Modeling of Protostellar Clouds and their Observational Properties

TL;DR

This paper presents a comprehensive physical and numerical model for protostellar clouds, incorporating magneto-hydrodynamics, thermal and ionization structures, and radiative transfer, to better understand their evolution and observational signatures.

Contribution

It introduces a novel two-dimensional numerical method that integrates magnetic, thermal, and radiative processes in protostellar cloud modeling.

Findings

Magnetic fields and rotation influence angular momentum redistribution.

Velocity structures in molecular lines can form hourglass shapes.

The model can interpret observed features of starless and protostellar cores.

Abstract

A physical model and two-dimensional numerical method for computing the evolution and spectra of protostellar clouds are described. The physical model is based on a system of magneto-gasdynamical equations, including ohmic and ambipolar diffusion, and a scheme for calculating the thermal and ionization structure of a cloud. The dust and gas temperatures are determined during the calculations of the thermal structure of the cloud. The results of computing the dynamical and thermal structure of the cloud are used to model the radiative transfer in continuum and in molecular lines. We presented the results for clouds in hydrostatic and thermal equilibrium. The evolution of a rotating magnetic protostellar cloud starting from a quasi-static state is also considered. Spectral maps for optically thick lines of linear molecules are analyzed. We have shown that the influence of the magnetic field and rotation can lead to a redistribution of angular momentum in the cloud and the formation of a characteristic rotational velocity structure. As a result, the distribution of the velocity centroid of the molecular lines can acquire an hourglass shape. We plan to use the developed program package together with a model for the chemical evolution to interpret and model observed starless and protostellar cores.