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Revealing the magnetic field geometry in the Milky Way’s most efficient particle accelerator

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The first maps of the magnetic field in the nebula surrounding the Crab pulsar have been drawn using X-ray polarimetry. They provide insight into the flow of relativistic particles through the nebula and the generation of turbulence.

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Fig. 1: Magnetic field geometry of the Crab nebula.

References

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This is a summary of: Bucciantini, N. et al. Simultaneous space and phase resolved X-ray polarimetry of the Crab pulsar and nebula. Nat. Astron. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-023-01936-8 (2023).

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Revealing the magnetic field geometry in the Milky Way’s most efficient particle accelerator. Nat Astron 7, 522–523 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-023-01952-8

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