An image of the giant molecular cloud complex, Mon R2. A far-infrared study of the numbers of dense clumps across this cloud has found statistical correlations that depend on the relative dominance of turbulence versus gravity. Credit: Adam Block, Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter, U. Arizona
Stars form within the dense regions of diffuse molecular clouds, but the physical processes that determine the locations, rate, and efficiency of star formation are poorly understood. Recent thinking envisions a 2-step process: first, a network of dense filaments form due to large-scale turbulence and then fragmentation into cores occurs as gravity starts to dominate...
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