Abstract: view Abstract Citations (162) References (31) Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS Dust Distribution in Spiral Galaxies Kylafis, Nikolaos D. ; Bahcall, John N. Abstract A method for determining the dust distribution in edge-on, late Hubble type, spiral galaxies from their surface photometry is described. The method assumes that both the stars and the dust are distributed isothermally in the direction perpendicular to the galactic plane with scale heights z(s) and z(d) respectively, and exponentially in the radial direction with corresponding scale lengths h(s) and h(d). By comparing the observed surface photometry and the model calculations in which the radiative transfer is treated properly, z(s), z(d), h(s), and h(d) can be determined, as well as the optical depth along the line of sight and the central brightness. As a demonstration, the method is applied to NGC 891. The extension of the method to early-type spiral galaxies and to inclination angles less than 90 deg is described. Publication: The Astrophysical Journal Pub Date: June 1987 DOI: 10.1086/165308 Bibcode: 1987ApJ...317..637K Keywords: Astronomical Photometry; Cosmic Dust; Light Transmission; Spiral Galaxies; Computational Astrophysics; Interstellar Matter; Astrophysics; GALAXIES: GENERAL; GALAXIES: INDIVIDUAL NGC NUMBER: NGC 891; GALAXIES: PHOTOMETRY; GALAXIES: STRUCTURE; INTERSTELLAR: MATTER full text sources ADS | data products SIMBAD (1) NED (1)