A dense plasma globule in the solar neighborhood

Abstract

The radio source J1819+3845 underwent a period of extreme interstellar scintillation between circa 1999 and 2007. The plasma structure responsible for this scintillation was determined to be just $1$-$3$pc from the solar system and to posses a density of $n_e\sim 10^2$cm${}^{-3}$ that is three orders of magnitude higher than the ambient interstellar density (de Bruyn & Macquart 2015). Here we present radio-polarimetric images of the field towards J1819+3845 at wavelengths of 0.2, 0.92 and 2m. We detect an elliptical plasma globule of approximate size $1^{\circ }\times \gtrsim 2^{\circ }$ (major-axis position angle of $\approx -40^{\circ }$), via its Faraday-rotation imprint ($\approx 15$radm${}^{-2}$) on the diffuse Galactic synchrotron emission. The extreme scintillation of J1819+3845 was most likely caused at the turbulent boundary of the globule (J1819+3845 is currently occulted by the globule). The origin and precise nature of the globule remain unknown. Our observations are the first time plasma structures that likely cause extreme scintillation have been directly imaged.

arXiv commentAccepted ApJL

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• Revealing compact structures of interstellar plasma in the Galaxy with RadioAstron
• ASKAP observations of multiple rapid scintillators reveal a degrees-long plasma filament
• The presence of interstellar scintillation in the 15 GHz interday variability of 1158 OVRO-monitored blazars