Mapping magnetic fields in molecular clouds with the CN Zeeman effect

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/96985

Title: Mapping magnetic fields in molecular clouds with the CN Zeeman effect
Author(s): Crutcher, Richard
Issue Date: 2017-06-20
Keyword(s): Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA)'s molecular view
Abstract: The role of magnetic fields in star formation remains controversial. Observations of the Zeeman effect provide the only available technique for directly measuring the strengths of magnetic fields in molecular clouds. We have mapped the Zeeman effect toward the massive star forming complex W3OH in the CN N=2-1 transition at 226 GHz with both the IRAM 30-m telescope and the CARMA array and have combined these data to produce a fully spatially sampled map of the magnetic field along the line of sight, with approximately 4 arcsec resolution. These are both the first CN Zeeman maps and the first detections of the Zeeman effect in the CN N=2-1 transition. We will present this map and discuss the astrophysical implications. This work may be considered to be a pathfinder for future similar ALMA observations, which have the potential to advance considerably our understanding of the role of magnetic fields in the star formation process.
Publisher: International Symposium on Molecular Spectroscopy
Type of Resource: text
Language: eng
Permalink: http://hdl.handle.net/2142/96985
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15278/isms.2017.TF10