Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Large, highly organized radio structures near the galactic centre

  • Article
  • Published:

From Nature

View current issue Submit your manuscript

Abstract

A radio map of the galactic centre made at a wavelength of 20 cm with the Very Large Array telescope reveals that most of the radio emission arising within 50 pc of the galactic centre is not associated with ionizing radiation from recently formed stars. Rather, the large-scale geometry and the measured polarization of the radio emission strongly suggest that the nonthermally emitting gas is arranged along magnetic structures indicative of a substantial poloidal component to the magnetic field in the central region of the Galaxy.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Oort, J. H. A. Rev. Astr. Astrophys. 15, 295–362 (1977).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  2. Brown, R. L. & Liszt, H. S. A. Rev. Astr. Astrophys. 22 (in the press).

  3. Lacy, J. H., Townes, C. H., Geballe, T. R. & Hollenbach, D. J. Astrophys. J. 241, 132–146 (1980).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Lacy, J. H., Townes, C. H. & Hollenbach, D. J. Astrophys. J. 262, 120–134 (1982).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Becklin, E. E. & Neugebauer, G. Astrophys. J. Lett. 200, L71–L74 (1975).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  6. Becklin, E. E., Matthews, K., Neugebauer, G. & Willner, S. P. Astrophys. J. 219, 121–128 (1978).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Becklin, E. E., Gatley, I. & Werner, M. W. Astrophys. J. 258, 134 (1982).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Lo, K. Y., Cohen, M. H., Readhead, A. C. S. & Backer, D. C. Astrophys. J. 249, 504–512 (1981).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Hall, D. N. B., Kleinmann, S. G. & Scoville, N. Z. Astrophys. J. Lett. 260, L53–L58 (1982).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Ekers, R. D., van Gorkom, J., Schwarz, U. J. & Goss, W. M. Astr. Astrophys. 122, 143–150 (1983).

    ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Liszt, H. S., van der Hulst, J. M., Burton, W. B. & Ondrechen, M. P. Astr. Astrophys. 126, 341–351 (1983).

    ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Lo, K. Y. & Claussen, M. J. Nature 306, 647–651 (1983).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Fukui, Y. et al. Publ. astr. Soc. Jap. 29, 643–667 (1977).

    ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Liszt, H. S. & Burton, W. B. Astrophys. J. 226, 790–816 (1978).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Güsten, R. & Downes, D. Astr. Astrophys. 87, 6–19 (1980).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  16. Güsten, R., Walmsley, C. M. & Pauls, T. Astr. Astrophys. 103, 197–206 (1981).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  17. Pauls, T., Downes, D., Mezger, P. G. & Churchwell, E. Astr. Astrophys. 46, 407–412 (1976).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  18. Gardner, F. F. & Whiteoak, J. B. Proc. astr. Soc. Aust. 3, 150–152 (1977).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Pauls, T. & Mezger, P. G. Astr. Astrophys. 85, 26–28 (1980).

    ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Gatley, I., Becklin, E. E., Werner, M. W. & Wynn-Williams, C. G. Astrophys. J. 216, 277–290 (1977).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Hildebrand, R. H. et al. Astrophys. J. Lett. 299, L101–L104 (1978).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  22. Dent, W. A. et al. The Galactic Center, AIP Conf. Proc. No. 83, 33–41 (1982).

  23. Stier, M. T. et al. The Galactic Center, AIP Conf. Proc. No. 83, 42–47 (1982).

  24. Mezger, P. G. & Pauls, T. The Large-Scale Characteristics of the Galaxy, IAU Symp. No. 84, 357–366 (1979).

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  25. Downes, D., Goss, W. M., Schwarz, U. J. & Wouterloot, J. G. A. Astr. Astrophys. Suppl. 35, 1–22 (1978).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  26. Drake, F. Astr. J. 64, 329 (1959).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  27. Steinberg, J. L. & Lequeux, J. Radio Astronomy, 193 (McGraw-Hill, New York, 1963).

  28. Broten, N. W. et al. Aust. J. Phys. 18, 85–90 (1965).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  29. Downes, D., Maxwell, A. & Meeks, M. L. Nature 208, 1189–1190 (1965).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  30. Whiteoak, J. B. & Gardner, F. F. Astrophys. Lett. 13, 205–207 (1973).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  31. Kapitzky, J. E. & Dent, W. A. Astrophys. J. 188, 27–32 (1974).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  32. Little, A. G. Galactic Radio Astronomy, IAU Symp. No. 60, 491–497 (1974).

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  33. Altenhoff, W. J., Downes, D., Pauls, T. & Schraml, J. Astr. Astrophys. Suppl. 35, 23–54 (1978).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  34. Gatley, I., Becklin, E. E., Werner, M. W. & Harper, D. A. Astrophys. J. 220, 822–830 (1978).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Krishna, G., Swarup, G., Sarma, N. V. G. & Soshie, M. N. Nature 239, 91–92 (1972).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  36. Dulk, G. A. & Slee, O. B. Nature 248, 33–34 (1974).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  37. Güsten, R. & Henkel, C. Astr. Astrophys. 125, 136–145 (1983).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  38. Chiuderi, C. & Van Hoven, G. Astrophys. J. Lett. 232, L69–L73 (1979).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  39. Murty, G. S. Ark. Fys. 21, 203–211 (1962).

    Google Scholar 

  40. Spitzer, L. Jr Physics of Fully Ionized Gases (Interscience, New York, 1962).

    MATH  Google Scholar 

  41. Scoville, N. Z., Solomon, P. M. & Jefferts, K. B. Astrophys. J. Lett. 187, L63–L66 (1974).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. Audouze, J., Lequeux, J., Masnou, J.-L. & Puget, J.-L. Astr. Astrophys. 80, 276–286 (1979).

    ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  43. Güsten, R. & Downes, D. Astr. Astrophys. 117, 343–346 (1983).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Astronomy, Columbia University, New York, New York, 10027, USA

    F. Yusef-Zadeh & D. Chance

  2. Department of Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles, California, 90024, USA

    Mark Morris

Authors
  1. F. Yusef-Zadeh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mark Morris
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. D. Chance
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Yusef-Zadeh, F., Morris, M. & Chance, D. Large, highly organized radio structures near the galactic centre. Nature 310, 557–561 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1038/310557a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/310557a0

  • Springer Nature Limited

This article is cited by

Search

Navigation