Description
Non-thermal radio filaments (NRFs) were first discovered 40 years ago in the Galactic Centre (GC) with their astrophysical origins still being a topic of debate. The SARAO MeerKAT Galactic Plane Survey (SMPGS) recently revealed a population of NRFs found throughout the Galactic Plane (GP). Confirming these would challenge NRF origin models that rely on the unique environment of the GC and could provide insights into Galactic cosmic ray source populations for the first time. Further study of these NRFs with the JVLA and MeerKAT is ongoing.
Whilst the existing data have given numerous promising results, the SKA will significantly advance these studies. Better sensitivity will allow for deeper surveys of the GP detecting fainter NRFs. Much improved angular resolution will enable more direct comparisons between the GC and GP populations — many GC filaments are only marginally resolved by the MeerKAT synthesised beam at L-band — and allow properties such as spectral indices to be resolved across the filament.
In this talk, I will summarise current knowledge of NRFs; the ongoing study of them using SKA precursor and pathfinder telescopes; and how the future capabilities of the full SKA will enable us to further constrain the filaments and their astrophysical implications.
