research
Zeeman Measurements Weighted Opacity, Not Gas Density
Multiphase simulations produced field estimates several times above the density-weighted value.
Summary
Multiphase simulations produced field estimates several times above the density-weighted value.
Synthetic observations and two-phase models show that diffuse hydrogen Zeeman measurements primarily recover an optical-depth-weighted magnetic field. Cold and warm gas make that weighting diverge most strongly below hydrogen columns near 10²² per square centimeter, offering one contribution to the broad, flat observed field–column-density relation.
Why it matters
Multiphase simulations produced field estimates several times above the density-weighted value.
Limits and context
No additional limitation was separately recorded.
Key claims
Multiphase simulations produced field estimates several times above the density-weighted value.
Evidence: source-2026-09-18-020
Sources
- arXiv preprint 2609.20374arXiv · primary research
Corrections
No corrections have been recorded for this story.