With the GREAT receiver at the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), nine massive molecular clumps have been observed in the ammonia 32+−22− line at 1.8 THz in a search for ...signatures of infall. The sources were selected from the ATLASGAL submillimeter dust continuum survey of our Galaxy. Clumps with high masses covering a range of evolutionary stages based on their infrared properties were chosen. The ammonia line was detected in all sources, leading to five new detections and one confirmation of a previous detection of redshifted absorption in front of their strong THz continuum as a probe of infall in the clumps. These detections include two clumps embedded in infrared dark clouds. The measured velocity shifts of the absorptions compared to optically thin C17O (3–2) emission are 0.3–2.8 km s-1, corresponding to fractions of 3% to 30% of the free-fall velocities of the clumps. The ammonia infall signature is compared with complementary data of different transitions of HCN, HNC, CS, and HCO+, which are often used to probe infall because of their blue-skewed line profiles. The best agreement with the ammonia results is found for the HCO+ (4–3) transitions, but the latter is still strongly blended with emission from associated outflows. This outflow signature is far less prominent in the THz ammonia lines, which confirms it as a powerful probe of infall in molecular clumps. Infall rates in the range from 0.3 to 16 × 10-3 M⊙/yr were derived with a tentative correlation with the virial parameters of the clumps. The new observations show that infall on clump scales is ubiquitous through a wide range of evolutionary stages, from L/M covering about ten to several hundreds.
Context. The formation processes and the evolutionary stages of high-mass stars are poorly understood compared to low-mass stars. Large-scale surveys are needed to provide an unbiased census of high ...column density sites that can potentially host precursors to high-mass stars. Aims. The ATLASGAL survey covers 420 sq. degree of the Galactic plane, between −80° < ℓ < +60° at 870 μm. Here we identify the population of embedded sources throughout the inner Galaxy. With this catalog we first investigate the general statistical properties of dust condensations in terms of their observed parameters, such as flux density and angular size. Then using mid-infrared surveys we aim to investigate their star formation activity and the Galactic distribution of star-forming and quiescent clumps. Our ultimate goal is to determine the statistical properties of quiescent and star-forming clumps within the Galaxy and to constrain the star formation processes. Methods. We optimized the source extraction method, referred to as MRE-GCL, for the ATLASGAL maps in order to generate a catalog of compact sources. This technique is based on multiscale filtering to remove extended emission from clouds to better determine the parameters corresponding to the embedded compact sources. In a second step we extracted the sources by fitting 2D Gaussians with the Gaussclumps algorithm. Results. We have identified in total 10861 compact submillimeter sources with fluxes above 5σ. Completeness tests show that this catalog is 97% complete above 5σ and >99% complete above 7σ. Correlating this sample of clumps with mid-infrared point source catalogs (MSX at 21.3 μm and WISE at 22 μm), we have determined a lower limit of 33% that is associated with embedded protostellar objects. We note that the proportion of clumps associated with mid-infrared sources increases with increasing flux density, achieving a rather constant fraction of ~75% of all clumps with fluxes over 5 Jy/beam being associated with star formation. Examining the source counts as a function of Galactic longitude, we are able to identify the most prominent star-forming regions in the Galaxy. Conclusions. We present here the compact source catalog of the full ATLASGAL survey and investigate their characteristic properties. From the fraction of the likely massive quiescent clumps (~25%), we estimate a formation time scale of ~ 7.5 ± 2.5 × 104 yr for the deeply embedded phase before the emergence of luminous young stellar objects. Such a short duration for the formation of high-mass stars in massive clumps clearly proves that the earliest phases have to be dynamic with supersonic motions.
Context.
Dense molecular filaments are ubiquituous in the interstellar medium, yet their internal physical conditions and the role of gravity, turbulence, the magnetic field, radiation, and the ...ambient cloud during their evolution remain debated.
Aims.
We study the kinematics and physical conditions in the Musca filament, the ambient cloud, and the Chamaeleon-Musca complex to constrain the physics of filament formation.
Methods.
We produced CO(2–1) isotopologue maps with the APEX telescope that cut through the Musca filament. We further study a NANTEN2
12
CO(1–0) map of the full Musca cloud, H
I
emission of the Chamaeleon-Musca complex, a
Planck
polarisation map, line radiative transfer models,
Gaia
data, and synthetic observations from filament formation simulations.
Results.
The Musca cloud, with a size of ~3–6 pc, contains multiple velocity components. Radiative transfer modelling of the CO emission indicates that the Musca filament consists of a cold (~10 K), dense (
n
H
2
∼ 10
4
cm
−3
) crest, which is best described with a cylindrical geometry. Connected to the crest, a separate gas component at
T
~ 15 K and
n
H
2
∼ 10
3
cm
−3
is found, the so-called strands. The velocity-coherent filament crest has an organised transverse velocity gradient that is linked to the kinematics of the nearby ambient cloud. This velocity gradient has an angle ≥30° with respect to the local magnetic field orientation derived from
Planck
, and the magnitude of the velocity gradient is similar to the transonic linewidth of the filament crest. Studying the large scale kinematics, we find coherence of the asymmetric kinematics from the 50 pc H
I
cloud down to the Musca filament. We also report a strong C
18
O/
13
CO abundance drop by an order of magnitude from the filament crest to the strands over a distance <0.2 pc in a weak ambient far-ultraviolet (FUV) field.
Conclusions.
The dense Musca filament crest is a long-lived (several crossing times), dynamic structure that can form stars in the near future because of continuous mass accretion replenishing the filament. This mass accretion on the filament appears to be triggered by a H
I
cloud–cloud collision, which bends the magnetic field around dense filaments. This bending of the magnetic field is then responsible for the observed asymmetric accretion scenario of the Musca filament, which is, for instance, seen as a V-shape in the position–velocity (PV) diagram.
Context. The formation of high mass stars and clusters occurs in giant molecular clouds. Objects in evolved stages of massive star formation such as protostars, hot molecular cores, and ultracompact ...HII regions have been studied in more detail than earlier, colder objects. Further progress thus requires the analysis of the time before massive protostellar objects can be probed by their infrared emission. With this in mind, the APEX Telescope Large Area Survey of the whole inner Galactic plane at 870 μm (ATLASGAL) has been carried out to provide a global view of cold dust and star formation at submillimetre wavelengths. Aims. We derive kinematic distances to a large sample of massive cold dust clumps from their measured line velocities. We estimate masses and sizes of ATLASGAL sources, for which the kinematic distance ambiguity is resolved. Methods. The ATLASGAL sample is divided into groups of sources, which are located close together, mostly within a radius of 2 pc, and have velocities in a similar range with a median velocity dispersion of ~1 km s-1. We use NH3, N2H+, and CS velocities to calculate near and far kinematic distances to those groups. Results. We obtain 296 groups of ATLASGAL sources in the first quadrant and 393 groups in the fourth quadrant, which are coherent in space and velocity. We analyse HI self-absorption and HI absorption to resolve the kinematic distance ambiguity to 689 complexes of submm clumps. They are associated with 12CO emission probing large-scale structure and 13CO (1–0) line as well as the 870 μm dust continuum on a smaller scale. We obtain a scale height of ~28 ± 2 pc and displacement below the Galactic midplane of ~−7 ± 1 pc. Within distances from 2 to 18 kpc ATLASGAL clumps have a broad range of gas masses with a median of 1050 M⊙ as well as a wide distribution of radii with a median of 0.4 pc. Their distribution in galactocentric radii is correlated with spiral arms. Conclusions. Using a statistically significant ATLASGAL sample we derive a power-law exponent of −2.2 ± 0.1 of the clump mass function. This is consistent with the slope derived for clusters and with that of the stellar initial mass function. Examining the power-law index for different galactocentric distances and various source samples shows that it is independent of environment and evolutionary phase. Fitting the mass-size relationship by a power law gives a slope of 1.76 ± 0.01 for cold sources such as IRDCs and warm clumps associated with HII regions.
By matching infrared-selected, massive young stellar objects (MYSOs) and compact H ii regions in the Red MSX Source survey to massive clumps found in the submillimetre ATLASGAL (APEX Telescope Large ...Area Survey of the Galaxy) survey, we have identified ∼1000 embedded young massive stars between 280° < ℓ < 350° and 10° < ℓ < 60° with | b | < 1
$_{.}^{\circ}$
5. Combined with an existing sample of radio-selected methanol masers and compact H ii regions, the result is a catalogue of ∼1700 massive stars embedded within ∼1300 clumps located across the inner Galaxy, containing three observationally distinct subsamples, methanol-maser, MYSO and H ii-region associations, covering the most important tracers of massive star formation, thought to represent key stages of evolution. We find that massive star formation is strongly correlated with the regions of highest column density in spherical, centrally condensed clumps. We find no significant differences between the three samples in clump structure or the relative location of the embedded stars, which suggests that the structure of a clump is set before the onset of star formation, and changes little as the embedded object evolves towards the main sequence. There is a strong linear correlation between clump mass and bolometric luminosity, with the most massive stars forming in the most massive clumps. We find that the MYSO and H ii-region subsamples are likely to cover a similar range of evolutionary stages and that the majority are near the end of their main accretion phase. We find few infrared-bright MYSOs associated with the most massive clumps, probably due to very short pre-main-sequence lifetimes in the most luminous sources.
Context. The formation of massive stars is a highly complex process in which it is unclear whether the star-forming gas is in global gravitational collapse or an equilibrium state supported by ...turbulence and/or magnetic fields. In addition, magnetic fields may play a decisive role in the star-formation process since they influence the efficiency of gas infall onto the protostar. Aims. By studying one of the most massive and dense star-forming regions in the Galaxy at a distance of less than 3 kpc, i.e. the filament containing the well-known sources DR21 and DR21(OH), we attempt to obtain observational evidence to help us to discriminate between these two views. Methods. We use molecular line data from our 13CO 1 $\to$ 0, CS 2 $\to$ 1, and N2H+ 1 $\to$ 0 survey of the Cygnus X region obtained with the FCRAO and high-angular resolution observations in isotopomeric lines of CO, CS, HCO+, N2H+, and H2CO, obtained with the IRAM 30 m telescope, to investigate the distribution of the different phases of molecular gas. Gravitational infall is identified by the presence of inverse P Cygni profiles that are detected in optically thick lines, while the optically thinner isotopomers are found to reach a peak in the self-absorption gap. Results. We observe a complex velocity field and velocity dispersion in the DR21 filament in which regions of the highest column-density, i.e., dense cores, have a lower velocity dispersion than the surrounding gas and velocity gradients that are not (only) due to rotation. Infall signatures in optically thick line profiles of HCO+ and 12CO are observed along and across the whole DR21 filament. By modelling the observed spectra, we obtain a typical infall speed of ~0.6 km s-1 and mass accretion rates of the order of a few 10-3 $M_\odot$ yr-1 for the two main clumps constituting the filament. These massive clumps (4900 and 3300 $M_\odot$ at densities of around 105 cm-3 within 1 pc diameter) are both gravitationally contracting (with free-fall times much shorter than sound crossing times and low virial parameter α). The more massive of the clumps, DR21(OH), is connected to a sub-filament, apparently “falling” onto the clump. This filament runs parallel to the magnetic field. Conclusions. All observed kinematic features in the DR21 filament (velocity field, velocity dispersion, and infall), its filamentary morphology, and the existence of (a) sub-filament(s) can be explained if the DR21 filament was formed by the convergence of flows on large scales and is now in a state of global gravitational collapse. Whether this convergence of flows originated from self-gravity on larger scales or from other processes cannot be determined by the present study. The observed velocity field and velocity dispersion are consistent with results from (magneto)-hydrodynamic simulations where the cores lie at the stagnation points of convergent turbulent flows.
ABSTRACT
The SEDIGISM (Structure, Excitation and Dynamics of the Inner Galactic Interstellar Medium) survey used the APEX telescope to map 84 deg2 of the Galactic plane between ℓ = −60° and +31° in ...several molecular transitions, including 13CO (2 – 1) and C18O (2 – 1), thus probing the moderately dense (∼103 cm−3) component of the interstellar medium. With an angular resolution of 30 arcsec and a typical 1σ sensitivity of 0.8–1.0 K at 0.25 km s−1 velocity resolution, it gives access to a wide range of structures, from individual star-forming clumps to giant molecular clouds and complexes. The coverage includes a good fraction of the first and fourth Galactic quadrants, allowing us to constrain the large-scale distribution of cold molecular gas in the inner Galaxy. In this paper, we provide an updated overview of the full survey and the data reduction procedures used. We also assess the quality of these data and describe the data products that are being made publicly available as part of this First Data Release (DR1). We present integrated maps and position–velocity maps of the molecular gas and use these to investigate the correlation between the molecular gas and the large-scale structural features of the Milky Way such as the spiral arms, Galactic bar and Galactic Centre. We find that approximately 60 per cent of the molecular gas is associated with the spiral arms and these appear as strong intensity peaks in the derived Galactocentric distribution. We also find strong peaks in intensity at specific longitudes that correspond to the Galactic Centre and well-known star-forming complexes, revealing that the 13CO emission is concentrated in a small number of complexes rather than evenly distributed along spiral arms.
Massive dense cores (MDCs) are the high-mass equivalent of the so-called dense cores in nearby star-forming regions. With typical sizes of 0.1 pc, they could form either a few high-mass stars, ...or a cluster of low-mass stars. We present high-angular resolution continuum observations obtained with the IRAM Plateau de Bure interferometer at 1.3 and 3.5 mm towards the six most massive and youngest (IR-quiet) dense cores in the Cygnus X complex. Located at only 1.7 kpc, the Cygnus X region offers the opportunity of reaching small enough scales (of the order of 1700 AU at 1.3 mm) to separate individual collapsing objects, and thus to observe and constrain the result of the fragmentation process. The cores are sub-fragmented with a total of 23 fragments inside 5 cores. Only the most compact MDC, CygX-N63, may host a single proto-stellar object with an envelope as massive as ~60 M⊙. The fragments in the other cores have sizes and separations similar to low-mass pre-stellar condensations and Class 0 young stellar objects in nearby protoclusters, and are most probably self-gravitating objects (M > Mvir). In addition to CygX-N63, a total of 8 objects are found to be probable precursors of OB stars with their envelope masses ranging from 8.4 to 30 M⊙ inside a FWHM of 4000 AU. The level of fragmentation is globally higher than in the turbulence regulated, monolithic collapse scenario, but it is also not as high as expected in a pure gravo-turbulent scenario where the distribution of mass is dominated by low-mass protostars/stars. Here, the fractions of the total MDC masses in the high-mass proto-stellar fragments are found to be as high as 37, 58, and 100% in CygX-N12, CygX-N53, and CygX-N63, respectively. These high fractions of mass in the proto-stellar fragments are also indicative of a high efficiency of core formation in the MDCs. The increase in the core formation efficiency as a function of average density in the MDCs is proposed to be caused by the increasing importance of self-gravity leading to gravitational collapse on the scale of the MDCs. At the same time, the observed MDCs tend to fragment into a few proto-stellar objects within their central regions. We are therefore probably witnessing the primordial mass segregation of clusters. The physical origin of the fragmentation into a few high-mass objects is not yet clear, and will be investigated in the future by studying the kinematics of the MDCs.
Observations with the
Herschel
Space Telescope have established that most star forming gas is organised in filaments, a finding that is supported by numerical simulations of the supersonic ...interstellar medium (ISM) where dense filamentary structures are ubiquitous. We aim to understand the formation of these dense structures by performing observations covering the
12
CO(4→3),
12
CO(3→2), and various CO(2–1) isotopologue lines of the Musca filament, using the APEX telescope. The observed CO intensities and line ratios cannot be explained by PDR (photodissociation region) emission because of the low ambient far-UV field that is strongly constrained by the non-detections of the C
II
line at 158
μ
m and the O
I
line at 63
μ
m, observed with the upGREAT receiver on SOFIA, as well as a weak C
I
609
μ
m line detected with APEX. We propose that the observations are consistent with a scenario in which shock excitation gives rise to warm and dense gas close to the highest column density regions in the Musca filament. Using shock models, we find that the CO observations can be consistent with excitation by J-type low-velocity shocks. A qualitative comparison of the observed CO spectra with synthetic observations of dynamic filament formation simulations shows a good agreement with the signature of a filament accretion shock that forms a cold and dense filament from a converging flow. The Musca filament is thus found to be dense molecular post-shock gas. Filament accretion shocks that dissipate the supersonic kinetic energy of converging flows in the ISM may thus play a prominent role in the evolution of cold and dense filamentary structures.
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