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Article Contents

ABSTRACT

1.THE ROLE OF MAGNETIC FIELDS IN SPIRAL GALAXIES

2.ORIGIN OF GALACTIC MAGNETIC FIELDS

3.OBSERVATIONAL TOOLS

3.1.Basic magnetic field components

3.2.Optical, infrared and submm polarization

3.3.Zeeman effect

3.4.Total radio synchrotron emission and the equipartition assumption

3.5.Polarized radio synchrotron emission

3.6.Faraday rotation and Faraday Synthesis

3.7.Faraday depolarization

4.RESULTS

4.1.Magnetic field strengths

4.2.Magnetic energy densities

4.3.Cosmic-ray propagation

4.4.Relations between gas, star formation and magnetic fields

4.5.Spiral fields

4.6.Spiral pitch angles

4.7.Regular fields

4.8.Testing dynamo models

4.9.Magnetic arms

4.10.Helically twisted Parker loops

4.11.Large-scale field reversals

4.12.Barred galaxies

4.13.Magnetic halos

4.14.Rudimentary spirals: flocculent and irregular galaxies

4.15.Beyond spirals: interacting galaxies

4.16.Spiral galaxies with jets