Open AccessA dynamo model for the magnetic field of the weakly barred galaxy IC 4214
Author(s) -
Moss D.,
Rautiainen P.,
Salo H.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
monthly notices of the royal astronomical society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.058
H-Index - 383
eISSN - 1365-2966
pISSN - 0035-8711
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-8711.1999.02191.x
Subject(s) - physics , barred spiral galaxy , dynamo , astrophysics , galaxy , irregular galaxy , magnetic field , spiral galaxy , dynamo theory , interacting galaxy , astronomy , galaxy formation and evolution , quantum mechanics
IC 4214 is a weakly barred galaxy, the observed velocity field of which has been well modelled by a dynamical simulation. We take the velocity field from this simulation as being representative of that to be found in a class of barred spiral galaxies, and use it as input into a galactic dynamo model. The strong non‐circular velocities are found to play an important role in determining the morphology of the magnetic field. The most conspicuous features are marked magnetic `arms', steady in the frame corotating with the bar, and trailing from near the ends of the bar. They are generated by a mechanism associated with the corotation resonance. Near the centre of the galaxy, the magnetic field is approximately axisymmetric. The computed magnetic field structure has features similar to those of the fields observed in barred galaxies.