See a new map of the universe’s magnetic fields – the largest and most detailed ever made |
Magnetic fields are a fundamental part of the universe. They govern how small particles – the building blocks of planets, stars, and ultimately galaxies – move through space.
We still don’t know how magnetic fields came to exist in the universe, but we do know they’re everywhere. Earth itself has a magnetic field that compasses and migrating birds respond to.
With radio telescopes, astronomers can use the light from distant galaxies to illuminate these otherwise invisible areas in space.
In our study, published today in Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia, we’ve used Australia’s most powerful radio telescope to create the largest and most detailed map of cosmic magnetic fields ever made.
Giant batteries that control galaxies
Magnetic fields greatly vary across the universe. Extremely dense objects, such as neutron stars and black holes, have magnetic fields thousands of billions times stronger than Earth’s own.
In the space between stars we’ve also measured magnetic fields a million times weaker than Earth’s. Despite their weakness, we know these fields are incredibly important for controlling how galaxies evolve. They act like giant batteries and store huge amounts of energy, slowing down or even preventing the formation of new stars.
But to us, magnetic fields are invisible. To find them in space, astronomers are limited to using light from........