Degree and direction of polarisation of more than 2000 stars in Galactic coordinates (IMAGE)

University of Turku

Degree and direction of polarisation of more than 2000 stars in Galactic coordinates

Caption

The structure of magnetic field and the distribution of dust in space is revealed by high-precision polarisation measurements. The figure shows the degree and direction of polarisation of more than 2000 stars in Galactic coordinates. The size of the dust particles responsible for polarisation at the optical wavelengths is less than one micrometer, i.e., similar to solid particles in 'smoke'.

Credit

Vilppu Piirola

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