Paper detail

The S1 Shell and Interstellar Magnetic Field and Gas near the Heliosphere

Many studies of the Loop I magnetic superbubble place the Sun at the edges of the bubble. One recent study models the polarized radio continuum of Loop I as two magnetic shells with the Sun embedded in the rim of the 'S1' shell. If the Sun is in such a shell, it should be apparent in both the local interstellar magnetic field and the distribution of nearby interstellar material. The properties of these subshells are compared to optical polarization data that trace the nearby interstellar magnetic field (ISMF), and the distribution of interstellar FeII and CaII within about 55 pc of the Sun. The result is that a model of Loop I as composed of two magnetic subshells is a viable description of the distribution of nearby low density ISM. Column densities of the recombinant ion CaII are found to increase with the strength of the interstellar radiation field, rather than with star distance or total pathlength through the two magnetic subshells. As found earlier, the symmetry of the dipole moment of the cosmic microwave background corresponds to the symmetries of the heliosphere and local ISMF (to within 10 degrees).