MAGNETIC FILAMENTS

BY NUMBERS 1,000

Number of magnetic strands found at the Milky Way’s centre

ten

times more than previously discovered

150

Length in light years

1984

Year they were first observed

200

Hours spent surveying the region using the MeerKAT telescope array

20

Separate radio observations combined

25,000

Distance of the filaments from Earth in light years

0.5

Space between the filaments in parsecs