Infrared dark clouds as precursors to star clusters

Details Infrared dark clouds as precursors to star clusters Infrared dark clouds as precursors to star clusters

Dec 2009

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009ap%26ss.324..155r&link_type=abstract

Astrophysics and Space Science, Volume 324, Issue 2-4, pp. 155-162

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

2

Dust, Extinction, Stars: Formation, Ism: Clouds, Infrared: Ism, Radio Lines: Ism

Scientific paper

Infrared dark clouds (IRDCs) are cold, dense molecular clouds identified as extinction features against the bright mid-infrared Galactic background. Our recent 1.2 mm continuum emission survey of IRDCs reveals many compact (<0.5 pc) and massive (10-2100 M&sun;) cores within them. These prestellar cores hold the key to understanding IRDCs and their role in star formation. Here, we present high angular resolution spectral-line and mm/sub-mm continuum images obtained with the IRAM Plateau de Bure Interferometer and the Sub-Millimeter Array towards three high-mass IRDC cores. The high angular resolution images reveal that two of the cores are resolved into multiple, compact protostellar condensations, while the remaining core contains a single, compact protostellar condensation with a very rich molecular spectrum, indicating that it is a hot molecular core. The derived gas masses for these condensations suggest that each core is forming at least one high-mass protostar, while two of the cores are also forming lower-mass protostars. The close proximity of multiple protostars of disparate mass indicates that these IRDCs are in the earliest evolutionary states in the formation of stellar clusters.

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