Astronomers map Milky Way's cosmic dust in detail

Astronomers have created a detailed 3D map of dust in the Milky Way, improving our understanding of how cosmic dust affects observations of distant stars. This new map is based on data from ESA's Gaia mission, analyzing 130 million star spectra. The research reveals unexpected properties of interstellar dust. Contrary to previous beliefs, the extinction curve steepens in areas of intermediate dust density, suggesting the influence of certain molecules rather than just larger dust grains. This finding may have implications for understanding star formation and the origins of life. The study, led by Xiangyu Zhang and Gregory Green, marks a significant advancement in mapping cosmic dust, providing a clearer picture of its role in the galaxy. The results were published in the journal Science.