Inferring the three-dimensional distribution of dust in the Galaxy with a non-parametric method: Preparing for Gaia

Understand

We present a non-parametric model for inferring the three-dimensional (3D) distribution of dust density in the Milky Way.

• Our approach uses the extinction measured towards stars at different locations in the Galaxy at approximately known distances.
• Each extinction measurement is proportional to the integrated dust density along its line-of-sight.
• Making simple assumptions about the spatial correlation of the dust density, we can infer the most probable 3D distribution of dust across the entire observed region, including along sight lines which were not observed.