Probing the Local Interstellar Medium with In Situ Dust Detections

Abstract:

Interstellar dust is an important component of the interstellar medium (ISM). In addition to the active role it plays in the heating and cooling of the gas, dust acts as a tracer of the history of the medium. Data gathered over the past several decades by space probes have demonstrated that large interstellar dust grains can penetrate to the inner heliosphere, as expected given their small charge-to-mass ratio. Smaller grains, however are expected to be excluded from the inner heliosphere and will only be detected when a probe with the proper instrumentation can reach out to the heliopause and beyond. We will discuss how Interstellar Probe could provide crucial information on the dust content of the Local Interstellar Cloud that surrounds the heliosphere and how that data could reveal important information on the history of the local ISM.