Mystery of Star Formation Revealed by Hearts of Molecular Clouds

An international team of astronomers has revealed mysterious star formation at the far edge of the galaxy M83. This research was presented today in a press conference at the 243rd meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) in New Orleans, Louisiana. The research used several instruments operated by the National Science Foundation’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO), including the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA), and the Green Bank Telescope (GBT), along with the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan’s (NAOJ) Subaru Telescope and the NASA Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX).

VLA Finds Cosmic Rays Driving Galaxy’s Winds

VLA observations revealed that cosmic rays can play an important role in driving winds that rob galaxies of the gas needed to form new stars. This mechanism may be an important factor in galactic evolution, particularly at earlier times in the history of the universe.

IMAGE RELEASE: New Look at a Bright Stellar Nursery

New, high-resolution VLA images of a giant molecular cloud where new stars are being born show changes since a set of observations made more than two decades ago. Tracking changes in this region over time can reveal new details about the process of star formation and the interactions of outflows from young stars.