Abstract
The interstellar medium is a natural barrier which sets the X-ray band of astronomy distinctly apart from the optical and UV. At a wavelength of 912-Å photons are energetically capable of ionizing hydrogen atoms, the principal constituent of the interstellar gas. At that point the interstellar medium is suddenly opaque. With a decrease in wavelength below 912 Å there is a gradual improvement in the ability of the interstellar medium to transmit photons. By the time the photon wavelength has decreased to about 50 Å recovery of the interstellar medium’s transmission has reached the point where we can observe photons originating at distances exceeding 102pc from the Sun. By this time the photons are very definitely in the X-ray region.
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© 1974 D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht-Holland
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Gorenstein, P. (1974). Interstellar Medium. In: Giacconi, R., Gursky, H. (eds) X-Ray Astronomy. Astrophysics and Space Science Library, vol 43. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-2105-0_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-2105-0_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
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