Global photometric analysis of galactic HII regions

Abstract: Total infrared fluxes are estimated for 99 HII regions around massive stars. The following wavebands have been used for the analysis: 8 and 24 $\mu$m, based on data from Spitzer space telescope (IRAC and MIPS, respectively); 70, 160, 250, 350, and 500 $\mu$m, based on data from Herschel Space Observatory (PACS and SPIRE). The estimated fluxes are used to evaluate the mass fraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ($q_{\rm PAH}$) and the intensity of the ultraviolet emission in the studied objects. It is shown that the PAH mass fraction, $q_{\rm PAH}$, is much lower in these objects than the average Galactic value, implying effective destruction of aromatic particles in HII regions. Estimated radiation field intensities ($U$) are close to those derived for extragalactic HII complexes. Color indices [$F_{24}$/$F_{8}$], [$F_{70}$/$F_{24}$], [$F_{160}$/$F_{24}$], [$F_{160}$/$F_{70}$] are compared to criteria proposed to distinguish between regions of ionized hydrogen and planetary nebulae. Also, we relate our results to analogous color indices for extragalactic complexes of ionized hydrogen.