  Lada et al. recently presented a detailed near-infrared extinction map of
Globule G2 in the Coalsack molecular cloud complex, showing that this starless
core has a well-defined central extinction minimum. We propose a model for G2
in which a rapid increase in external pressure is driving an approximately
symmetric compression wave into the core. The rapid increase in external
pressure could arise because the core has recently been assimilated by the
Coalsack cloud complex, or because the Coalsack has recently been created by
two large-scale converging flows. The resulting compression wave has not yet
converged on the centre of the core, so there is a central rarefaction. The
compression wave has increased the density in the swept-up gas by about a
factor of ten, and accelerated it inwards to speeds of order $0.4 {\rm km} {\rm
s}^{-1}$. It is shown that even small levels of initial turbulence destroy the
ring seen in projection almost completely. In the scenario of strong external
compression that we are proposing this implies that the initial turbulent
energy in this globule is such that $E_{{\rm turb}} / E_{{\rm grav}} \le 2 %$.
Protostar formation should occur in about $40,000 {\rm years}$.
