The Galactic Magnetic Field

Oct, 2012
5 pages
Published in:
  • Astrophys.J.Lett. 761 (2012) L11
e-Print:

Citations per year

20122015201820212024051015202530
Abstract: (arXiv)
With this Letter, we complete our model of the Galactic magnetic field (GMF), by using the WMAP7 22 GHz total synchrotron intensity map and our earlier results to obtain a 13-parameter model of the Galactic random field, and to determine the strength of the striated random field. In combination with our 22-parameter description of the regular GMF, we obtain a very good fit to more than forty thousand extragalactic Faraday Rotation Measures (RMs) and the WMAP7 22 GHz polarized and total intensity synchrotron emission maps. The data calls for a striated component to the random field whose orientation is aligned with the regular field, having zero mean and rms strength ~20% larger than the regular field. A noteworthy feature of the new model is that the regular field has a significant out-of-plane component, which had not been considered earlier. The new GMF model gives a much better description of the totality of data than previous models in the literature.
Note:
  • 5 pages, 3 figures, Ap. J. Lett. in press
  • cosmic rays
  • Galaxy: general
  • ISM: magnetic fields
  • magnetic fields