- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/775/84
- Title:
- Polarization from stars behind IC63 nebula
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/775/84
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- In the interstellar medium (ISM), molecular hydrogen is expected to form almost exclusively on the surfaces of dust grains. Due to that molecule's large formation energy (-4.5eV), several dynamical effects are likely associated with the process, including the alignment of asymmetric dust grains with the ambient magnetic field. Such aligned dust grains are, in turn, believed to cause the broadband optical/infrared polarization observed in the ISM. Here, we present the first observational evidence for grain alignment driven by H_2_ formation, by showing that the polarization of the light from stars behind the reflection nebula IC 63 appears to correlate with the intensity of H_2_ fluorescence. While our results strongly suggest a role for "Purcell rockets" in grain alignment, additional observations are needed to conclusively confirm their role. By showing a direct connection between H_2_ formation and a probe of the dust characteristics, these results also provide one of the first direct confirmations of the grain-surface formation of H_2_. We compare our observations to ab initio modeling based on Radiative Torque Alignment (RAT) theory.
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Search Results
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/569/L1
- Title:
- Polarization hole in a starless core
- Short Name:
- J/A+A/569/L1
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We aim to investigate the polarization properties of a starless core in a very early evolutionary stage. Linear polarization data reveal the properties of the dust grains in the distinct phases of the interstellar medium. Our goal is to investigate how the polarization degree and angle correlate with the cloud and core gas. We use optical, near infrared and submillimeter polarization observations toward the starless object Pipe-109 in the Pipe nebula. Our data cover a physical scale range of 0.08 to 0.4pc, comprising the dense gas, envelope and the surrounding cloud. The cloud polarization is well traced by the optical data. The near infrared polarization is produced by a mixed population of grains from the core border and the cloud gas. The optical and near infrared polarization toward the cloud reach the maximum possible value and saturate with respect to the visual extinction. The core polarization is predominantly traced by the submillimeter data and have a steep decrease with respect to the visual extinction. Modeling of the submillimeter polarization indicates a magnetic field main direction projected onto the plane-of-sky and loss of grain alignment for densities higher than 6x10^4^cm^-3^ (or A_V_>30mag). Pipe-109 is immersed in a magnetized medium, with a very ordered magnetic field. The absence of internal source of radiation significantly affects the polarization efficiencies in the core, creating a polarization hole at the center of the starless core. This result supports the theory of dust grain alignment via radiative torques.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/427/107
- Title:
- Polarization in BAL QSOs
- Short Name:
- J/A+A/427/107
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We report the results of several statistical tests performed on a large sample of 139 broad absorption line (BAL) QSOs with good quality optical spectra and/or optical polarization data. Correlations between ten optical indices and the polarization degree p_0_ are systematically searched for.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/604/717
- Title:
- Polarization in OMC 1/4
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/604/717
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We use extensive 350{mu}m polarimetry and continuum maps obtained with the Hertz polarimeter and SHARC II (Submillimeter High Angular Resolution Camera II) along with HCN and HCO+ spectroscopic data to trace the orientation of the magnetic field in the Orion A star-forming region. Using the polarimetry data, we find that the direction of the projection of the magnetic field in the plane of the sky relative to the orientation of the integral-shaped filament varies considerably as one moves from north to south. By combining the polarimetry and spectroscopic data, we were able to measure a set of average values for the inclination angle of the magnetic field relative to the line of sight. We also present polarimetry data for the OMC-4 region located some 13' south of OMC-1.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/897/90
- Title:
- Polarization measurements of S201 with JCMT
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/897/90
- Date:
- 11 Mar 2022
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present the properties of magnetic fields (B fields) in two clumps (clump 1 and clump 2), located at the waist of the bipolar HII region Sh2-201, based on James Clerk Maxwell Telescope SCUBA-2/POL-2 observations of 850{mu}m polarized dust emission. We find that B fields in the direction of the clumps are bent and compressed, showing bow-like morphologies, which we attribute to the feedback effect of the HII region on the surface of the clumps. Using the modified Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi method, we estimate B-field strengths of 266 and 65{mu}G for clump 1 and clump 2, respectively. From virial analyses and critical mass ratio estimates, we argue that clump 1 is gravitationally bound and could be undergoing collapse, whereas clump 2 is unbound and stable. We hypothesize that the interplay of the thermal pressure imparted by the HII region, the B-field morphologies, and the various internal pressures of the clumps (such as magnetic, turbulent, and gas thermal pressures) has the following consequences: (a) formation of clumps at the waist of the HII region; (b) progressive compression and enhancement of the B fields in the clumps; (c) stronger B fields that will shield the clumps from erosion by the HII region and cause pressure equilibrium between the clumps and the HII region, thereby allowing expanding ionization fronts to blow away from the filament ridge, forming bipolar HII regions; and (d) stronger B fields and turbulence that will be able to stabilize the clumps. A study of a larger sample of bipolar HII regions would help to determine whether our hypotheses are widely applicable.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/504/259
- Title:
- Polarization models for planets
- Short Name:
- J/A+A/504/259
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- Reflected light from giant planets is polarized by scattering, offering the possibility of investigating atmospheric properties with polarimetry. Polarimetric measurements are available for the atmospheres of solar system planets, and instruments are being developed to detect and study the polarimetric properties of extrasolar planets. We investigate the intensity and polarization of reflected light from planets in a systematic way with a grid of model calculations. Comparison of the results with existing and future observations can be used to constrain parameters of planetary atmospheres.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/MNRAS/436/2915
- Title:
- Polarization of bright AT20G sources
- Short Name:
- J/MNRAS/436/2915
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present polarization data for 180 extragalactic sources extracted from the Australia Telescope 20GHz (AT20G) survey catalogue and observed with the Australia Telescope Compact Array during a dedicated, high sensitivity run ({sigma}_P_~1mJy). For the sake of completeness, we extracted the polarization information for seven extended sources from the 9yr Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe co-added maps at 23GHz. The full sample of 187 sources constitutes a =~99% complete sample of extragalactic sources brighter than S_20GHz_=500mJy at the selection epoch with declination {delta}<-30{deg}. The sample has a 91.4% detection rate in polarization at ~20GHz (94 percent if considering the subsample of point-like sources). We have measurements also at 4.8 and 8.6GHz within ~1 month of the 20GHz observations for 172 sources to reconstruct the spectral properties of the sample in total intensity and in polarization: 143 of them have a polarization detection at all three frequencies. We find that there is no statistically significant evidence of a relationship either between the fraction of polarization and frequency or between the fraction of polarization and the total intensity flux density. This indicates that Faraday depolarization is not very important above 4.8GHz and that the magnetic field is not substantially more ordered in the regions dominating the emission at higher frequencies (up to 20GHz). We estimate the distribution of the polarization fraction and the polarized flux density source counts at ~20GHz.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/512/125
- Title:
- Polarization of broad absorption line QSOs
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/512/125
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present the combined results of optical polarization surveys of QSOs showing broad absorption lines (BALQSOs) conducted at the Steward and McDonald Observatories. The merged list of 53 objects provides the first statistical justification for claims of the tendency of BALQSOs to show stronger than average polarization, with a typical BALQSO being polarized a factor 2.4 times greater than a QSO from an optical survey selected without regard for absorption lines. Spectropolarimetry of sufficient quality to distinguish the polarization of emission lines versus absorption troughs versus continuum is also presented for six objects from the survey.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/VII/6
- Title:
- Polarization of Extragalactic Radio Sources
- Short Name:
- VII/6
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- The catalog contains 510 extragalactic radio sources, and covers all polarization measurements from 1965 to the middle of 1974 and a few other radio and optical data for these sources. The typical observation error was in the range of 1-2 percent in 1965 and 0.5-1 percent in 1974. The selection criterion for sources was that polarization data should be available at least at three wavelengths for each source. This reduced the sample to 510 sources. The catalog includes observational data: classifications, Cambridge numbers, coordinates, degrees of polarization at various wavelengths, polarization angles at each wavelength, largest angular diameters, position angles, and redshifts. The catalog also includes derived data: rotation measures, linear source diameters, polarization angles at wavelength 0 cm, differences between position angle and polarization angle at 0 cm, spectral indices between each pair of successive wavelengths observed, and polarization indices between each pair of successive wavelengths observed.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/MNRAS/360/1305
- Title:
- Polarization of extragalactic sources
- Short Name:
- J/MNRAS/360/1305
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We have observed a sample of 64 small-diameter sources towards the central -6<l<6, -2<b<2 of the Galaxy with the aim of studying the Faraday rotation measure near the Galactic Centre region. All the sources were observed at 6- and 3.6-cm wavelengths using the ATCA and the VLA. 59 of these sources are inferred to be extragalactic. The observations presented here constitute the first systematic study of the radio polarization properties of the background sources towards this direction and increase the number of known extragalactic radio sources in this part of the sky by almost an order of magnitude. Based on the morphology, spectral indices and lack of polarized emission, we identify four Galactic HII regions in the sample.