Magnetic fluctuations through the molecular cloud cores can produce ambipolar diffusion (AD) heating, which consequently can produce temperature gradients through the core. The aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of these produced temperature gradients on the radius and mass of the non-isothermal modified Bonnor-Ebert spheres (MBES). Here, we use the parameter $κ$ to represent the magnetic fluctuations through the molecular cloud cores. This parameter introduces the change of magnetic filed strength in the length-scale. The results show that increasing of $κ$ leads to an increase of the radius and mass of MBES. The most important result is existence of the gravitationally stable high-mass prestellar cores at the low-density molecular medium with great magnetic fluctuations.
Feedback from Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) and subsequent jet cocoons and outflow bubbles can have a significant impact on star formation in the host galaxy. To investigate feedback physics on small scales, we perform hydrodynamic simulations of realistically fast AGN winds striking Bonnor-Ebert (BE) spheres and examine gravitational collapse and ablation. We test AGN wind velocities ranging from 300--3,000 km s$^{-1}$ and wind densities ranging from 0.5--10 $m_\mathrm{p}\,\mathrm{cm}^{-3}$. We include heating and cooling of low- and high-temperature gas, self-gravity, and spatially correlated…
Bonnor-Ebert sphere collapse in filamentary structures
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München（慕尼黑路德维希-马克西米利安大学）；Excellence Cluster ORIGINS（ORIGINS卓越集群）；Max-Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics（马克斯·普朗克地外物理研究所）
Aims. We investigate the effect of chemistry on the stability of starless cores against gravitational collapse. Methods. We combine chemical and radiative transfer simulations in the context of a modified Bonnor-Ebert sphere to model the effect of chemistry on the gas temperature, and study the effect of temperature changes on core stability. Results. We find that chemistry has in general very little effect on the nondimensional radius $ξ_{\rm out}$ which parametrizes the core stability. Cores that are initially stable or unstable tend to stay near their initial states, in terms of stability (…
The structure of protostellar cores can often be approximated by isothermal Bonnor-Ebert spheres (BES) which are stabilized by an external pressure. For the typical pressure of $10^4k_B\,\mathrm{K\,cm^{-3}}$ to $10^5k_B\,\mathrm{K\,cm^{-3}}$ found in molecular clouds, cores with masses below $1.5\,{\rm M_\odot}$ are stable against gravitational collapse. In this paper, we analyze the efficiency of triggering a gravitational collapse by a nearby stellar wind, which represents an interesting scenario for triggered low-mass star formation. We derive analytically a new stability criterion for a BE…
Aims. We investigate the stability of non-isothermal Bonnor-Ebert spheres with a model that includes a self-consistent calculation of the gas temperature. This way we can discard the assumption of equality between the dust and gas temperatures, and study the stability as the gas temperature changes with chemical evolution of the gas. Methods. We use a gas-grain chemical model including a time-dependent treatment of depletion onto grain surfaces, which strongly influences the gas temperature as the main coolant, CO, depletes from the gas. Dust and gas temperatures are solved with radiative tran…
We investigate the Hierarchical Gravitational Fragmentation scenario through numerical simulations of the prestellar stages of the collapse of a marginally gravitationally unstable isothermal sphere immersed in a strongly gravitationally unstable, uniform background medium. The core developes a Bonnor-Ebert (BE)-like density profile, while at the time of singularity (the protostar) formation the envelope approaches a singular-isothermal-sphere (SIS)-like $r^-2$ density profile. However, these structures are never hydrostatic. In this case, the central flat region is characterized by an infall …
We describe the results of 3D simulations of the interaction of hydrodynamic shocks with Bonnor-Ebert spheres performed with an Adaptive Mesh Refinement code. The calculations are isothermal and the clouds are embedded in a medium in which the sound speed is either four or ten times that in the cloud. The strengths of the shocks are such that they induce gravitational collapse in some cases and not in others and we derive a simple estimate for the shock strength required for this to occur. These results are relevant to dense cores and Bok globules in star forming regions subjected to shocks pr…
We investigated the effect of magnetic fields on the collision process between dense molecular cores. We performed three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulations of collisions between two self-gravitating cores using the Enzo adaptive mesh refinement code. The core was modeled as a stable isothermal Bonnor-Ebert (BE) sphere immersed in uniform magnetic fields. Collisions were characterized by the offset parameter $b$, Mach number of the initial core $\mathcal{M}$, magnetic field strength $B_{0}$, and angle $θ$ between the initial magnetic field and collision axis. For head-on ($b = 0$) coll…
This paper aims at studying the reliability of a few frequently raised but not proven arguments for the modeling of cold gas clouds embedded in or moving through a hot plasma and at sensitizing modelers to a more careful consideration of unavoidable acting physical processes and their relevance. At first, by numerical simulations we demonstrate the growing effect of self-gravity on interstellar clouds and, by this, moreover argue against their initial setup as homogeneous. We apply the adaptive-mesh refinement code {\sc Flash} with extensions to metal-dependent radiative cooling and external h…
In the present study, the magnetic field scaling on density, $|B| \propto ρ^κ$, was revealed in a single starless core for the first time. The $κ$ index of $0.78 \pm 0.10$ was obtained toward the starless dense core FeSt 1-457 based on the analysis of the radial distribution of the polarization angle dispersion of background stars measured at the near-infrared wavelengths. The result prefers $κ= 2/3$ for the case of isotropic contraction, and the difference of the observed value from $κ= 1/2$ is 2.8 sigma. The distribution of the ratio of mass to magnetic flux was evaluated. FeSt 1-457 was fou…
One of the most robust observations of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) is its near-universality in the Milky Way and neighboring galaxies. But recent observations of early-type galaxies can be interpreted to imply a bottom-heavy IMF, while others of ultra-faint dwarfs could imply a top-heavy IMF. This would impose powerful constraints on star formation models. We explore what sort of cloud-scale IMF models could possibly satisfy these constraints. We utilize simulated galaxies which reproduce (broadly) the observed galaxy properties, while they also provide the detailed star formation …
The probability distribution function (PDF) of the mass surface density of molecular clouds provides essential information about the structure of molecular cloud gas and condensed structures out of which stars may form. In general, the PDF shows two basic components: a broad distribution around the maximum with resemblance to a log-normal function, and a tail at high mass surface densities attributed to turbulence and self-gravity. In a previous paper, the PDF of condensed structures has been analyzed and an analytical formula presented based on a truncated radial density profile, $ρ(r) = ρ_c/…
Cosmic-ray-induced whole-grain heating induces evaporation and other processes that affect the chemistry of interstellar clouds. With recent data on grain heating frequencies as an input for a modified rate-equation astrochemical model, this study examines, which whole-grain heating temperature regime is the most efficient at altering the chemical composition of gas and ices. Such a question arises because low-temperature heating, albeit less effective at inducing evaporation of adsorbed species, happens much more often than high-temperature grain heating. The model considers a delayed gravita…
We calculate the evolution of cloud cores embedded in different envelopes to investigate environmental effects on the mass accretion rate onto protostars. As the initial state, we neglect the magnetic field and cloud rotation, and adopt star-forming cores composed of two parts: a centrally condensed core and an outer envelope. The inner core has a critical Bonnor-Ebert density profile and is enclosed by the outer envelope. We prepare 15 star-forming cores with different outer envelope densities and gravitational radii, within which the gas flows into the collapsing core, and calculate their ev…
We present $\sim$0.1" resolution ($\sim$10 pc) ALMA observations of a molecular cloud identified in the merging Antennae galaxies with the potential to form a globular cluster, nicknamed the ``Firecracker.' Since star formation has not yet begun at an appreciable level, this cloud provides an example of what the birth environment of a globular cluster may have looked like before stars form and disrupt the natal conditions. Using emission from $^{12}$CO(2-1), $^{12}$CO(3-2), $^{13}$CO(2-1), HCN(4-3), and HCO$^+$(4-3), we are able to resolve the cloud's structure and find that it has a character…
We present a unified description of the scenario of Global Hierarchical Collapse and fragmentation (GHC) in molecular clouds (MCs), owing to the continuous decrease of the average Jeans mass in the contracting cloud. GHC constitutes a regime of collapses within collapses, in which small-scale collapses begin at later times, but occur on shorter timescales than large-scale ones. The difference in timescales allows for most of the clouds' mass to be dispersed by feedback from the first massive stars, maintaining the global star formation rate low. All scales accrete from their parent structures.…
The origin of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) is a fundamental issue in the theory of star formation. It is generally fit with a composite power law. Some clues on the progenitors can be found in dense starless cores that have a core mass function (CMF) with a similar shape. In the low-mass end, these mass functions increase with mass, albeit the sample may be somewhat incomplete; in the high-mass end, the mass functions decrease with mass. There is an offset in the turn-over mass between the two mass distributions. The stellar mass for the IMF peak is lower than the corresponding core…
School of Astronomy and Space Science, Nanjing University（南京大学天文与空间科学学院）；Key Laboratory of Modern Astronomy and Astrophysics (Nanjing University), Ministry of Education（教育部现代天文学和天体物理学重点实验室（南京大学））
Stars form through the gravitational collapse of molecular cloud cores. Before collapsing, the cores are supported by thermal pressure and turbulent motions. A question of critical importance for the understanding of star formation is how to observationally discern whether a core has already initiated gravitational collapse or is still in hydrostatic balance. The canonical method to identify gravitational collapse is based on the observed density radial profile, which would change from a Bonnor-Ebert type toward power laws as the core collapses. In practice, due to the projection effect, the r…
A stochastic and analytical model of hierarchical fragmentation: The fragmentation of gas structures into young stellar objects in the interstellar medium
本文提出引力—湍流框架下的随机解析层级碎裂模型，用 EOS 追踪多尺度气体碎裂，解释恒星多重性、特征尺度及前恒星天体吸积演化。
In giant molecular clouds (GMCs), shocks driven by converging turbulent flows create high-density, strongly-magnetized regions that are locally sheetlike. In previous work, we showed that within these layers, dense filaments and embedded self-gravitating cores form by gathering material along the magnetic field lines. Here, we extend the parameter space of our three-dimensional, turbulent MHD core formation simulations. We confirm the anisotropic core formation model we previously proposed, and quantify the dependence of median core properties on the pre-shock inflow velocity and upstream magn…
The current study was developed to provide a database of relatively simple numerical simulations of protostellar collapse, as a template library for observations of cores and very young protostars, and for researchers who wish to test their chemical modeling under dynamic astrophysical conditions. It was also designed to identify statistical trends that may appear when running many models of the formation of low-mass stars by varying the initial conditions. A large set of 143 calculations of the gravitational collapse of an isolated sphere of gas with uniform temperature and a Bonnor-Ebert lik…
CARPP: Parametric Radiative-Transfer Fitting of Molecular Cores from Dust Continuum Data
National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院国家天文台）；University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学）；Department of Astronomy, Tsinghua University（清华大学天文系）；Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian（哈佛-史密森尼天体物理中心）；Max Planck Institute for Astronomy（马克斯·普朗克天文学研究所）
In this paper we present the first observations of the Ophiuchus molecular cloud performed as part of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) Gould Belt Survey (GBS) with the SCUBA-2 instrument. We demonstrate methods for combining these data with previous HARP CO, Herschel, and IRAM N$_{2}$H$^{+}$ observations in order to accurately quantify the properties of the SCUBA-2 sources in Ophiuchus. We produce a catalogue of all of the sources found by SCUBA-2. We separate these into protostars and starless cores. We list all of the starless cores and perform a full virial analysis, including exter…
