Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
May 2011
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2011aas...21821701f&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #218, #217.01; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 43, 2011
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
Scientific paper
Massive stars play many important roles in the universe. However, while massive stars are very luminous and thus easy to observe from large distances, the early stages of the formation of high-mass stars are difficult to observe and therefore not well-understood. In the 1990s, a new class of interstellar clouds called infrared dark clouds (IRDCs) was discovered in mid-IR surveys of the Galactic Plane. These clouds are dense (nH2 > 10^5 cm^-3), cold (T < 20K), and have very high column densities (N 10^23-10^25 cm^-2). These properties, along with detections of dense cores within the clouds, have led to the conclusion that IRDCs host the earliest stages of high-mass star and cluster formation.
The research for my dissertation has focused on infrared dark clouds and determining their distribution in the Galaxy, their physical and chemical properties, and the role they play in high-mass star formation. In this talk I will present the results of some of this research. The Galactic distribution of a large sample of IRDCs determined from kinematic distances shows that IRDCs are largely confined to spiral arms. LTE gas masses and virial masses derived from CS (2-1) maps of a sample of IRDCs agree well with expected masses for high-mass star forming regions. I will also briefly discuss the filamentary shape of IRDCs and the "sausage instability" as a possible mechanism for the formation of high-mass star and cluster-forming cores within these filaments. The filament properties in a few cases I have observed roughly agree with theoretical predictions for this fluid instability.
No associations
LandOfFree
High-Mass Star Formation and Infrared Dark Clouds in the Galaxy 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 High-Mass Star Formation and Infrared Dark Clouds in the Galaxy, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and High-Mass Star Formation and Infrared Dark Clouds in the Galaxy will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1739123