Star-forming filaments

Interstellar molecular clouds are often seen to be elongated and "filamentary" in shape, and come in a wide range of sizes. In molecular clouds, where stars form, the filamentary structure is thought to play an important role in star formation as the matter collapses to form protostars. Filamentary clouds are detected because the dust they contain obscures the optical light of background stars while emitting at infrared and submillimeter wavelengths.