interstellar medium (ISM) madim-e andaraxtari Fr.: milieu interstellaire The environment containing the → interstellar matter, consisting of gas (mostly hydrogen) and dust. Even at its densest phase, the interstellar medium is emptier than the best vacuum man can create in the laboratory, but because space is so vast, the interstellar medium still adds up to a huge amount of mass. → interstellar; → medium. |