Starless Cores and Clumps: The Physical and Kinematic Structure of the Incipient Phase of Star Formation

无星核心和团块：恒星形成初期的物理和运动结构

• 批准号: 1410190
• 负责人: Yancy Shirley
• 金额: $ 25.21万
• 依托单位: University of Arizona
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-09-15 至 2018-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1410190&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Starless; Cores; Clumps; Physical; Kinematic

The goal of this proposal is to build on previous NSF supported research regarding the earliest stages of star formation; i.e. the initial fragmentation of giant clouds of molecular gas and the evolution of these fragments into dense cores that will eventually become newborn stars. The proposal aims to study these sites of star formation through a multi-wavelength campaign of observations from the radio to the infrared using a number of different ground-based and space-based facilities. The proposers will use these observations to test computational models of star formation and stellar evolution. The proposed new research will undertake a detailed systematic study of the physical, chemical, and kinematic structure of large populations of low-mass starless cores and high-mass starless clumps. For the high-mass starless clumps, the research will utilize the Bolocam Galactic Plane Survey (BGPS) previously completed by the PI to identify a statistically significant sample of high-mass starless clumps for more detailed study through observations with the IRAM, APEX, HHT, JVLA and ALMA. For the low-mass starless cores, the project will use radiation transfer modeling of the starless core population in molecular clouds to investigate the evolutionary phases of the cores and to determine the importance of magnetic fields during their evolution. The project will make use of low-mass starless core identifications from the space-based Herschel and ground-based SCUBA observatories. The project will perform new observations of these identifications with the 12m Arizona Radio Observatory and ALMA for comparison with the results from their radiative transfer models.

该提案的目标是建立在之前 NSF 支持的有关恒星形成最早阶段的研究的基础上；即巨型分子气体云的初始破碎以及这些碎片演化成最终成为新生恒星的致密核心。 该提案旨在利用多种不同的地基和天基设施，通过从无线电到红外线的多波长观测活动来研究这些恒星形成地点。 提议者将利用这些观测结果来测试恒星形成和恒星演化的计算模型。拟议的新研究将对大量低质量无星核心和高质量无星团块的物理、化学和运动结构进行详细的系统研究。 对于大质量无星团块，该研究将利用PI先前完成的Bolocam银河平面巡天（BGPS）来识别具有统计意义的大质量无星团块样本，以便通过IRAM、APEX、HHT的观测进行更详细的研究、JVLA 和 ALMA。 对于低质量无星核心，该项目将利用分子云中无星核心群的辐射传输模型来研究核心的演化阶段，并确定磁场在其演化过程中的重要性。 该项目将利用来自天基赫歇尔和地面水肺天文台的低质量无星核心识别。 该项目将利用 12m 亚利桑那射电天文台和 ALMA 对这些识别结果进行新的观测，以与辐射传输模型的结果进行比较。