A Spitzer View of Star Formation in the Cygnus X North Complex
I. M. Beerer, X. P. Koenig, J. L. Hora, R. A. Gutermuth, S. Bontemps, S. T. Megeath, N. Schneider, F. Motte, S. Carey, R. Simon, E. Keto, H. A. Smith, L. E. All… 展开作者
I. M. Beerer, X. P. Koenig, J. L. Hora, R. A. Gutermuth, S. Bontemps, S. T. Megeath, N. Schneider, F. Motte, S. Carey, R. Simon, E. Keto, H. A. Smith, L. E. Allen, G. G. Fazio, K. E. Kraemer, S. Price, D. Mizuno, J. D. Adams, J. Hernandez, P. W. Lucas
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16 pages, 20 figures, 7 tables, Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal
We present new images and photometry of the massive star forming complex Cygnus X obtained with IRAC and MIPS on the Spitzer Space Telescope. A combination of IRAC, MIPS, UKIDSS, and 2MASS data are used to identify and classify young stellar objects. Of the 8,231 sources detected exhibiting infrared excess in Cygnus X North, 670 are classified as Class I and 7,249 are classified as Class II. Using spectra from the FAST spectrograph at the Fred L. Whipple Observatory and Hectospec on the MMT, we spectrally typed 536 sources in the Cygnus X complex to identify the massive stars. We find that YSOs tend to be grouped in the neighborhoods of massive B stars (spectral types B0 to B9). We present a minimal spanning tree analysis of clusters in two regions in Cygnus X North. The fraction of infrared excess sources that belong to clusters with >10 members is found to be 50--70%. Most Class II objects lie in dense clusters within blown out HII regions, while Class I sources tend to reside in more filamentary structures along the bright-rimmed clouds, indicating possible triggered star formation.
We present observations of newly discovered 24 micron circumstellar structures detected with the Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS) around three evolved stars in the Cygnus-X star forming region. One of the objects, BD+43 3710, has a bipolar nebula, possibly due to an outflow or a torus of material. A second, HBHA 4202-22, a Wolf-Rayet candidate, shows a circular shell of 24 micron emission suggestive of either a limb-brightened shell or disk seen face-on. No diffuse emission was detected around either of these two objects in the Spitzer 3.6-8 micron Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) b…
We present observations of ~7 square degrees of the North American and Pelican Nebulae region at 24, 70, and 160 microns with the Spitzer Space Telescope Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS). We incorporate the MIPS observations with earlier Spitzer Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) observations, as well as archival near-infrared (IR) and optical data. We use the MIPS data to identify 1286 young stellar object (YSO) candidates. IRAC data alone can identify 806 more YSO candidates, for a total of 2076 YSO candidates. Prior to the Spitzer observations, there were only ~200 YSOs known in th…
We have conducted a 1.5 year-long variability study of the stars in the Cygnus OB2 association, the region in the northern hemisphere with the highest density of optically visible massive stars. The survey was conducted using four pointings in the Johnson $R$ and $I$ bands with a 35 cm Meade LX200-ACF telescope equipped with a 3.2 Mpixel SBIG ST10-XME CCD camera and includes 300+ epochs in each filter. A total of 1425 objects were observed with limiting magnitudes of 15 in $R$ and 14 in $I$. The photometry was calibrated using reference stars with existing $UBVJHK$ photometry. Bright stars hav…
We provide a new view on the Cygnus-X north complex by accessing for the first time the low mass content of young stellar populations in the region. CFHT/WIRCam camera was used to perform a deep near-IR survey of this complex, sampling stellar masses down to ~0.1 M$_\odot$. Several analysis tools, including a extinction treatment developed in this work, were employed to identify and uniformly characterise a dozen unstudied young star clusters in the area. Investigation of their mass distributions in low-mass domain revealed a relatively uniform log-normal IMF with a characteristic mass of 0.32…
We report the serendipitous discovery of a ring nebula around a candidate Wolf-Rayet (WR) star, HBHA 4202-22, in Cygnus using the Spitzer Space Telescope archival data. Our spectroscopic follow-up observations confirmed the WR nature of this star (we named it WR138a) and showed that it belongs to the WN8-9h subtype. We thereby add a new example to the known sample of late WN stars with circumstellar nebulae. We analyzed the spectrum of WR138a by using the Potsdam Wolf-Rayet (PoWR) model atmospheres, obtaining a stellar temperature of 40 kK. The stellar wind composition is dominated by helium w…
The Cygnus-X star-forming complex is one of the most active regions of low and high mass star formation within 2 kpc of the Sun. Using mid-infrared photometry from the IRAC and MIPS Spitzer Cygnus-X Legacy Survey, we have identified over 1800 protostar candidates. We compare the protostellar luminosity functions of two regions within Cygnus-X: CygX-South and CygX-North. These two clouds show distinctly different morphologies suggestive of dissimilar star-forming environments. We find the luminosity functions of these two regions are statistically different. Furthermore, we compare the luminosi…
Globules and pillars, impressively revealed by the Spitzer and Herschel satellites, for example, are pervasive features found in regions of massive star formation. We studied the globule IRAS 20319+3958 in Cygnus X by means of visible and near-infrared imaging and spectroscopy, complemented with mid-infrared Spitzer/IRAC imaging, in order to obtain a census of its stellar content and the nature of its embedded sources. Our observations show that the globule contains an embedded aggregate of about 30 very young ($\lesssim 1$~Myr) stellar objects, for which we estimate a total mass of ~ 90 M_sun…
Using infrared to (sub)millimeter data from Spitzer, Herschel, the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope, and the IRAM 30-m telescope, we conducted an unbiased survey of the massive dense cores (MDCs) in the Cygnus X molecular cloud complex, aimed at characterizing the physical conditions of high-mass star formation (HMSF) at ~0.1 pc scales. We created 5 deg times 6 deg images of the 70-1200 um dust continuum, gas column density, and dust temperature of Cygnus X. A spatial relation between the dense regions (Av > 15) and the developed HII regions was found, indicating the impact of the latter on the g…
Aims. We analyze the surroundings of HD 97300, one of two intermediate-mass stars in the Chamaeleon I star-forming region. The star is known to be surrounded by a conspicuous ring of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Methods. We present infrared images taken with Herschel and Spitzer using 11 different broad-band filters between 3.6 um and 500 um. We compare the morphology of the emission using cuts along different position angles. We construct spectral energy distributions, which we compare to different dust models, and calculate dust temperatures. We also derive opacity maps and analy…
We report the discovery of ten proplyd-like objects in the vicinity of the massive OB association Cygnus OB2. They were discovered in IPHAS H-Alpha images and are clearly resolved in broad-band HST/ACS, near-IR and Spitzer mid-IR images. All exhibit the familiar tadpole shape seen in photoevaporating objects such as the Orion proplyds, with a bright ionization front at the head facing the central cluster of massive stars, and a tail stretching in the opposite direction. Many also show secondary ionization fronts, complex tail morphologies or multiple heads. We consider the evidence that these …
Radiative feedback from massive stars can potentially trigger star formation in the surrounding molecular gas. Inspired by the case of radiatively driven implosion in M16 or Eagle Nebula, we analyze a similar case of star formation observed in the Cygnus X region. We present new JCMT observations of $^{13}$CO(3-2) and C$^{18}$O(3-2) molecular lines of a cometary feature located at 50 pc north of the Cyg OB2 complex that was previously identified in $^{12}$CO(3-2) mapping. These data are combined with archival H$α$, infrared, and radio continuum emission data, from which we measure the mass to …
We present results of a sensitive Chandra X-ray observation and Spitzer mid-IR observations of the infrared cluster lying north of the NGC 2071 reflection nebula in the Orion B molecular cloud. We focus on the dense cluster core known as NGC 2071-IR which contains at least nine IR sources within a 40 x 40 arcsecond region. This region shows clear signs of active star formation including powerful molecular outflows, Herbig-Haro objects, and both OH and H2O masers. We use Spitzer IRAC images to aid in X-ray source identification and to determine YSO classes using mid-IR colors. Spitzer IRAC colo…
We present results of a high angular resolution survey of massive OB stars in the Cygnus OB2 association that we conducted with the NIRI camera and ALTAIR adaptive optics system of the Gemini North telescope. We observed 74 O- and early B-type stars in Cyg OB2 in the $JHK$ infrared bands in order to detect binary and multiple companions. The observations are sensitive to equal-brightness pairs at separations as small as 0.08 \arcsec, and progressively fainter companions are detectable out to $Δ$ K = 9 mag at a separation of 2 arcsec. This faint contrast limit due to readnoise continues out to …
The microquasar Cygnus X-3 was observed several times with the Gemini North Infrared Spectrograph while the source was in the hard X-ray state. We describe the observed 1.0-2.4 $μ$m spectra as arising from the stellar wind of the companion star and suggest its classification as a WN 4-6 Wolf-Rayet star. We attribute the orbital variations of the emission line profiles to the variations in the ionization structure of the stellar wind caused by the intense X-ray emission from the compact object. The strong variability observed in the line profiles will affect the mass function determination. We …
In order to fully understand the gravitational collapse of molecular clouds, the star formation process and the evolution of circumstellar disks, these phenomena must be studied in different Galactic environments with a range of stellar contents and positions in the Galaxy. The young massive association Cygnus OB2, in the Cygnus-X region, is an unique target to study how star formation and the evolution of circumstellar disks proceed in the presence of a large number of massive stars. We present a catalog obtained with recent optical observations in r,i,z filters with OSIRIS, mounted on the $1…
We investigate the young stellar populations associated with DR 18 and ECX 6-21, which are two isolated globules irradiated by the O-type stars of the Cygnus OB2 association. Both are HII regions containing obvious tracers of recent and ongoing star formation. We also study smaller isolated molecular structures in their surroundings. Both globules contain their own embedded populations, with a higher fraction of the less-evolved classes. Masses and temperatures are estimated under the assumption of a common age of 1 Myr, which has been found to appropriately represent the general Cygnus OB2 YS…
We use mid-IR images from the Spitzer Cygnus~X Legacy Survey to search for stellar bowshocks, a signature of early type "runaway" stars with high space velocities. We identify ten arc-shaped nebulae containing centrally located stars as candidate bowshocks. New spectroscopic observations of five stars show that all are late O to early B dwarfs. Our morphologically selected sample of bowshock candidates encompasses diverse physical phenomena. Three of the stars appear to be pre-main-sequence objects on the basis of rising SEDs in the mid-IR, and their nebulae may be photon-dominated regions (PD…
We report Spitzer observations of five newly identified bow shocks in the massive star-forming region RCW 38. Four are visible at IRAC wavelengths, the fifth is visible only at 24 microns. Chandra X-ray emission indicates that winds from the central O5.5 binary, IRS~2, have caused an outflow to the NE and SW of the central subcluster. The southern lobe of hot ionised gas is detected in X-rays; shocked gas and heated dust from the shock-front are detected with Spitzer at 4.5 and 24 microns. The northern outflow may have initiated the present generation of star formation, based on the filamentar…
The Orion cloud complex presents a variety of star formation mechanisms and properties and it is still one of the most intriguing targets for star formation studies. We present VISTA/VIRCAM near-infrared observations of the L1630N star forming region, including the stellar clusters NGC 2068 and NGC 2071, in the Orion molecular cloud B and discuss them in combination with Spitzer data. We select 186 young stellar object (YSO) candidates in the region on the basis of multi-colour criteria, confirm the YSO nature of the majority of them using published spectroscopy from the literature, and use th…
We present the first extensive X-ray study of the North-America and Pelican star-forming region (NGC7000/IC5070), with the aim of finding and characterizing its young stellar population. X-ray data from Chandra (four pointings) and XMM-Newton (seven pointings) were reduced and source detection was performed on each image. We complement the X-ray data with optical and near-IR data from the IPHAS, UKIDSS, and 2MASS catalogs, and with other published optical and Spitzer IR data. More than 700 X-ray sources are detected, the majority of which have an optical/NIR counterpart. This allows to identif…
We present ~120,000 Spitzer/IRAC candidate young stellar objects (YSOs) based on surveys of the Galactic midplane between l~255 deg and 110 deg, including the GLIMPSE I, II, and 3D, Vela-Carina, Cygnus X, and SMOG surveys (613 square degrees), augmented by near-infrared catalogs. We employed a classification scheme that uses the flexibility of a tailored statistical learning method and curated YSO datasets to take full advantage of IRAC's spatial resolution and sensitivity in the mid-infrared ~3-9 micron range. Multi-wavelength color/magnitude distributions provide intuition about how the clas…
We present a spectroscopic survey of over 3400 potential members in the North America and Pelican nebulae (NAP) using several low-resolution ($R\approx$ 1300-2000) spectrographs: Palomar/Norris, WIYN/HYDRA, Keck/DEIMOS, and MMT/Hectospec. We identify 580 young stars as likely members of the NAP region based on criteria involving infrared excess, Li I 6708 absorption, X-ray emission, parallax, and proper motions. The spectral types of individual spectra are derived by fitting them with templates that are either empirical spectra of pre-main sequence stars, or model atmospheres. The templates ar…
Far red spectra for 34 stars with V magnitudes between 15 and 18 in the direction of the North America and Pelican nebulae (NAP) star-forming region are obtained. Some of these stars were known earlier as emission-line objects, others were suspected as pre-main-sequence stars from photometry in the J, H, Ks and Vilnius systems. We confirm the presence of the H alpha line emission in the spectra of 19 stars, some of them exhibit also emission in the O I and Ca II lines. In some of the stars the H alpha absorption line is filled with emission. To estimate their evolutionary status, the spectral …
