CASCA 2016 | via PhysOrg | 2016 May 31
An international team of astronomers has discovered a possible connection between the magnetic fields of supernova remnants and that of our own Milky Way Galaxy. The study, recently published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, found that the orientation of supernova remnants can help astronomers understand the nature and shape of the magnetic field of the Milky Way Galaxy itself. ...
Magnetic fields play important roles in many astrophysical processes such as solar flares, stellar evolution, galaxy dynamics, and even the evolution of the universe. They also play a very important role in the dynamics of supernova remnants, which represent some of the most extreme environments in the universe, with conditions unlike anything we can duplicate on Earth.
In supernova explosions, particles are accelerated close to the speed-of-light and then speed through space as cosmic rays, some finding their way to Earth. The Earth is constantly being bombarded by trillions of these cosmic rays, with some of the highest energy ones coming from supernovae and supernova remnants. These can interfere with electronic equipment and be hazardous to people, particularly people flying in aircraft or living in space. ...
For this study, the researchers examined archival radio images of every known supernova remnant in the galaxy to compile a complete sample of objects with this double-lobed shape. Observations show that these axes point in different directions, astronomers were not sure if the orientation is random, caused by local effects, or whether the direction may be influenced by the Milky Way Galaxy's own magnetic field. By comparing the orientation of the supernova remnants in the images with models based on simulations of the galaxy's magnetic field, the astronomers found a connection between the supernova remnants and their environment. ...
The Connection between Supernova Remnants and the Galactic
Magnetic Field: A Global Radio Study of the Axisymmetric Sample - J. L. West et al
- Astronomy & Astrophysics 587:A148 (2016 Mar) DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201527001
arXiv.org > astro-ph > arXiv:1510.08536 > 29 Oct 2015