I reached out Recent study To a detailed three-dimensional drawing of the magnetic fields that permeate our Milky Way Galaxy, and which arise not only from celestial bodies such as stars and planets, but also from nebulae, cosmic dust, and hydrogen gas spread between the stars.
Although scientists’ awareness of the existence of these magnetic fields is ancient, the biggest challenge has been in drawing a comprehensive map of the entire galaxy.
Unlike stars and planets, magnetic fields do not emit light independently, making them impossible to see visually with visible telescopes. To overcome this problem, scientists are looking for different mechanisms to find magnetic fields, such as studying their interaction with charged particles or studying the change in the behavior of light passing through them.
In the case of stars and planets, magnetic fields are often mapped by observing charged particles, such as ions, traveling along magnetic field lines, emitting light in the process. This was how Jupiter’s magnetic field was first mapped, and the same applies to black holes.
But at the level of the whole galaxy and the widespread and distant magnetic fields, it becomes more difficult to observe charged particles because they are weaker and more widespread, and thus the light emitted is very faint. Instead, researchers use polarized light technology, which interacts with the ionized gas at different speeds based on its frequency, resulting in a polarized light beam that rotates and travels depending on the amount of ionized gas it passes through. Since the ionized gas is trapped within magnetic fields, it is easy to draw the magnetic field by looking at various polarized light sources.
Polarized light is light whose waves oscillate in a specific direction, rather than randomly oscillating in different directions. This technology is used in many things, such as polarized sunglasses, which filter scattered light from shiny objects, and in water, which helps eliminate ripples. In space, there are many celestial bodies that emit polarized light, such as pulsating stars.
The recent study goes further by incorporating data coming from the Gaia spacecraft, providing a detailed map of the distribution and spread of stars and nebulae in the local region of the Milky Way Galaxy. By combining this data with polarization results from Sagittarius’ spiral arm, the researchers were able to draw a detailed three-dimensional map of the galaxy’s magnetic field.
The results showed that the magnetic fields in the galaxy are not uniformly distributed, and do not lie along the plane of the galaxy, but rather take complex shapes in many places located between the stars. The researchers found that these magnetic fields can interact strongly with stellar nurseries, penetrate them and affect the movement of gas and cosmic dust in them.
The results not only reveal how new stars are formed and are born, but also provide a broader understanding of the structure of galaxies and how they evolve over time.
