# The Link between Magnetic-field Orientations and Star Formation Rates

## TL;DR

This study reveals a correlation between magnetic-field orientations and star formation rates, showing that clouds perpendicular to magnetic fields tend to have lower SFR due to magnetic support against gravity.

## Contribution

It provides the first observational evidence linking magnetic-field alignment with star formation efficiency, highlighting magnetic fields as a key regulator.

## Key findings

- Perpendicular magnetic-field alignment correlates with lower SFR.
- Perpendicular alignment has higher magnetic flux, supporting gas against gravity.
- Lower masses of fragmented components are associated with perpendicular alignment.

## Abstract

Understanding star formation rates (SFR) is a central goal of modern star-formation models, which mainly involve gravity, turbulence and, in some cases, magnetic fields (B-fields). However, a connection between B-fields and SFR has never been observed. Here, a comparison between the surveys of SFR and a study of cloud-field alignment - which revealed a bimodal (parallel or perpendicular) alignment - shows consistently lower SFR per solar mass for clouds almost perpendicular to the B-fields. This is evidence of B-fields being a primary regulator of SFR. The perpendicular alignment possesses a significantly higher magnetic flux than the parallel alignment and thus a stronger support of the gas against self-gravity. This results in overall lower masses of the fragmented components, which are in agreement with the lower SFR.

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/1706.08452