Tracing the Magnetic Field in Molecular Clouds

Abstract

The orientation of the magnetic field vector at any given point in a molecular cloud can be specified with two parameters: α, its inclination angle to the line of sight, and β, its projection angle on the plane of the sky (eastward from north). Until recently, of these two angles, only β could be measured. At submillimeter wavelengths, this can be accomplished, for example, with polarization measurements of the continuum radiation emanating from elongated dust grains that are aligned by the local magnetic field [2]. The angle β is thus obtained from the angle of the polarization vector since the projection of the magnetic field vector in the plane of the sky is oriented at right angles to the polarization vector [5].

Additional details