The Spitzer Space Telescope was used to study the mid-infrared to
far-infrared properties of NGC 300, and to compare dust emission to Halpha to
elucidate the heating of the ISM and the star formation cycle at scales < 100
pc. The new data allow us to discern clear differences in the spatial
distribution of 8 micron dust emission with respect to 24 micron dust and to
HII regions traced by the Halpha light. The 8 micron emission highlights the
rims of HII regions, and the 24 micron emission is more strongly peaked in star
forming regions than at 8 microns. We confirm the existence and approximate
amplitude of interstellar dust emission at 4.5 microns, detected statistically
in Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) data, and conclude it arises in star
forming regions. When averaging over regions larger than ~ 1 kpc, the ratio of
Halpha to Aromatic Feature emission in NGC 300 is consistent with the values
observed in disks of spiral galaxies. The mid-to-far-infrared spectral energy
distribution of dust emission is generally consistent with pre-Spitzer models.Comment: to appear in the ApJS Spitzer special issue (September 2004
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