Location and thickness of the nearest neutral gas cloud in the direction of Auriga-Perseus.

Abstract

High dispersion IUE spectra of stars in the general direction of Auriga-Perseus show clear interstellar absorption lines whose strengths are used to derive information about the spatial distribution of the gas on the lines of sight. The distance to the nearest neutral cloud in this direction is about 50 pc; it has a depth of approximately 15 pc and a density greater than 3/cu cm. Beyond the cloud the column densities hardly increase, suggesting small gas densities out to about 200 pc.