Dust Formation in a Galaxy with Primitive Abundances

Interstellar dust plays a crucial role in the evolution of galaxies. It governs the chemistry and physics of the interstellar medium. In the local universe, dust forms primarily in the ejecta from stars, but its composition and origin in galaxies at very early times remain controversial. We report o...

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Published inScience (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 323; no. 5912; pp. 353 - 355
Main Authors Sloan, G.C, Matsuura, M, Zijlstra, A.A, Lagadec, E, Groenewegen, M.A.T, Wood, P.R, Szyszka, C, Bernard-Salas, J, van Loon, J. Th
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States American Association for the Advancement of Science 16.01.2009
The American Association for the Advancement of Science
Subjects
Absorption spectra
Alkynes
Astronomical magnitude
Carbon
Carbon stars
Galaxies
Metal abundance
Red shift
Sculptors
Spectral bands
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Summary:Interstellar dust plays a crucial role in the evolution of galaxies. It governs the chemistry and physics of the interstellar medium. In the local universe, dust forms primarily in the ejecta from stars, but its composition and origin in galaxies at very early times remain controversial. We report observational evidence of dust forming around a carbon star in a nearby galaxy with a low abundance of heavy elements, 25 times lower than the solar abundance. The production of dust by a carbon star in a galaxy with such primitive abundances raises the possibility that carbon stars contributed carbonaceous dust in the early universe.
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ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.1165626