Faraday rotation of radio sources from THOR

In the Galactic longitude range 39{deg}<l<52{deg}, we find rotation measures (RMs) in the range -310rad/m^2^<=RM<=+4219rad/m^2^, with the highest values concentrated within a degree of l=48{deg} at the Sagittarius arm tangent. Most of the high RMs arise in diffuse plasma, along lines of sight that do not intersect HII regions.

For l>49{deg}, RM drops off rapidly, while at l<47{deg}, the mean RM is higher with a larger standard deviation than at l>49{deg}. We attribute the RM structure to the compressed diffuse warm ionized medium in the spiral arm, upstream of the major star formation regions. The Sagittarius arm acts as a significant Faraday screen inside the Galaxy.