The polarization of the far-infrared radiation from the Galactic center
M. W. Werner, J. A. Davidson, M. Morris, G. Novak, S. R. Platt, R. H. Hildebrand;
ApJ, 1988, 333, 729
ABSTRACT:The first detection of linear polarization of the far-infrared (100-micron) radiation from the about 3-pc-diameter dust ring
surrounding the galactic nucleus is reported.
The percentage of polarization is
between 1 and 2 percent at the three measured positions.
It is argued that the
polarized radiation is produced by thermal emission from elongated
interstellar grains oriented by the local magnetic field.
The dust ring is
optically thin at 100 microns; therefore the observations sample dust through
the entire depth of the cloud and are free of confusing effects due to
embedded sources, scattering, or selective absorption.
These data provide
the first information about the configuration of the magnetic field in the
dust ring.
KEYWORDS: cosmic dust, far infrared radiation, galactic nuclei, infrared sources (astronomy), linear polarization, thermal emission, h ii regions, interstellar magnetic fields, interstellar matter, star clusters
PERSOKEY:polarisation, fir, kao, ,
CODE: werner88