TY - JOUR
T1 - Whence the Interstellar Magnetic Field Shaping the Heliosphere?
AU - Frisch, P. C.
AU - Piirola, V.
AU - Berdyugin, A. B.
AU - Heiles, C.
AU - Cole, A.
AU - Hill, K.
AU - Magalhães, A. M.
AU - Wiktorowicz, S. J.
AU - Bailey, J.
AU - Cotton, D. V.
AU - Kedziora-Chudczer, L.
AU - Schwadron, N. A.
AU - Bzowski, M.
AU - McComas, D. J.
AU - Zirnstein, E. J.
AU - Funsten, H. O.
AU - Harlingten, C.
AU - Redfield, Seth
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported in part by the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) mission as a part of the NASA Explorer program (80NSSC20K0719), and the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) mission as a part of the NASA Solar Terrestrial Probes program (80GSFC19C0027). We are grateful to the Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, for the observing time allocated for us on the UH88 and T60 telescopes, and to the University of Tasmania (UTAS) for the observing time at the H127 telescope, Greenhill Observatory, supported in part by the University of Tasmania Foundation. The H127 telescope is funded in part by grant No. LE110100055 from the Australian Research Council. This research is based in part on observations made with the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT), owned in collaboration by the University of Turku and Aarhus University, and operated jointly by Aarhus University, the University of Turku and the University of Oslo, representing Denmark, Finland and Norway, the University of Iceland and Stockholm University at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, La Palma, Spain, of the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias. We acknowledge support from the Magnus Ehrnrooth foundation, and ERC Advanced Grant Hot-Mol ERC-2011-AdG-291659. M.B. was supported by the Polish National Science Center grant No. 2019-35-B-ST9-01241. P.C.F. acknowledges funding from NASA IBEX and IMAP missions and HST-GO-14084. A.M.M.’s research and his collection of optical polarimetry at IAG-USP have been supported over the years by multiple grants from the São Paulo state funding agency FAPESP and from the Brazilian agency CNP.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society.
PY - 2022/4/1
Y1 - 2022/4/1
N2 - Measurements of starlight polarized by aligned interstellar dust grains are used to probe the relation between the orientation of the ambient interstellar magnetic field (ISMF) and the ISMF traced by the ribbons of energetic neutral atoms discovered by the Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft. We utilize polarization data, many acquired specifically for this study, to trace the configuration of the ISMF within 40 pc. A statistical analysis yields a best-fit ISMF orientation, B magpol, aligned with Galactic coordinates ℓ = 42°, b = 49°. Further analysis shows the ISMF is more orderly for "downfield"stars located over 90° from B magpol. The data subset of downfield stars yields an orientation for the nearby ISMF at ecliptic coordinates λ, β ≈ 219° ± 15°, 43° ± 9° (Galactic coordinates l, b ≈ 40°, 56°, ±17°). This best-fit ISMF orientation from polarization data is close to the field direction obtained from ribbon models. This agreement suggests that the ISMF shaping the heliosphere belongs to an extended ordered magnetic field. Extended filamentary structures are found throughout the sky. A previously discovered filament traversing the heliosphere nose region, "Filament A,"extends over 300° of the sky, and crosses the upwind direction of interstellar dust flowing into the heliosphere. Filament A overlaps the locations of the Voyager kilohertz emissions, three quasar intraday variables, cosmic microwave background (CMB) components, and the inflow direction of interstellar grains sampled by Ulysses and Galileo. These features are likely located in the upstream outer heliosheath where ISMF drapes over the heliosphere, suggesting Filament A coincides with a dusty magnetized plasma. A filament 55° long is aligned with a possible shock interface between local interstellar clouds. A dark spot in the CMB is seen within 5° of the filament and within 10° of the downfield ISMF direction. Two large magnetic arcs are centered on the directions of the heliotail. The overlap between CMB components and the aligned dust grains forming Filament A indicates the configuration of dust entrained in the ISMF interacting with the heliosphere provides a measurable foreground to the CMB.
AB - Measurements of starlight polarized by aligned interstellar dust grains are used to probe the relation between the orientation of the ambient interstellar magnetic field (ISMF) and the ISMF traced by the ribbons of energetic neutral atoms discovered by the Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft. We utilize polarization data, many acquired specifically for this study, to trace the configuration of the ISMF within 40 pc. A statistical analysis yields a best-fit ISMF orientation, B magpol, aligned with Galactic coordinates ℓ = 42°, b = 49°. Further analysis shows the ISMF is more orderly for "downfield"stars located over 90° from B magpol. The data subset of downfield stars yields an orientation for the nearby ISMF at ecliptic coordinates λ, β ≈ 219° ± 15°, 43° ± 9° (Galactic coordinates l, b ≈ 40°, 56°, ±17°). This best-fit ISMF orientation from polarization data is close to the field direction obtained from ribbon models. This agreement suggests that the ISMF shaping the heliosphere belongs to an extended ordered magnetic field. Extended filamentary structures are found throughout the sky. A previously discovered filament traversing the heliosphere nose region, "Filament A,"extends over 300° of the sky, and crosses the upwind direction of interstellar dust flowing into the heliosphere. Filament A overlaps the locations of the Voyager kilohertz emissions, three quasar intraday variables, cosmic microwave background (CMB) components, and the inflow direction of interstellar grains sampled by Ulysses and Galileo. These features are likely located in the upstream outer heliosheath where ISMF drapes over the heliosphere, suggesting Filament A coincides with a dusty magnetized plasma. A filament 55° long is aligned with a possible shock interface between local interstellar clouds. A dark spot in the CMB is seen within 5° of the filament and within 10° of the downfield ISMF direction. Two large magnetic arcs are centered on the directions of the heliotail. The overlap between CMB components and the aligned dust grains forming Filament A indicates the configuration of dust entrained in the ISMF interacting with the heliosphere provides a measurable foreground to the CMB.
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U2 - 10.3847/1538-4365/ac5750
DO - 10.3847/1538-4365/ac5750
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85128133583
SN - 0067-0049
VL - 259
JO - Astrophysical Journal, Supplement Series
JF - Astrophysical Journal, Supplement Series
IS - 2
M1 - 48
ER -