What mechanism does turbulence employ to resist the gravitational compression of gas parcels?
Answer
Creating eddies and vortices that push back.
Turbulence, characterized by chaotic and random motions of gas parcels across vast scales, injects significant kinetic energy into the cloud structure. This injected energy manifests dynamically as a pressure opposing compression. Specifically, when gravity attempts to crush a localized region, the turbulent flows generate swirling structures known as eddies and vortices. These energetic, non-systematic motions actively push against the inward gravitational force, providing a dynamic support mechanism. This turbulent support is often significantly more powerful than the gentle resistance offered by simple thermal pressure, especially in larger, more massive molecular clouds.
Related Questions
How does temperature affect the thermal pressure exerted by interstellar gas?What critical mass must a cloud region exceed to begin gravitational collapse against internal pressure?What physical consequence arises from a contracting cloud obeying the conservation of angular momentum?What mechanism does turbulence employ to resist the gravitational compression of gas parcels?How do pervasive magnetic fields resist gravitational contraction in conductive interstellar gas?What structural outcome is typically enforced by rotational support preventing spherical collapse?What process results from a collapsing core retaining angular momentum after initial resistance is partially overcome?For star formation to occur, gravity must successfully overcome which combination of resistive forces?Why is star formation favored in the coldest regions of molecular clouds (10 to 20 Kelvin)?What result is predicted if interstellar clouds completely lacked turbulent support?