Magnetic Field Structures and Turbulent Components in the Star-forming Molecular Clouds OMC-2 and OMC-3

The SCUBA polarized 850 {mu}m thermal emission data of the OMC-2 region in Orion A are added to and homogeneously reduced with data already available in the OMC-3 region. The data set shows that OMC-2 is a region generally less polarized than OMC-3. Where coincident, most of the 850 {mu}m polarizati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	The Astrophysical journal 2010-06, Vol.716 (2), p.893-906
Main Authors:	Poidevin, Frédérick, Bastien, Pierre, Matthews, Brenda C
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Astronomy ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY CARBON COMPOUNDS CARBON MONOXIDE CARBON OXIDES CHALCOGENIDES Earth, ocean, space Exact sciences and technology FUNCTIONS MAGNETIC FIELDS OXIDES OXYGEN COMPOUNDS POLARIMETRY STARS STRUCTURE FUNCTIONS
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Summary:	The SCUBA polarized 850 {mu}m thermal emission data of the OMC-2 region in Orion A are added to and homogeneously reduced with data already available in the OMC-3 region. The data set shows that OMC-2 is a region generally less polarized than OMC-3. Where coincident, most of the 850 {mu}m polarization pattern is similar to that measured in 350 {mu}m polarization data. Only 850 {mu}m polarimetry data have been obtained in and around MMS7, FIR1 and FIR2, and in the region south of FIR6. A realignment of the polarization vectors with the filament can be seen near FIR1 in the region south of OMC-3. An analysis shows that the energy injected by CO outflows and H{sub 2} jets associated with OMC-2 and OMC-3 does not appear to alter the polarization patterns at a scale of the 14'' resolution beam. A second-order structure function analysis of the polarization position angles shows that OMC-2 is a more turbulent region than OMC-3. OMC-3 appears to be a clear case of a magnetically dominated region with respect to the turbulence. However, for OMC-2 it is not clear that this is the case. A more in-depth analysis of five regions displayed along OMC-2/3 indicates a decrease of the mean polarization degree and an increase of the turbulent angular dispersion from north to south. A statistical analysis suggests the presence of two depolarization regimes in our maps: one regime including the effects of the cores, the other one excluding it.
ISSN:	0004-637X 1538-4357