A galaxy-scale statistical view of filaments in MHD simulations of a Milky Way galaxy

Rachel Pillsworth

Wednesday, Dec. 4th, 11:00CET

Results from JWST and the PHANGS surveys represent major breakthroughs in the field of star formation as they showcase the many complex structures that exist ubiquitously on spatial scales from the kpc galactic disk down to the 0.1 pc scale protostellar clumps. A hierarchy of filaments and superbubbles dominate the structure of spiral galaxies like our Milky Way. These filaments form from supersonic turbulence when shock waves collide and form overdensities. Above a critical mass per unit length, filaments are capable of fragmenting into a filamentary sub-structure. In Zhao et al. 2024, we developed high-resolution galactic multiscale MHD simulations in RAMSES which clearly show the formation of filamentary hierarchies ranging from GMC to cluster formation scales. As a next step to that project, we characterize the physical properties of the filamentary structures across the Milky Way disk. I will show our analysis of the effects of galactic environment on lengths, masses, and line masses of filaments by characterizing the systematic properties of filaments throughout the disk. I will also discuss the effects of magnetic fields and gas flows on the growth and stability of these filaments. With this, I will discuss the connection we find between galactic environment and star-cluster formation.