Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gbm5v Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-21T09:20:26.980Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Observations of Magnetic Fields in Galaxies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 March 2016

R. Wielebinski
R. Wielebinski*
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie Auf dem Hügel 69, W-5300 Bonn 1Federal Republic of Germany

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Magnetic fields are present in every corner of the Universe. The Earth, the Sun and most of the planets are known to possess dipolar magnetic fields. In the Galaxy many individual objects like stars, pulsars, bipolar nebulae and supernova remnants are found to have associated magnetic fields. It seems that the rotation plays a significant role in the ability of a cosmic object to develop a magnetic field. The magnetic field of the Galaxy is observed to be oriented along the galactic plane as evidenced by both optical and radio polarization observations. Radio maps of the Galactic centre reveal poloidal magnetic fields as ‘wisps’ or ‘strings’ around Sagittarius A. Observations of nearby galaxies give us remarkable information about the large-scale magnetic fields in these building blocks of the Universe. Magnetic fields play an important role in the formation of jets of radio galaxies. Further out, in clusters of galaxies, definitive evidence has been given for the existence of intergalactic magnetic fields.

Type
Joint Discussions
Information
Highlights of Astronomy , Volume 9: Highlights of Astronomy. As presented at the XXIst General Assembly of the IAU, 1991 , 1992 , pp. 81 - 86
Copyright
Copyright © Kluwer 1992

References

REFERENCES

Alfvén, H., Richtmayer, R.D., Teller, F. (1949) Phys. Rev. 75, 1169 Google Scholar
Beck, R. (1986) IEEE Trans. PS-16, 740 Google Scholar
Beck, R. (1991a) in The Interstellar Disk-Halo Connection in Galaxies, IAU Symp. No. 144, ed. Bloemen, H., Kluwer, , Dordrecht, , p. 267 Google Scholar
Beck, R. (1991b) Astron. Astrophys. (in press)Google Scholar
Beck, R., Gräve, R. (1987) Interstellar Magnetic Fields, eds. Beck, R. and Gräve, R., Springer, Berlin Google Scholar
Beck, R., Kronberg, P.P., Wielebinski, R. (1990) Galactic and Intergalactic Magnetic Fields, IAU Symp. No. 140, eds. Beck, R., Kronberg, P.P. and Wielebinski, R., Kluwer, , Dordrecht, Google Scholar
Daly, R.A., Loeb, A. (1990) Astrophys. J. 364, 451 Google Scholar
Davis, L., Greenstein, J.L. (1951) Astrophys. J. 114, 206 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fermi, E. (1949) Phys. Rev. 75, 1169 Google Scholar
Hall, J.S. (1949) Science 109, 166 Google Scholar
Haynes, R.F. et al. (1991) Astron. Astrophys. (in press)Google Scholar
Hiltner, W.A. (1949) Science 109, 471 Google Scholar
Hummel, E., Lesch, H., Wielebinski, R., Schlickeiser, R. (1988) Astron. Astrophys. 197, 29 Google Scholar
Hummel, E., Beck, R., Dahlem, M. (1991) Astron. Astrophys. 248, 23 Google Scholar
Krause, M. (1990) in Galactic and Intergalactic Magnetic Fields, IAU Symp. No. 140, eds. Beck, R., Kronberg, P.P. and Wielebinski, R., Kluwer, , Dordrecht, , p. 187 Google Scholar
Krause, F., Radier, K.-H. (1980) Mean Field Magnetohydrodynamics and Dynamo Theory, Pergamon Press Google Scholar
Krause, F., Wielebinski, R. (1991), in Reviews of Modern Astronomy, Vol. 4, Springer Verlag, p. 260 Google Scholar
Mathewson, D.S., van der Kruit, P.C., Brouw, W.N. (1972) Astron. Astrophys. 17, 468 Google Scholar
Neininger, N., Beck, R., Backes, F. (1990) in Galactic and Intergalactic Magnetic Fields, IAU Symp. No. 140, eds. Beck, R., Kronberg, P.P. and Wielebinski, R., Kluwer, , Dordrecht, , p. 253 Google Scholar
Neininger, N., Klein, U., Beck, R., Wielebinski, R. (1991) Nature 352, 781 Google Scholar
Piddington, J.H. (1964) Mon. Not. Roy. Astr. Soc. 128, 345 Google Scholar
Piddington, J.H. (1978) Astrophys. Space Sci. 59, 237 Google Scholar
Reuter, H.-P. et al. (1991) Astron. Astrophys. (in press)Google Scholar
Reuter, H.-P. (1991) Ph.D. Thesis, Bonn University Google Scholar
Ruzmaikin, A., Sokoloff, D., Shukurov, A. (1988) Nature 336, 341 Google Scholar
Scarrott, S.M., Ward-Thompson, D., Warren-Smith, R.F. (1987) Mon. Not. Roy. Astr. Soc. 224, 299 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sofue, Y., Fujimoto, M., Wielebinski, R. (1986) Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 24, 459 Google Scholar
Sukumar, S., Allen, R.J. (1988) Nature 340, 337 Google Scholar
Tosa, M., Fujimoto, M. (1978) Pubi. Astron. Soc. Japan 30, 315 Google Scholar
Westerhout, G., Seeger, Ch.L., Brouw, W.N., Tinbergen, J. (1962) Bull. Astron. Inst. Neth. 16, 187 Google Scholar
Wielebinski, R., Shakeshaft, J.S., Pauliny-Toth, I.I.K. (1962) Observatory 82, 158 Google Scholar
Wielebinski, R. (1990) in The Interstellar Medium in Galaxies eds. Thronson, H.A. Jr. and Shull, J.M., Kluwer, , Dordrecht, , p. 349 Google Scholar