How far do Galactic positrons travel before annihilating?
In plain words
If positrons made in the disk can drift into the bulge before annihilating, ordinary disk sources could explain the bulge glow.
Precise statement
Determine the distribution of propagation distances of positrons born at energies below a few MeV in the warm, hot and neutral phases of the interstellar medium, with slowing-down times of $\sim 10^{5}\text{ to }10^{7}\,\mathrm{yr}$ and realistic magnetic turbulence. Answer: the fraction of disk-born positrons that annihilate in the bulge, compared with the observed bulge-to-disk ratio and line width.
What would settle it
Transport calculations with measured interstellar turbulence spectra, validated against the line width and positronium fraction.
Parent problems
- Special case of What produces the Galaxy's 511 keV positron annihilation line? · open · from revision 1 The parent was revised since revision 1: it now states another question.
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