Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2005-03-07
Mon.Not.Roy.Astron.Soc. 359 (2005) 809-818
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
11 pages, 5 figures, Accepted for publication in MNRAS. The authors would like to dedicate this paper to Adriaan Blaauw, on th
Scientific paper
10.1111/j.1365-2966.2005.08942.x
We investigate the formation of star clusters in an unbound GMC, where the supporting kinetic energy is twice as large as the cloud's self-gravity. This cloud manages to form a series of star clusters and disperse, all within roughly 2 crossing times (10 Myr), supporting recent claims that star formation is a rapid process. Simple assumptions about the nature of the star formation occurring in the clusters allows us to place an estimate for the star formation efficiency at about 5 to 10 %, consistent with observations. We also propose that unbound clouds can act as a mechanism for forming OB associations. The clusters that form in the cloud behave as OB subgroups. These clusters are naturally expanding from one another due to unbound nature of the flows that create them. The properties of the cloud we present here are are consistent with those of classic OB associations.
Bate Matthew R.
Bonnell Ian A.
Clark Paul C.
Zinnecker Hans
No associations
LandOfFree
Star formation in unbound giant molecular clouds: the origin of OB associations? does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Star formation in unbound giant molecular clouds: the origin of OB associations?, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Star formation in unbound giant molecular clouds: the origin of OB associations? will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-557741