Dust emission and scattering in dense interstellar clouds

摘要

Dust has a crucial role in the physics of interstellar medium (ISM) and it is one of the main tracers used in studies of dense clouds. Its importance has been accentuated by the large amounts of data available from the recent fleet of infrared and submillimetre satellites. These observations are providing further insights into the properties of interstellar dust grains and the changes they undergo during the star formation process.