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Issue A&A
Volume 404, Number 3, June IV 2003
Page(s) 959 - 967
Section Formation, structure and evolution of stars
DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:20030551



A&A 404, 959-967 (2003)
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361:20030551

The interstellar oxygen-K absorption edge as observed by XMM-Newton

Separation of instrumental and interstellar components
C. P. de Vries1, J. W. den Herder1, J. S. Kaastra1, F. B. Paerels2, A. J. den Boggende1 and A. P. Rasmussen2

1  SRON, National Institute for Space Research, Sorbonnelaan 2, 3584 CA Utrecht, The Netherlands
2  Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, 550 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027, USA

(Received 16 July 2002 / Accepted 11 April 2003 )

Abstract
High resolution X-ray spectra of the Reflection Grating Spectrometer (RGS) on board the XMM satellite are used to resolve the oxygen K absorption edge. By combining spectra of low and high extinction sources, the observed absorption edge can be split in the true interstellar (ISM) extinction and the instrumental absorption. The detailed ISM edge structure closely follows the edge structure of neutral oxygen as derived by theoretical R-matrix calculations. However, the position of the theoretical edge requires a wavelength shift. In addition the detailed instrumental RGS absorption edge structure is presented. All results are verified by comparing to a subset of Chandra LETG-HRC observations.


Key words: space vehicles: instruments -- X-rays: ISM

Offprint request: C. P. de Vries, C.P.de.Vries@sron.nl

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