Abstract

Contributed Talk - Splinter StarFormation   (MW-1250)

T|3D – Presenting The First 3D-Temperature-Map Of Our Galaxy

Shmuel Bialy, Jonathan Shelest, Mark Wolfire, Troy Porter
Technion, University of Maryland College Park, Stanford

The multiphase structure of the interstellar medium (ISM) is fundamental to star formation and gas cycling in galaxies, yet until today, we have lacked a 3D view of where these phases exist in galactic space. In this talk I will present the first 3D dust map of gas temperature across the neutral ISM revealing the spatial distribution of cold (T ≤ 300K), unstable (300 < T < 6000K), and warm (T ≥ 6000K) neutral medium (CNM/UNM/WNM, respectively), within 500 pc of the Sun and with ∼2 pc resolution. This is achieved by combining state-of-the-art 3D dust maps with a new 3D model of the UV radiation field, accounting for individual O/B stars and clusters. I will show that the CNM and UNM dominate near the Galactic midplane, transitioning to WNM beyond |z| ∼ 150 pc. Strikingly, ∼ 40% of the ISM mass in the disk resides in the thermally unstable regime, providing direct evidence that turbulent mixing operates faster than thermal equilibration. I will discuss how this connects to ISM turbulence, molecular cloud formation, and the gas cycling processes that fuel star formation in galaxies.