Constraints from globular cluster pulsars on the magnetic field in the Galactic halo

The Galactic magnetic field plays an important role in the evolution of the Galaxy, but its small-scale behaviour is still poorly known. It is also unknown whether it permeates the halo of the Galaxy or not. By using observations of pulsars in the halo globular cluster 47 Tucanae, we probed the Gala...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inarXiv.org
Main Authors Abbate, Federico, Possenti, Andrea, Tiburzi, Caterina, Barr, Ewan, Willem van Straten, Ridolfi, Alessandro, Freire, Paulo
Format Paper Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 05.03.2020
Subjects
Galactic clusters
Galactic disk
Galactic evolution
Galactic halos
Galaxies
Interstellar magnetic fields
Magnetic fields
Magnetism
Physics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Pulsars
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Summary:The Galactic magnetic field plays an important role in the evolution of the Galaxy, but its small-scale behaviour is still poorly known. It is also unknown whether it permeates the halo of the Galaxy or not. By using observations of pulsars in the halo globular cluster 47 Tucanae, we probed the Galactic magnetic field at arcsecond scales for the first time and discovered an unexpected large gradient in the component of the magnetic field parallel to the line of sight. This gradient is aligned with a direction perpendicular to the Galactic disk and could be explained by magnetic fields amplified to some 60 {\mu}G within the globular cluster. This scenario supports the existence of a magnetized outflow that extends from the Galactic disk to the halo and interacts with the studied globular cluster.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.2003.02867