ALMA massive protocluster gas clumps maps

Theory and numerical simulations indicate that the population of the fragments (number, mass, diameter, separation) resulting from the gravitational collapse of such clumps is probably regulated by the balance between the magnetic field and the other competitors of self-gravity, in particular turbulence and protostellar feedback.

We have observed 11 massive, dense and young star-forming clumps with the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in the thermal dust continuum emission at 1mm with an angular resolution of 0.25 arcseconds with the aim of determining their population of fragments.