7,957 research outputs found
Investigations of Protostellar Outflow Launching and Gas Entrainment: Hydrodynamic Simulations and Molecular Emission
We investigate protostellar outflow evolution, gas entrainment, and star
formation efficiency using radiation-hydrodynamic simulations of isolated,
turbulent low-mass cores. We adopt an X-wind launching model, in which the
outflow rate is coupled to the instantaneous protostellar accretion rate and
evolution. We vary the outflow collimation angle from =0.01-0.1 and
find that even well collimated outflows effectively sweep up and entrain
significant core mass. The Stage 0 lifetime ranges from 0.14-0.19 Myr, which is
similar to the observed Class 0 lifetime. The star formation efficiency of the
cores spans 0.41-0.51. In all cases, the outflows drive strong turbulence in
the surrounding material. Although the initial core turbulence is purely
solenoidal by construction, the simulations converge to approximate
equipartition between solenoidal and compressive motions due to a combination
of outflow driving and collapse. When compared to a simulation of a cluster of
protostars, which is not gravitationally centrally condensed, we find that the
outflows drive motions that are mainly solenoidal. The final turbulent velocity
dispersion is about twice the initial value of the cores, indicating that an
individual outflow is easily able to replenish turbulent motions on sub-parsec
scales. We post-process the simulations to produce synthetic molecular line
emission maps of CO, CO, and CO and evaluate how well
these tracers reproduce the underlying mass and velocity structure.Comment: Accepted to ApJ, 17 pages, 15 figure
An Extinction Study of the Taurus Dark Cloud Complex
We present a study of the detailed distribution of extinction in a region of
the Taurus dark cloud complex. Our study uses new BVR images of the region,
spectral classification data for 95 stars, and IRAS Sky Survey Atlas (ISSA) 60
and 100 micron images. We study the extinction of the region in four different
ways, and we present the first inter-comparison of all these methods, which
are: 1) using the color excess of background stars for which spectral types are
known; 2) using the ISSA 60 and 100 micron images; 3) using star counts; and 4)
using an optical (V and R) version of the average color excess method used by
Lada et al. (1994). We find that all four methods give generally similar
results, with important exceptions. To study the structure in the dust
distribution, we compare the ISSA extinction and the extinction measured for
individual stars. From the comparison, we conclude that in the relatively low
extinction regions studied, with 0.9 < A_V < 3.0 mag (away from filamentary
dark clouds and IRAS cores), there are no fluctuations in the dust column
density greater than 45% (at the 99.7% confidence level), on scales smaller
than 0.2 pc. We also report the discovery of a previously unknown stellar
cluster behind the Taurus dark cloud near R.A 4h19m00s, Dec. 27:30:00 (B1950)Comment: 49 pages (which include 6 pages of tables and 6 pages of figures
The UN in the lab
We consider two alternatives to inaction for governments combating terrorism, which we term Defense and Prevention. Defense consists of investing in resources that reduce the impact of an attack, and generates a negative externality to other governments, making their countries a more attractive objective for terrorists. In contrast, Prevention, which consists of investing in resources that reduce the ability of the terrorist organization to mount an attack, creates a positive externality by reducing the overall threat of terrorism for all. This interaction is captured using a simple 3Ă3 âNested Prisonerâs Dilemmaâ game, with a single Nash equilibrium where both countries choose Defense. Due to the structure of this interaction, countries can benefit from coordination of policy choices, and international institutions (such as the UN) can be utilized to facilitate coordination by implementing agreements to share the burden of Prevention. We introduce an institution that implements a burden-sharing policy for Prevention, and investigate experimentally whether subjects coordinate on a cooperative strategy more frequently under different levels of cost sharing. In all treatments, burden sharing leaves the Prisonerâs Dilemma structure and Nash equilibrium of the game unchanged. We compare three levels of burden sharing to a baseline in a between-subjects design, and find that burden sharing generates a non-linear effect on the choice of the efficient Prevention strategy and overall performance. Only an institution supporting a high level of mandatory burden sharing generates a significant improvement in the use of the Prevention strategy
A New Galactic Extinction Map of the Cygnus Region
We have made a Galactic extinction map of the Cygnus region with 5' spatial
resolution. The selected area is 80^\circ to 90^\circ in the Galactic longitude
and -4^\circ to 8^\circ in the Galactic latitude. The intensity at 140 \mum is
derived from the intensities at 60 and 100 \mum of the IRAS data using the
tight correlation between 60, 100, and 140 \mum found in the Galactic plane.
The dust temperature and optical depth are calculated with 5' resolution from
the 140 and 100 \mum intensity, and Av is calculated from the optical depth. In
the selected area, the mean dust temperature is 17 K, the minimum is 16 K, and
the maximum is 30 K. The mean Av is 6.5 mag, the minimum is 0.5 mag, and the
maximum is 11 mag. The dust temperature distribution shows significant spatial
variation on smaller scales down to 5'. Because the present study can trace the
5'-scale spatial variation of the extinction, it has an advantage over the
previous studies, such as the one by Schlegel, Finkbeiner, & Davis, who used
the COBE/DIRBE data to derive the dust temperature distribution with a spatial
resolution of 1^\circ. The difference of Av between our map and Schlegel et
al.'s is \pm 3 mag. A new extinction map of the entire sky can be produced by
applying the present method.Comment: 27 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Dispersion of Observed Position Angles of Submillimeter Polarization in Molecular Clouds
One can estimate the characteristic magnetic field strength in GMCs by
comparing submillimeter polarimetric observations of these sources with
simulated polarization maps developed using a range of different values for the
assumed field strength. The point of comparison is the degree of order in the
distribution of polarization position angles. In a recent paper by H. Li and
collaborators, such a comparison was carried out using SPARO observations of
two GMCs, and employing simulations by E. Ostriker and collaborators. Here we
reexamine this same question, using the same data set and the same simulations,
but using an approach that differs in several respects. The most important
difference is that we incorporate new, higher angular resolution observations
for one of the clouds, obtained using the Hertz polarimeter. We conclude that
the agreement between observations and simulations is best when the total
magnetic energy (including both uniform and fluctuating field components) is at
least as large as the turbulent kinetic energy.Comment: revised, accepted version; to appear in The Astrophysical Journal; 20
pages, 2 figures, 2 table
Jets and Outflows From Star to Cloud: Observations Confront Theory
In this review we focus on the role jets and outflows play in the star and
planet formation process. Our essential question can be posed as follows: are
jets/outflows merely an epiphenomenon associated with star formation or do they
play an important role in mediating the physics of assembling stars both
individually and globally? We address this question by reviewing the current
state of observations and their key points of contact with theory. Our review
of jet/outflow phenomena is organized into three length-scale domains: Source
and Disk Scales ( au) where the connection with protostellar and disk
evolution theories is paramount; Envelope Scales ( au) where the
chemistry and propagation shed further light on the jet launching process, its
variability and its impact on the infalling envelope; Parent Cloud Scales
( au) where global momentum injection into cluster/cloud
environments become relevant. Issues of feedback are of particular importance
on the smallest scales where planet formation regions in a disk may be impacted
by the presence of disk winds, irradiation by jet shocks or shielding by the
winds. Feedback on envelope scales may determine the final stellar mass
(core-to-star efficiency) and envelope dissipation. Feedback also plays an
important role on the larger scales with outflows contributing to turbulent
support within clusters including alteration of cluster star formation
efficiencies (feedback on larger scales currently appears unlikely). A
particularly novel dimension of our review is that we consider results on jet
dynamics from the emerging field of High Energy Density Laboratory Astrophysics
(HEDLA). HEDLA is now providing direct insights into the 3-D dynamics of fully
magnetized, hypersonic, radiative outflows.Comment: Accepted for publication as a chapter in Protostars and Planets VI,
University of Arizona Press (2014), eds. H. Beuther, R. Klessen, C.
Dullemond, Th. Hennin
Proper Motions of Young Stellar Outflows in the Mid-infrared with Spitzer (IRAC). I. The NGC 1333 Region
We use two 4.5 ÎŒm Spitzer (IRAC) maps of the NGC 1333 region taken over a ~7 yr interval to determine proper motions of its associated outflows. This is a first successful attempt at obtaining proper motions of stellars' outflow from Spitzer observations. For the outflow formed by the Herbig-Haro objects HH7, 8, and 10, we find proper motions of ~9-13 km sâ1, which are consistent with previously determined optical proper motions of these objects. We determine proper motions for a total of eight outflows, ranging from ~10 to 100 km sâ1. The derived proper motions show that out of these eight outflows, three have tangential velocities â€20 km sâ1. This result shows that a large fraction of the observed outflows have low intrinsic velocities and that the low proper motions are not merely a projection effect
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