The giant molecular cloud G0.253+0.016 or "The Brick" is a massive (M~10^5 solar masses) cloud in the Galactic center. Its apparent lack of star formation given its large mass makes it unique in our Galaxy, and as such it has been the subject of more than a dozen papers in just the last 3 years. The properties of this cloud are being used to understand everything from the quiescent initial stag...

We present a detailed study of the complex ionization structure in a small (∼250 pc) extended narrow line region (ENLR) cloud near Centaurus A using the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer. This cloud is located in the so-called outer filament of ionized gas (about 15 kpc from the nucleus) where jet-induced star formation has been suggested to occur by different studies. We find that, despite the...

Atmospheric aerosol Atmospheric aerosol is a variable, yet critical component of the climate system and has substantial impact on climate change. [1-3] Aerosols affect climate directly, by scattering and absorbing solar radiation, and indirectly, by acting as cloud condensation nuclei, CCN. Clouds may reduce the incident radiation on the surface, increase or decrease temperatures, and suppress ...

This paper explores the capability of the mixed-layer model (MLM) to represent the observed relationship between low-cloud fraction and lower-tropospheric stability; it also investigates the influence of large-scale meteorological fields and their variabilities on this relationship. The MLM’s local equilibrium solutions are examined subject to realistic boundary forcings that are derived from r...

Context. Magnetic fields are proposed to play an important role in the formation and support of self-gravitating clouds and the formation and evolution of protostars in such clouds. Aims. We attempt to understand more precisely how the Pipe nebula is affected by the magnetic field. Methods. We use R-band linear polarimetry collected for about 12 000 stars in 46 fields with lines of sight toward...

During the Nauru99 field experiment (held during June and July of 1999); the presence of an island effect on the cloud and radiation measurements recorded from the Atmospheric Radiation Cloud Station (ARCS) site at Nauru was identified. The island cloud effect occurs when moist air is advected over the island and the diurnal heating of the island (relative to the surrounding ocean) induces conv...

The cloud feedback problem is one of the largest uncertainties in climate studies because cloud formation and dissipation are complicated processes. Clouds have mutual relations to aerosols and precipitation. Increases in aerosol concentrations result in a decreased drop size and modify the cloud radiative forcing. Decreased drop size may also suppress precipitation. Precipitation is generated ...