scholarly journals Giant Molecular Cloud Formation at the Interface of Colliding Supershells in the Large Magellanic Cloud

Author(s):  
Kosuke Fujii ◽  
Norikazu Mizuno ◽  
J R Dawson ◽  
Tsuyoshi Inoue ◽  
Kazufumi Torii ◽  
...  

Abstract We investigate the H i envelope of the young, massive GMCs in the star-forming regions N48 and N49, which are located within the high column density H i ridge between two kpc-scale supergiant shells, LMC 4 and LMC 5. New long-baseline H i 21 cm line observations with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) were combined with archival shorter baseline data and single dish data from the Parkes telescope, for a final synthesized beam size of 24.75″ by 20.48″, which corresponds to a spatial resolution of ∼ 6 pc in the LMC. It is newly revealed that the H i gas is highly filamentary, and that the molecular clumps are distributed along filamentary H i features. In total 39 filamentary features are identified and their typical width is ∼ 21 (8–49) [pc]. We propose a scenario in which the GMCs were formed via gravitational instabilities in atomic gas which was initially accumulated by the two shells and then further compressed by their collision. This suggests that GMC formation involves the filamentary nature of the atomic medium.

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (S292) ◽  
pp. 95-95
Author(s):  
C. N. Anderson ◽  
D. S. Meier ◽  
J. Ott ◽  
A. Hughes ◽  
T. Wong

AbstractWe present parsec-scale interferometric maps of HCN(1-0) and HCO+(1-0) emission from dense gas in the star-forming region 30Dor10, obtained using the Australia Telescope Compact Array. This extreme star-forming region, located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, is characterized by a very intense ionizing radiation field and sub-solar metallicity, both of which are expected to affect molecular cloud structure. We detect 13 clumps of dense molecular gas, some of which are aligned in a filamentary structure. Our analysis of the clump properties shows that they have similar mass but slightly wider linewidths than clumps detected in other LMC star-forming regions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 631 ◽  
pp. L12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoko Okada ◽  
Ronan Higgins ◽  
Volker Ossenkopf-Okada ◽  
Cristian Guevara ◽  
Jürgen Stutzki ◽  
...  

Context. [13C II] observations in several Galactic sources show that the fine-structure [12C II] emission is often optically thick (the optical depths around 1 to a few). Aims. Our goal was to test whether this also affects the [12C II] emission from nearby galaxies like the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). Methods. We observed three star-forming regions in the LMC with upGREAT on board SOFIA at the frequency of the [C II] line. The 4 GHz bandwidth covers all three hyperfine lines of [13C II] simultaneously. For the analysis, we combined the [13C II] F = 1−0 and F = 1−1 hyperfine components as they do not overlap with the [12C II] line in velocity. Results. Three positions in N159 and N160 show an enhancement of [13C II] compared to the abundance-ratio-scaled [12C II] profile. This is likely due to the [12C II] line being optically thick, supported by the fact that the [13C II] line profile is narrower than [12C II], the enhancement varies with velocity, and the peak velocity of [13C II] matches the [O I] 63 μm self-absorption. The [12C II] line profile is broader than expected from a simple optical depth broadening of the [13C II] line, supporting the scenario of several PDR components in one beam having varying [12C II] optical depths. The derived [12C II] optical depth at three positions (beam size of 14″, corresponding to 3.4 pc) is 1−3, which is similar to values observed in several Galactic sources shown in previous studies. If this also applies to distant galaxies, the [C II] intensity will be underestimated by a factor of approximately 2.


2019 ◽  
Vol 621 ◽  
pp. A62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoko Okada ◽  
Rolf Güsten ◽  
Miguel Angel Requena-Torres ◽  
Markus Röllig ◽  
Jürgen Stutzki ◽  
...  

Aims. The aim of our study is to investigate the physical properties of the star-forming interstellar medium (ISM) in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) by separating the origin of the emission lines spatially and spectrally. The LMC provides a unique local template to bridge studies in the Galaxy and high redshift galaxies because of its low metallicity and proximity, enabling us to study the detailed physics of the ISM in spatially resolved individual star-forming regions. Following Okada et al. (Okada, Y., Requena-Torres, M. A., Güsten, R., et al. 2015, A&A, 580, A54), we investigate different phases of the ISM traced by carbon-bearing species in four star-forming regions in the LMC, and model the physical properties using the KOSMA-τ PDR model. Methods. We mapped 3–13 arcmin2 areas in 30 Dor, N158, N160, and N159 along the molecular ridge of the LMC in [C II] 158 μm with GREAT on board SOFIA. We also observed the same area with CO(2-1) to (6-5), 13CO(2-1) and (3-2), [C I] 3P1–3P0 and 3P2–3P1 with APEX. For selected positions in N159 and 30 Dor, we observed [O I] 145 μm and [O I] 63 μm with upGREAT. All spectra are velocity resolved. Results. In all four star-forming regions, the line profiles of CO, 13CO, and [C I] emission are similar, being reproduced by a combination of Gaussian profiles defined by CO(3-2), whereas [C II] typically shows wider line profiles or an additional velocity component. At several positions in N159 and 30 Dor, we observed the velocity-resolved [O I] 145 and 63 μm lines for the first time. At some positions, the [O I] line profiles match those of CO, at other positions they are more similar to the [C II] profiles. We interpret the different line profiles of CO, [C II] and [O I] as contributions from spatially separated clouds and/or clouds in different physical phases, which give different line ratios depending on their physical properties. We modeled the emission from the CO, [C I], [C II], and [O I] lines and the far-infrared continuum emission using the latest KOSMA-τ PDR model, which treats the dust-related physics consistently and computes the dust continuum SED together with the line emission of the chemical species. We find that the line and continuum emissions are not well-reproduced by a single clump ensemble. Toward the CO peak at N159 W, we propose a scenario that the CO, [C II], and [O I] 63 μm emission are weaker than expected because of mutual shielding among clumps.


2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (S289) ◽  
pp. 188-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark J. Reid

AbstractRecently, astrometric accuracy approaching ~ 10 μas has become routinely possible with Very Long Baseline Interferometry. Since, unlike at optical wavelengths, interstellar dust is transparent at radio wavelengths, parallaxes and proper motions can now be measured for massive young stars (with maser emission) across the Galaxy, enabling direct measurements of the spiral structure of the Milky Way. Fitting the full 3D position and velocity vectors to a simple model of the Galaxy yields extremely accurate values for its fundamental parameters, including the distance to the Galactic Center, R0=8.38 ± 0.18 kpc, and circular rotation at the Solar Circle, Θ0 = 243 ± 7 km s−1. The rotation curve of the Milky Way, based for the first time on ‘gold standard’ distances and complete 3D information, appears to be very flat.


2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (S242) ◽  
pp. 162-163
Author(s):  
B. Hutawarakorn Kramer ◽  
J. L. Caswell ◽  
A. Sukom ◽  
J. E. Reynolds

AbstractOH masers are sensitive probes of the kinematics, physical conditions, and magnetic fields in star-forming regions. The maser site OH 330.953-0.182 has been studied using the Long Baseline Array of the Australia Telescope National Facility. Simultaneous observations of the 1665- and 1667-MHz hydroxyl ground-state transitions yield a series of maps at velocity spacing 0.09kms−1, in both right- and left-hand circular polarization, with tenth-arcsec spatial resolution. Several clusters of maser spots have been detected within a five-arcsec region. Eight Zeeman pairs were found, and in one case, at 1665 MHz, there is a nearby 1667-MHz pair indicating a similar value of magnetic field and velocity. Over the whole site, all magnetic field estimates are toward us (negative), and range from -3.7 to -5.8 mG. We also compared the morphology and kinematics of the 1665- and 1667-MHz maser spots with those from the excited state of OH at 6035 MHz and from methanol at 6668 MHz.


2012 ◽  
Vol 542 ◽  
pp. A66 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. R. Carlson ◽  
M. Sewiło ◽  
M. Meixner ◽  
K. A. Romita ◽  
B. Lawton

Author(s):  
Kisetsu Tsuge ◽  
Yasuo Fukui ◽  
Kengo Tachihara ◽  
Hidetoshi Sano ◽  
Kazuki Tokuda ◽  
...  

Abstract The formation mechanism of super star clusters (SSCs), present-day analogs of the ancient globulars, still remains elusive. The major merger that is the Antennae galaxies is forming SSCs and is one of the primary targets to test the cluster formation mechanism. We reanalyzed the archival ALMA CO data of the Antennae and found three typical observational signatures of a cloud–cloud collision toward SSC B1 and other SSCs in the overlap region: (i) two velocity components with ∼100 km s−1 velocity separation, (ii) bridge features connecting the two components, and (iii) a complementary spatial distribution between them, lending support to collisions of the two components as a cluster formation mechanism. We present a scenario that two clouds with 100 km s−1 velocity separation collided, and SSCs having ∼106–107 M⊙ were formed rapidly during that time scale. We compared the present results with the recent studies of star-forming regions in the Milky Way and the Large Magellanic Cloud, where the SSCs having ∼104–105 M⊙ are located. As a result, we found that there is a positive correlation between the compressed gas pressure generated by collisions and the total stellar mass of an SSC, suggesting that the pressure may be a key parameter in SSC formation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 72 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takumi Nagayama ◽  
Hideyuki Kobayashi ◽  
Tomoya Hirota ◽  
Mareki Honma ◽  
Takaaki Jike ◽  
...  

Abstract Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) astrometry using the phase-referencing technique remains an open issue for the quantitative characterization of the observing conditions to achieve a feasible parallax precision of 10 micro-arcseconds (μas). To address this issue, we evaluated the astrometric performance of the VLBI Exploration of Radio Astrometry (VERA) through the parallax measurements of five distant star-forming regions under good observing conditions of close separations (${0{^{\circ}_{.}}5}$–${1{_{.}^{\circ}}3}$) and high elevations (≥50°). Their parallaxes measured 89–200 μas, corresponding to distances of 5–11 kpc with an error of 11–20 μas. Furthermore, we investigated the contributions to the position error budget and concluded that the tropospheric residual contribution is the dominant error source. We also confirmed that the astrometric error propagation strongly depends on the term $\Delta \sec Z$, which stands for the difference between $\sec Z$ of the target and its reference source, where Z is the zenith angle during the observations. We found that for a source pair with a $\Delta \sec Z$ less than 0.01 (for example, a set of a close separation of $\le {{0{^{\circ}_{.}}5}}$ and a high elevation of ≥50°), we can achieve the parallax precision of 10 μas using a typical monitoring program comprising 10 observing epochs over a span of two years.


1987 ◽  
Vol 115 ◽  
pp. 521-533
Author(s):  
J. V. Feitzinger

Methods used in pattern recognition and cluster analysis are applied to investigate the spatial distribution of the star forming regions. The fractal dimension of these structures is deduced. The new 21 cm, radio continuum (1.4 GHz) and IRAS surveys reveal scale structures of 700 pc to 1500 pc being identical with the optically identified star forming sites. The morphological structures delineated by young stars reflect physical parameters which determine the star formation in this galaxy. The formation of spiral arm filaments is understandable by stochastic selfpropagating star formation processes.


2019 ◽  
Vol 492 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-57
Author(s):  
A Tarchi ◽  
P Castangia ◽  
G Surcis ◽  
A Brunthaler ◽  
C Henkel ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Almost all dwarf galaxies in the Local Group (LG) that are not satellites of the Milky Way or M 31 belong to either one of two highly symmetric planes. It is still a matter of debate whether these planar structures are dynamically stable or whether they only represent a transient alignment. Proper motions, if they could be measured, could help to discriminate between these scenarios. Such motions could be determined with multi-epoch very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) of sources that show emission from water and methanol at frequencies of 22 and 6.7 GHz, respectively. We report searches for such masers. We have mapped three LG galaxies, NGC 6822, IC 1613, and WLM, in the bands covering the water vapour and methanol lines. These systems are members of the two above-mentioned planes of galaxies. We have produced deep radio continuum (RC) maps and spectral line cubes. The former have been used to identify star-forming regions and to derive global galactic star formation rates (SFRs). These SFRs turn out to be lower than those determined at other wavelengths in two of our sources. This indicates that dwarf galaxies may follow predictions on the RC–SFR relation only in individual regions of enhanced RC emission, but not when considering the entire optical body of the sources. No methanol or water maser emission has been confidently detected, down to line luminosity limits of ∼4 × 10−3 and 10 × 10−3 L⊙, respectively. This finding is consistent with the small sizes, low SFRs, and metallicities of these galaxies.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document