1995/01/19 by Rix, Hans-Walter, Astrophysik, Max-Planck- Inst. fuer
#Astrophysics (astro-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences
paper · doi:10.48550/arxiv.astro-ph/9501067
In this paper I review how near-infrared (NIR) observations can constrain the opacity of spiral disks. Basic considerations show that NIR photometry provides a powerful probe of the optical depths in spiral galaxy disks in the regime of interest, where the optical depth in the V-band is near unity. I review the existing opacity constraints from the analysis of dust lanes in edge-on and face-on galaxies. The ``internal extinction correction" in the NIR-Tully-Fisher relation deserves particular attention as the most powerful constraint on the impact of dust on the total luminosity of spiral galaxies. All observations for luminous spirals point towards an effective, face-on optical depth of tauV=0.5-1.