
August 12, 2013
Publication Date
December 15, 1983
Publication Information
Publication: Astrophysical Journal, Part 2 - Letters to the Editor
Volume: 275
ISSN: 0004-637X
Subject Category
Astrophysics
Accession Number
84A17529
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAG5-87
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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