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A. G. Jensen (University of Colorado-Boulder), B. L. Rachford (Carleton College), T. P. Snow (University of Colorado-Boulder)
The Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer ( FUSE) has improved our understanding of many different facets of the interstellar medium, particularly its molecular hydrogen content, allowing greater insight into the composition and physical conditions of sightlines with a wide range of reddening characteristics. In addition to studies of molecular hydrogen, FUSE has also recently been used to examine abundances of other atomic species, such as oxygen and ionized iron. The wavelength coverage of FUSE is of great utility with respect to neutral nitrogen (NI). While a strong triplet at 1200 Å is accessible to the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), there are many NI multiplets below 1200 Å that are accessible to FUSE. The available absorption lines include a weak doublet at 1160 Å, a strong triplet at 1134 Å, and many multiplets of intermediate strength below 1000 Å. The wide range of oscillator strengths allows column densities and b-values to be determined through a curve of growth method. We report on NI abundances for 37 sightlines observed with FUSE, augmented in a few cases by HST measurements of the strong triplet at 1200 Å. We discuss our results in the context of potential systematic enhanced depletion of NI that has been previously detected, as well as implications for dust grains.
This research has been supported by NASA contract 2430-60020 to the University of Colorado.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: Adam.Jensen@colorado.edu
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 36 5
© 2004. The American Astronomical Society.