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R. Lallement

Publications and source records attributed to R. Lallement.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Gaia Data Release 1: Catalogue validation

Before the publication of the Gaia Catalogue, the contents of the first data release have undergone multiple dedicated validation tests. These tests aim at analysing in-depth the Catalogue content to detect anomalies, individual problems in specific objects or in overall statistical properties, either to filter them before the public release, or to describe the different caveats of the release for an optimal exploitation of the data. Dedicated methods using either Gaia internal data, external catalogues or models have been developed for the validation processes. They are testing normal stars as well as various populations like open or globular clusters, double stars, variable stars, quasars. Properties of coverage, accuracy and precision of the data are provided by the numerous tests presented here and jointly analysed to assess the data release content. This independent validation confirms the quality of the published data, Gaia DR1 being the most precise all-sky astrometric and photometric catalogue to-date. However, several limitations in terms of completeness, astrometric and photometric quality are identified and described. Figures describing the relevant properties of the release are shown and the testing activities carried out validating the user interfaces are also described. A particular emphasis is made on the statistical use of the data in scientific exploitation.

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Measuring Diffuse Interstellar Bands with cool stars. An improved line list to model the background stellar spectra

DIBs are ubiquitous in stellar spectra. Traditionally, they have been studied through their extraction from hot stars, because of their smooth continuum. In an era where there are several going-on or planned massive Galactic surveys using multi-object spectrographs, cool stars constitute an appealing set of targets. From the technical point of view, the extraction of DIBs in their spectra is more challenging due to the complexity of the continuum. In this contribution we will provide the community with an improved set of stellar lines in the spectral regions associated to the strong DIBs at l6196, l6269, l6284, and l6379. These lines will allow for the creation of better stellar synthetic spectra, reproducing the background emission and a more accurate extraction of the magnitudes associated with a given DIB. The Sun and Arcturus were used as representative examples of dwarf and giant stars, respectively. A high quality spectrum for each of them was modeled using TURBOSPECTRUM and the VALD stellar line list. The oscillator strength log(gf) and/or wavelength of specific lines were modified to create synthetic spectra where the residuals in both the Sun and Arcturus were minimized. The synthetic spectra based on the improved line lists reproduce the observed spectra for the Sun and Arcturus in the mentioned spectral ranges with greater accuracy. Residuals between the synthetic and observed spectra are always <10%, much better than with previously existing options. The new line list has been tested with some characteristic spectra, from a variety of stars, including both giant and dwarf stars, and under different degrees of extinction. As it happened with the Sun and Arcturus residuals in the fits used to extract the DIB information are smaller when using synthetic spectra made with the updated line lists. Tables with the updated parameters are provided to the community.

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The Structure of the Local Hot Bubble

DXL (Diffuse X-rays from the Local Galaxy) is a sounding rocket mission designed to quantify and characterize the contribution of Solar Wind Charge eXchange (SWCX) to the Diffuse X-ray Background and study the properties of the Local Hot Bubble (LHB). Based on the results from the DXL mission, we quantified and removed the contribution of SWCX to the diffuse X-ray background measured by the ROSAT All Sky Survey (RASS). The "cleaned" maps were used to investigate the physical properties of the LHB. Assuming thermal ionization equilibrium, we measured a highly uniform temperature distributed around kT=0.097 keV+/-0.013 keV (FWHM)+/-0.006 keV (systematic). We also generated a thermal emission measure map and used it to characterize the three-dimensional (3D) structure of the LHB which we found to be in good agreement with the structure of the local cavity measured from dust and gas.

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On the distance to the North Polar Spur and the local CO-H2 factor

Most models identify the X-ray bright North Polar Spur (NPS) with a hot interstellar (IS) bubble in the Sco-Cen star-forming region at $\simeq$130 pc. An opposite view considers the NPS as a distant structure associated with Galactic nuclear outflows. Constraints on the NPS distance can be obtained by comparing the foreground IS gas column inferred from X-ray absorption to the distribution of gas and dust along the line of sight. Absorbing columns towards shadowing molecular clouds simultaneously constrain the CO-H$_{2}$ conversion factor. We derived the columns of X-ray absorbing matter NH(abs) from spectral fitting of dedicated XMM-Newton observations towards the NPS southern terminus (l=29°, b=+5 to +11°). The IS matter distribution was obtained from absorption lines in stellar spectra, 3D dust maps and emission data, including high spatial resolution CO measurements recorded for this purpose. NH(abs) varies from $\simeq$ 4.3 to $\simeq$ 1.3 x 10$^{21}$ cm$^{-2}$ along the 19 fields. Relationships between X-ray brightness, absorbing column and hardness ratio demonstrate a brightness decrease with latitude governed by increasing absorption. The comparison with absorption data, local and large-scale dust maps rules out a NPS near side closer than 300 pc. The correlation between NH(abs) and the reddening increases with the sightline length from 300 pc to 4 kpc and is the tightest with Planck $τ_{353}$-based reddening, suggesting a much larger distance. N(H)/E(B-V) $\simeq$ 4.1 x 10$^{21}$ cm$^{-2}$ mag$^{-1}$. NH(abs) absolute values are compatible with HI-CO clouds at -5 $\leq$ V(LSR) $\leq$ +25 to +45 km s$^{-1}$ and a NPS potentially far beyond the Local Arm. A molecular cloud shadow at b=+9deg constrains X$_{CO}$ to $\leq$ 1.0 x 10$^{20}$ cm$^{-2}$ K$^{-1}$ km$^{-1}$ s. The average X$_{CO}$ is $\leq$ 0.75 x 10$^{20}$ cm$^{-2}$ K$^{-1}$ km$^{-1}$ s.

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Solar Wind Charge Exchange contribution to the ROSAT All Sky Survey Maps

DXL (Diffuse X-ray emission from the Local Galaxy) is a sounding rocket mission designed to estimate the contribution of Solar Wind Charge eXchange (SWCX) to the Diffuse X-ray Background (DXB) and to help determine the properties of the Local Hot Bubble (LHB). The detectors are large-area thin-window proportional counters with a spectral response similar to that of the PSPC used in the ROSAT All Sky Survey (RASS). A direct comparison of DXL and RASS data for the same part of the sky viewed from quite different vantage points in the Solar system and the assumption of approximate isotropy for the Solar wind allowed us to quantify the SWCX contribution to all 6 RASS bands (R1-R7, excepting R3). We find that the SWCX contribution at l=140 deg, b=0 deg, where the DXL path crosses the Galactic plane is 33%+-6% (statistical)+-12%(systematic) for R1, 44%+-\%+-5% for R2, 18%+-12%+-11% for R4, 14%+-11%+-9% for R5, and negligible for R6 and R7 bands. Reliable models for the distribution of neutral H and He in the Solar system permit estimation of the contribution of interplanetary SWCX emission over the the whole sky and correction of the RASS maps. We find that the average SWCX contribution in the whole sky is 26%+-6%+-13% for R1, 30%+-4%+-4% for R2, 8%+-5%+-5% for R4, 6%+-4%+-4% for R5, and negligible for R6 and R7.

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Tracing differential reddening with Diffuse Interstellar Bands. The globular cluster M 4 as a testbed

Diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) are weak absorption features of interstellar origin present in the optical and infrared spectra of stars. Their use as a tool to trace the structure of the Galactic ISM is gaining relevance in the recent years. Here we present an experiment to test our ability to trace differential reddening on the plane of the sky by using the information relative to the DIB at $λ$6614 extracted from the spectra of cool stars. For that we made use of archive FLAMES data of the globular cluster M4, as well as WISE and Planck images for reference. We found a global positive trend between the distribution of the strength of the DIB, as traced by its equivalent width, and the amount of Galactic reddening, as traced by Planck. This result supports the use of DIBs to trace the small scale structure of the Galactic ISM.

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The Gaia-ESO Survey: Extracting diffuse interstellar bands from cool star spectra, DIB-based interstellar medium line-of-sight structures at the kpc scale

We study how diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) measured toward distance-distributed target stars can be used to locate dense interstellar (IS) clouds in the Galaxy and probe a line-of-sight (LOS) kinematical structure, a potential useful tool when gaseous absorption lines are saturated or not available in the spectral range. Cool target stars are numerous enough for this purpose. We have devised automated DIB fitting methods appropriate to cool star spectra and multiple IS components. The data is fitted with a combination of a synthetic stellar spectrum, a synthetic telluric transmission, and empirical DIB profiles. In parallel, stellar distances and extinctions are estimated self-consistently by means of a 2D Bayesian method, from spectroscopically-derived stellar parameters and photometric data. We have analyzed Gaia-ESO Survey (GES) and previously recorded spectra that probe between $\sim$ 2 and 10 kpc long LOS in five different regions of the Milky Way. Depending on the observed spectral intervals, we extracted one or more of the following DIBs: $λλ$ 6283.8, 6613.6 and 8620.4. For each field, we compared the DIB strengths with the Bayesian distances and extinctions, and the DIB Doppler velocities with the HI emission spectra. For all fields, the DIB strength and the target extinction are well correlated. In case of targets widely distributed in distance, marked steps in DIBs and extinction radial distance profiles match with each other and broadly correspond to the expected locations of spiral arms. For all fields, the DIB velocity structure agrees with HI emission spectra and all detected DIBs correspond to strong NaI lines. This illustrates how DIBs can be used to locate the Galactic interstellar gas and to study its kinematics at the kpc scale.

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On the Stability of the Interstellar Wind through the Solar System

As a follow-up of a recent study, we challenge the claim that the flow of interstellar helium through the solar system has changed substantially over the last decades. We argue that only the IBEX-Lo 2009-2010 measurements are discrepant with older consensus values. Then we show that the probability of the claimed variations of longitude and velocity are highly unlikely (about 1 per cent), in view of the absence of change in latitude and absence of change in the (flow velocity, flow longitude) relation, while random values would be expected. Finally, we report other independent studies showing the stability of Helium flow and the Hydrogen flow over the years 1996-2012, consistent with the seventies earlier determinations of the interstellar flow.

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The origin of the 'local' 1/4 keV X-ray flux in both charge exchange and a hot bubble

The Solar neighborhood is the closest and most easily studied sample of the Galactic interstellar medium, an understanding of which is essential for models of star formation and galaxy evolution. Observations of an unexpectedly intense diffuse flux of easily-absorbed 1/4 keV X rays, coupled with the discovery that interstellar space within ~100 pc of the Sun is almost completely devoid of cool absorbing gas led to a picture of a "local cavity" filled with X-ray emitting hot gas dubbed the local hot bubble. This model was recently upset by suggestions that the emission could instead be produced readily within the solar system by heavy solar wind ions charge exchanging with neutral H and He in interplanetary space, potentially removing the major piece of evidence for the existence of million-degree gas within the Galactic disk. Here we report results showing that the total solar wind charge exchange contribution is 40% +/- 5% (stat) +/- 5% (sys) of the 1/4 keV flux in the Galactic plane. The fact that the measured flux is not dominated by charge exchange supports the notion of a million-degree hot bubble of order 100 pc extent surrounding the Sun.

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Local ISM 3D distribution and soft X-ray background: Inferences on nearby hot gas and the North Polar Spur

3D maps of the ISM can be used to locate not only IS clouds, but also IS bubbles between the clouds that are blown by stellar winds and supernovae. We compare our 3D maps of the IS dust to the ROSAT diffuse X-ray background maps. In the Plane, there is a good correspondence between the locations and extents of the mapped nearby cavities and the 0.25 keV background emission distribution, showing that most of these nearby cavities contribute to this soft X-ray emission. Assuming a constant dust to gas ratio and homogeneous 1MK hot gas filling the cavities, we modeled in a simple way the 0.25 keV surface brightness along the Galactic plane as seen from the Sun, taking into account the absorption by the mapped clouds. The data-model comparison favors the existence of hot gas in the Local Bubble (LB). The average mean pressure in the local cavities is found to be on the order of about 10,000 cm-3K, in agreement with previous studies. The model overestimates the emission from the huge cavities in the 3rd quadrant. Using CaII absorption data, we show that the dust to CaII ratio is very small in this region, implying the presence of a large quantity of lower temperature (non-X-ray emitting) ionized gas, explaining at least part of the discrepancy. In the meridian plane, the two main brightness enhancements coincide well with the chimneys connecting the LB to the halo. No nearby cavity is found towards the bright North Polar Spur (NPS) at high latitude. We searched in the maps for the source regions of the 0.75 keV enhancements in the 4th and 1st quadrants. Tunnels and cavities are found to coincide with the main bright areas, however no tunnel nor cavity is found to match the low-latitude, brightest part of the NPS. In addition, the comparison between the maps and published spectra do not favor the nearby cavities located within about 200pc as potential source regions for the NPS.

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Galactic Cosmic Rays measured by UVS on Voyager 1 and the end of the modulation: Is the upwind heliopause a collapsed charge-exchange layer?

The detectors of the UltraViolet Spectrographs (UVS) on Voyager 1/2 are recording a background that was earlier assigned to disintegrations in the RTG. We show that it arises instead from Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs). We show the 1992-2013 GCR flux measured by UVS on V1 and, by comparing with data from the GCR dedicated detectors, we estimate the energy range responsible for this UVS signal, around 300 MeV, and the response of UVS to the GCR anisotropy. After the abrupt jumps of May and August 2012 the count rate has been fluctuating only slightly around a constant value, but comparing with data from the LECP and the CRS instruments shows that those small variations are only responses to a varying anisotropy and not to a flux change. Taking advantage of the similarity in energy range to one of the products of the CRS instrument suite, we use the ratio between the two independent signals as a proxy for the temporal evolution of the GCR spectral slope around the 300 MeV range. We show that this slope has remained unchanged since Aug 2012 and find strong evidence that it will no longer vary, implying the end of the modulation at those energies and that V1 at this date is near or past the heliopause. The origin of this narrow and stagnating inner heliosheath is still unclear, and we discuss the potential effects of low solar wind speed episodes and subsequent self-amplified charge-exchange with interstellar neutrals, as a source of deceleration and collapse. We suggest that the quasi-static region encountered by V1 may be related to such effects, triggered by the strong post solar-maximum variability. This did not happen for V2 due to its trajectory at an angle further from the heliosphere axis and a later termination shock crossing. The existence on the upwind side of a mixing layer formed by charge transfer instead of a pure plasma contact discontinuity could explain various observations.

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TAPAS, a web-based service of atmospheric transmission computation for astronomy

Spectra of astronomical targets acquired from ground-based instruments are affected by the atmospheric transmission. The authors and their institutes are developing a web-based service, TAPAS (Transmissions of the AtmosPhere for AStromomical data). This service, freely available, is developed and maintained within the atmospheric ETHER data center. TAPAS computes the atmospheric transmission in the line-of-sight to the target indicated by the user. The user files a request indicating the time, ground location, and either the equatorial coordinates of the target or the Zenith Angle of the line-of sight (LOS). The actual atmospheric profile (temperature, pressure, humidity, ozone content) at that time and place is retrieved from the ETHER atmospheric data base (from a combination of ECMWF meteorological field and other informations), and the atmospheric transmission is computed from LBLRTM software and HITRAN data base for a number of gases: O2, H2O, O3, CO2, and Rayleigh extinction. The first purpose of TAPAS output is to allow identification of observed spectral features as being from atmospheric or astrophysical origin. The returned transmission may also serve for characterizing the spectrometer in wavelength scale and Instrument Line Spectral Function (ILSF) by comparing one observed spectrum of an atmospheric feature to the transmission. Finally, the TOA (Top Of Atmosphere) spectrum may be obtained either by division of the observed spectrum by the computed transmission or other techniques developed on purpose. The obtention of transmissions for individual species allows more potentialities and better adjustments to the data. In this paper, we describe briefly the mechanism of computation of the atmospheric transmissions, and we show some results for O2 and H2O atmospheric absorption. The wavelength range is presently 500-2500 nm. The address is http://ether.ipsl.jussieu.fr/tapas/

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The Hot and Energetic Universe: The astrophysics of supernova remnants and the interstellar medium

The study of both supernova remnants and the hot and cold phases of the interstellar medium are essential for understanding the final stages of stellar evolution and their feedback on the evolution of galaxies through injection of energy and heavy elements. These studies are also crucial for understanding the physics of supernovae, their cosmological implication, and the origin of galactic cosmic rays. The unique capabilities of Athena+ will allow us to explore a new parameter space. Spatially-resolved high-resolution spectroscopy using Athena+ X-IFU of young remnants will allow to characterize individual parcels of ejected material in the line of sight in terms of kinematics, ionization and composition, providing access to the three dimensional geometry of the explosion. Athena+ will also allow studying shock physics and particle acceleration in supernova remnants, as well as their interaction with their environment. Athena+ X-IFU will also characterize the ionization mechanisms competing in forming the complex structures of the hot interstellar medium, likely to keep the echo of past star formation activity, both in our Galaxy and nearby ones. For the first time the dust and gas of the densest cold medium, like in the Galactic Centre environment, will be studied. Athena+ X-IFU will observe, along with the Mg K and Si K edges, which are the main tracers of the silicates content of the ISM, the Fe K edge with unprecedented sensitivity and energy-resolution. This will allow us to study for the first time the nature of Fe-bearing dust in such regions.

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Solar parameters for modeling interplanetary background

The goal of the Fully Online Datacenter of Ultraviolet Emissions (FONDUE) Working Team of the International Space Science Institute in Bern, Switzerland, was to establish a common calibration of various UV and EUV heliospheric observations, both spectroscopic and photometric. Realization of this goal required an up-to-date model of spatial distribution of neutral interstellar hydrogen in the heliosphere, and to that end, a credible model of the radiation pressure and ionization processes was needed. This chapter describes the solar factors shaping the distribution of neutral interstellar H in the heliosphere. Presented are the solar Lyman-alpha flux and the solar Lyman-alpha resonant radiation pressure force acting on neutral H atoms in the heliosphere, solar EUV radiation and the photoionization of heliospheric hydrogen, and their evolution in time and the still hypothetical variation with heliolatitude. Further, solar wind and its evolution with solar activity is presented in the context of the charge exchange ionization of heliospheric hydrogen, and in the context of dynamic pressure variations. Also the electron ionization and its variation with time, heliolatitude, and solar distance is presented. After a review of all of those topics, we present an interim model of solar wind and the other solar factors based on up-to-date in situ and remote sensing observations of solar wind. Results of this effort will further be utilised to improve on the model of solar wind evolution, which will be an invaluable asset in all heliospheric measurements, including, among others, the observations of Energetic Neutral Atoms by the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX).

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High ions towards white dwarfs: circumstellar line shifts and stellar temperature

Based on a compilation of OVI, CIV, SiIV and NV data from IUE, FUSE, GHRS, STIS, and COS, we derive an anti- correlation between the stellar temperature and the high ion velocity shift w.r.t. to the photosphere, with positive (resp. negative) velocity shifts for the cooler (resp. hotter) white dwarfs. This trend probably reflects more than a single process, however such a dependence on the WD's temperature again favors a CS origin for a very large fraction of those ion absorptions, previously observed with IUE, HST-STIS, HST-GHRS, FUSE, and now COS, selecting objects for which absorption line radial velocities, stellar effective temperature and photospheric velocity can be found in the literature. Interestingly, and gas in near-equilibrium in the star vicinity. It is also probably significant that the temperature that corresponds to a null radial velocity, i.e. \simeq 50,000K, also corresponds to the threshold below which there is a dichotomy between pure or heavy elements atmospheres as well as some temperature estimates for and a form of balance between radiation pressure and gravitation. This is consistent with ubiquitous evaporation of orbiting dusty material. Together with the fact that the fraction of stars with (red-or blue-) shifted lines and the fraction of stars known to possess heavy species in their atmosphere are of the same order, such a velocity-temperature relationship is consistent with quasi-continuous evaporation of orbiting CS dusty material, followed by accretion and settling down in the photosphere. In view of these results, ion measurements close to the photospheric or the IS velocity should be interpreted with caution, especially for stars at intermediate temperatures. While tracing CS gas, they may be erroneously attributed to photospheric material or to the ISM, explaining the difficulty of finding a coherent pattern of the high ions in the local IS 3D distribution.

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AXIOM: Advanced X-ray Imaging Of the Magnetosphere

Planetary plasma and magnetic field environments can be studied by in situ measurements or by remote sensing. While the former provide precise information about plasma behaviour, instabilities and dynamics on local scales, the latter offers the global view necessary to understand the overall interaction of the magnetospheric plasma with the solar wind. Here we propose a novel and more elegant approach employing remote X-ray imaging techniques, which are now possible thanks to the relatively recent discovery of solar wind charge exchange X-ray emissions in the vicinity of the Earth's magnetosphere. We describe how an appropriately designed and located X-ray telescope, supported by simultaneous in situ measurements of the solar wind, can be used to image the dayside magnetosphere, magnetosheath and bow shock, with a temporal and spatial resolution sufficient to address several key outstanding questions concerning how the solar wind interacts with the Earth's magnetosphere on a global level. Our studies have led us to propose 'AXIOM: Advanced X-ray Imaging Of the Magnetosphere', a concept mission using a Vega launcher with a LISA Pathfinder-type Propulsion Module to place the spacecraft in a Lissajous orbit around the Earth - Moon L1 point. The model payload consists of an X-ray Wide Field Imager and an in situ plasma and magnetic field measurement package. This package comprises sensors designed to measure the bulk properties of the solar wind and to characterise its minor ion populations which cause charge exchange emission, and a magnetometer designed to measure the strength and direction of the solar wind magnetic field. We show simulations that demonstrate how the proposed X-ray telescope design is capable of imaging the predicted emission from the dayside magnetosphere with the sensitivity and cadence required to achieve the science goals of the mission.

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Two-component model of the interaction of an interstellar cloud with surrounding hot plasma

We present a two-component gasdynamic model of an interstellar cloud embedded in a hot plasma. It is assumed that the cloud consists of atomic hydrogen gas, interstellar plasma is quasineutral. Hydrogen atoms and plasma protons interact through a charge exchange process. Magnetic felds and radiative processes are ignored in the model. The influence of heat conduction within plasma on the interaction between a cloud and plasma is studied. We consider the extreme case and assume that hot plasma electrons instantly heat the plasma in the interaction region and that plasma flow can be described as isothermal. Using the two-component model of the interaction of cold neutral cloud and hot plasma, we estimate the lifetime of interstellar clouds. We focus on the clouds typical for the cluster of local interstellar clouds embedded in the hot Local Bubble and give an estimate of the lifetime of the Local interstellar cloud where the Sun currently travels. The charge transfer between highly charged plasma ions and neutral atoms generates X-ray emission. We assume typical abundance of heavy ions for the Local Bubble plasma and estimate the X-ray emissivity due to charge exchange from the interface between cold neutral cloud and hot plasma. Our results show that charge exchange X-ray emission from the neutral-plasma interfaces can be a non-negligible fraction of the observed X-ray emission.

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O vi in the local interstellar medium

We report the results of a search for O VI absorption in the spectra of 80 hot DA white dwarfs observed by the FUSE satellite. We have carried out a detailed analysis of the radial velocities of interstellar and (where present) stellar absorption lines for the entire sample of stars. In approximately 35% of cases (where photospheric material is detected), the velocity differences between the interstellar and photospheric components were beneath the resolution of the FUSE spectrographs. Therefore, in 65% of these stars the interstellar and photospheric contributions could be separated and the nature of the O VI component unambiguously determined. Furthermore, in other examples, where the spectra were of a high signal-to-noise, no photospheric material was found and any O VI detected was assumed to be interstellar. Building on the earlier work of Oegerle et al. (2005) and Savage & Lehner (2006), we have increased the number of detections of interstellar O VI and, for the first time, compared their locations with both the soft X-ray background emission and new detailed maps of the distribution of neutral gas within the local interstellar medium. We find no strong evidence to support a spatial correlation between O VI and SXRB emission. In all but a few cases, the interstellar O VI was located at or beyond the boundaries of the local cavity. Hence, any T ~ 300,000K gas responsible for the O VI absorption may reside at the interface between the cavity and surrounding medium or in that medium itself. Consequently, it appears that there is much less O VI-bearing gas than previously stated within the inner rarefied regions of the local interstellar cavity.

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