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Session 44 - The Local Diffuse ISM.
Display session, Tuesday, June 11
Great Hall,

[44.03] What Fills the ISM: Constraints on the Filling Factors of Hot, Warm and Cool Diffuse Gas.

J. D. Slavin (Eureka Scientific Inc.), D. P. Cox (University of Wisconsin)

Despite decades of observational and theoretical progress in determining the nature of the diffuse interstellar medium there remains uncertainty as to which phase, if any, fills most of the volume in the galactic plane. We attempt to shed light on this question by examining the constraints derived from a variety of observational data including UV absorption line measurements, the soft x-ray background and supernova rates. Using these data in combination with a variety of theoretical models we produce ``phase plots'' of the maximum allowed density vs. temperature for any phase which fills half of the volume of the ISM.

Program listing for Tuesday