Magnetized Filamentary Gas Flows in Serpens South

Composite image of the Serpens South Cluster. Magnetic fields observed by SOFIA are shown as streamlines over an image from the Spitzer Space Telescope. SOFIA results indicate that gravity can overcome some of the strong magnetic fields to deliver material needed for new stars. The magnetic fields have been dragged into alignment with the most powerful flows, as seen in the lower left where the streamlines are following the direction of the narrow, dark filament. This is accelerating the flow of material from interstellar space into the cloud, and fueling the collapse needed to spark star formation.

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