Homologous collapse of sub-sonic clouds

david_a01_N64_movie_zoom_shock

This shows (gas density from low in dark purple, to high in yellow, with a factor of order a billion in contrast!) the collapse of a proto-stellar core to form a single massive primary star and a few small fragments. Critically, the initial cloud is highly sub-sonic, and thermally-pressure supported, so the collapse is “gentle."

© Philip Hopkins 2015