Related papers: Core orientations and magnetic fields in isolated …
We present JCMT POL-2 850 um dust polarization observations and Mimir H band stellar polarization observations toward the starless core L1512. We detect the highly-ordered core-scale magnetic field traced by the POL-2 data, of which the…
It has been proposed that the magnetic field, pervasive in the ISM, plays an important role in the process of massive star formation. To better understand its impact at the pre and protostellar stages, high-angular resolution observations…
In this chapter we review recent advances in understanding the roles that magnetic fields play throughout the star formation process, gained through observations and simulations of molecular clouds, the dense, star-forming phase of the…
In the standard picture of isolated star formation, dense ``starless'' cores are formed out of magnetic molecular clouds due to ambipolar diffusion. Under the simplest spherical geometry, I demonstrate that ``starless'' cores formed this…
We examine the role of the interstellar magnetic field to modulate the orientation of turbulent flows within the Taurus molecular cloud using spatial gradients of thin velocity slices of 12CO and 13CO antenna temperatures. Our analysis…
We revisit the relation between magnetic-field strength ($B$) and gas density ($\rho$) for contracting interstellar clouds and fragments (or, cores), which is central in observationally determining the dynamical importance of magnetic…
We review the role that magnetic field may have on the formation and evolution of molecular clouds. After a brief presentation and main assumptions leading to ideal MHD equations, their most important correction, namely the ion-neutral…
In diffuse molecular clouds, possible precursors of star-forming clouds, the effect of the magnetic field is unclear. In this work we compare the orientations of filamentary structures in the Polaris Flare, as seen through dust emission by…
We present a set of numerical simulations addressing the effects of magnetic field strength and orientation on the flow-driven formation of molecular clouds. Fields perpendicular to the flows sweeping up the cloud can efficiently prevent…
Low-energy cosmic rays are the dominant source of ionization for molecular cloud cores. The ionization fraction, in turn, controls the coupling of the magnetic field to the gas and hence the dynamical evolution of the cores. The purpose of…
We present an analysis of the relationship between the orientation of magnetic fields and filaments that form in 3D magnetohydrodynamic simulations of cluster-forming, turbulent molecular cloud clumps. We examine simulated cloud clumps with…
Magnetic fields are often invoked as playing a primary role in star formation and in the formation of high-mass stars. We investigate the effect of magnetic fields on the formation of high-mass cores using the 3-dimensional smoothed…
Within four nearby (d < 160 pc) molecular clouds, we statistically evaluate the structure of the interstellar magnetic field, projected on the plane of the sky and integrated along the line of sight, as inferred from the polarized thermal…
The complete three-dimensional structure of the magnetic field within molecular clouds has eluded determination despite its high value in determining controlling factors in the star formation process, as it cannot be directly probed…
The Zeeman effect and dust grain alignment are two major methods for probing magnetic fields (B-fields) in molecular clouds, largely motivated by the study of star formation, as the B-field may regulate gravitational contraction and channel…
We present the first published maps of magnetic fields in pre-stellar cores, to test theoretical ideas about the way in which the magnetic field geometry affects the star formation process. The observations are JCMT-SCUBA maps of 850 micron…
Galactic winds probe how stellar feedback regulates the mass and metallicity of galaxies. Observations show that galactic winds are multiphase and magnetised. In the local Universe, the dense phase is traced by emission and absorption…
We study the large-scale magnetic field structure and its interplay with the gas dynamics in the Monoceros OB1 East molecular cloud. We combine observations of dust polarised emission from the Planck telescope and CO molecular line emission…
Recent observational evidence that magnetic fields are dynamically important in molecular clouds, compared to self-gravity and turbulence, is reviewed and illustrated with data from the NGC 2024 region. One piece of evidence, turbulence…
Observations indicate that molecular clouds are strongly magnetized, and that magnetic fields influence the formation of stars. A key observation supporting the conclusion that molecular clouds are significantly magnetized is that the…