Magnetic Field Tomography in Nearby Galaxies with the Square Kilometre Array
Paper in proceeding, 2015
Magnetic fields play an important role in shaping the structure and evolution of the interstellar
medium (ISM) of galaxies, but the details of this relationship remain unclear. With SKA1, the 3D
structure of galactic magnetic fields and its connection to star formation will be revealed. A highly
sensitive probe of the internal structure of the magnetoionized ISM is the partial depolarization
of synchrotron radiation from inside the volume. Different configurations of magnetic field and
ionized gas within the resolution element of the telescope lead to frequency-dependent changes
in the observed degree of polarization. The results of spectro-polarimetric observations are tied
to physical structure in the ISM through comparison with detailed modeling, supplemented with
the use of new analysis techniques that are being actively developed and studied within the community
such as Rotation Measure Synthesis. The SKA will enable this field to come into its own
and begin the study of the detailed structure of the magnetized ISM in a sample of nearby galaxies,
thanks to its extraordinary wideband capabilities coupled with the combination of excellent
surface brightness sensitivity and angular resolution.
Author
G. Heald
Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)
University of Groningen
R. Beck
Max Planck Society
W.J.G. de Blok
University of Cape Town
Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)
University of Groningen
R.J. Dettmar
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
A. Fletcher
Newcastle University
B. Gaensler
The University of Sydney
M. Haverkorn
Leiden University
Radboud University
V. Heesen
University of Southampton
Cathy Horellou
Chalmers, Earth and Space Sciences, Radio Astronomy and Astrophysics
M. Krause
Max Planck Society
S. A. Mao
Max Planck Society
N. Oppermann
Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics
A. Scaife
University of Southampton
D. Sokoloff
Moscow State University
J. Stil
University of Calgary
F. Tabatabaei
Max Planck Society
K. Takahashi
Kumamoto University
R. Taylor
University of Cape Town
University of Calgary
A. Williams
University of Wisconsin Madison
Proceedings of Science
18248039 (eISSN)
Vol. 9-13-June-2014 106Subject Categories
Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology
Roots
Basic sciences