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| Paper: |
Magnetic Fields in Nearby Galaxies |
| Volume: |
438, The Dynamic Interstellar Medium: A Celebration of the Canadian Galactic Plane Survey |
| Page: |
197 |
| Authors: |
Fletcher, A. |
| Abstract: |
Observations of synchrotron radiation and the Faraday rotation of its polarized
component allow us to investigate the magnetic properties of the diffuse
interstellar medium in nearby galaxies, on scales down to roughly one hundred
parsecs. All disc galaxies seem to have a mean, or regular, magnetic field
component that is ordered on length scales comparable to the size of the galaxy
as well as a random magnetic field of comparable or greater strength. I present
an overview of what is currently known observationally about galactic magnetic
fields, focusing on the common features among galaxies that have been studied
rather than the distinctive or unusual properties of individual galaxies. Of
particular interest are the azimuthal patterns formed by regular magnetic fields
and their pitch angles as these quantities can be directly related to the
predictions of the mean-field dynamo theory, the most promising theoretical
explanation for the apparent ubiquitous presence of regular magnetic fields in
disc galaxies. |
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