Observations of the properties of dense molecular clouds are critical in
understanding the process of star-formation. One of the most important, but
least understood, is the role of the magnetic fields. We discuss the
possibility of using high-resolution, high-sensitivity radio observations to
measure the in-situ synchrotron radiation from these molecular clouds. If the
cosmic-ray particles penetrate clouds as expected, then we can measure the
B-field strength directly using radio data. So far, this signature has never
been detected from the collapsing clouds themselves and would be a unique probe
of the magnetic field. Dense cores are typically ~0.05 pc in size,
corresponding to ~arcsec at ~kpc distances, and flux density estimates are ~mJy
at 1 GHz. They should be detectable, for example with the Square Kilometre
Array.Comment: Proceedings of Conference "Cosmic Rays and their InterStellar Medium
Environment", (CRISM-2014), June 24-27, 2014, Montpellier, France.
PoS(CRISM2014)03
