A dense plasma globule in the solar neighborhood
  The radio source J1819+3845 underwent a period of extreme interstellar
scintillation between circa 1999 and 2007. The plasma structure responsible for
this scintillation was determined to be just $1$-$3\,$pc from the solar system
and to posses a density of $n_e\sim 10^2\,$cm$^{-3}$ that is three orders of
magnitude higher than the ambient interstellar density (de Bruyn & Macquart
2015). Here we present radio-polarimetric images of the field towards
J1819+3845 at wavelengths of 0.2, 0.92 and 2$\,$m. We detect an elliptical
plasma globule of approximate size $1^\circ \times \gtrsim 2^\circ$ (major-axis
position angle of $\approx -40^\circ$), via its Faraday-rotation imprint
($\approx 15\,$rad$\,$m$^{-2}$) on the diffuse Galactic synchrotron emission.
The extreme scintillation of J1819+3845 was most likely caused at the turbulent
boundary of the globule (J1819+3845 is currently occulted by the globule). The
origin and precise nature of the globule remain unknown. Our observations are
the first time plasma structures that likely cause extreme scintillation have
been directly imaged.
