The Diffuse Interstellar Bands: Solving a Century Old Problem

Abstract: The Diffuse Interstellar Bands (DIBs) are a set of apporoximately 500 absorption bands that are seen in the spectra of reddened stars (i.e., stars obscured by the presence of interstellar clouds in their line of sight). The first DIBs were detected in the visible over a century ago. Diffuse Interstellar Bands are now detected from the near ultraviolet to the near infrared in the spectra of reddened stars spanning a variety of interstellar environments in our local, and in other galaxies. Alth…