Universality of the near-infrared extinction law based on the apogee survey

Abstract

Whether the near-infrared (NIR) extinction law is universal has long been a debated topic. Based on the APOGEE H-band spectroscopic survey, a key project of SDSS-III, the intrinsic colors of a large number of giant stars are accurately determined from the stellar effective temperature. Taking advantage of this and using a sample of 5942 K-type giants, the NIR extinction law is carefully revisited. The color excess ratio E(J-H)/E(J-K S), representative of the NIR extinction law, shows no dependence on the color excess when E(J-K S) changes from 0.3 to 4.0, which implies a universal NIR extinction law from diffuse to dense regions. The constant value of E(J-H)/E(J-K S), 0.64, corresponds to a power law index of 1.95. The other two ratios, E(H-K S)/E(J-K S) and E(J-H)/E(H-K S), are 0.36 and 1.78, respectively. The results are consistent with the MRN dust size distribution. © 2014. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..