We performed a hydrodynamical cosmological simulation of the formation of a Milky Waylike galaxy in a warm dark matter (WDM) cosmology. Smooth and dense filaments, several comoving mega parsec long, form generically above z ∼ 2 in this model. Atomic line cooling allows gas in the centres of these filaments to cool to the base of the cooling function, resulting in a very striking pattern of exte...