Magnetic fields in the High Velocity Clouds



Abstract:

The high velocity clouds (HVCs) that cover the sky around the Milky Way are now

widely believed to be low-metallicity gas that is being accreted by the Galaxy,

fueling star formation and stabilizing the Galactic disk. There is a fundamental

question about what holds the clouds together as coherent entities. One possible

mechanism for stabilizing a cloud is its magnetic field.  Indeed, the interaction of a falling

cloud with the galactic halo depends keenly on the strength and orientation of the

magnetic field. Smith's Cloud is one of those falling clouds that is on its way to

interact with the galactic plane. I'll talk about its current observational result while

trying to remove the possible instrumental effects.