423 research outputs found
First Results from a 1.3 cm EVLA Survey of Massive Protostellar Objects: G35.03+0.35
We have performed a 1.3 centimeter survey of 24 massive young stellar objects
(MYSOs) using the Expanded Very Large Array (EVLA). The sources in the sample
exhibit a broad range of massive star formation signposts including Infrared
Dark Clouds (IRDCs), UCHII regions, and extended 4.5 micron emission in the
form of Extended Green Objects (EGOs). In this work, we present results for
G35.03+0.35 which exhibits all of these phenomena. We simultaneously image the
1.3 cm ammonia (1,1) through (6,6) inversion lines, four methanol transitions,
two H recombination lines, plus continuum at 0.05 pc resolution. We find three
areas of thermal ammonia emission, two within the EGO (designated the NE and SW
cores) and one toward an adjacent IRDC. The NE core contains an UCHII region
(CM1) and a candidate HCHII region (CM2). A region of non-thermal, likely
masing ammonia (3,3) and (6,6) emission is coincident with an arc of 44 GHz
methanol masers. We also detect two new 25 GHz Class I methanol masers. A
complementary Submillimeter Array 1.3 mm continuum image shows that the
distribution of dust emission is similar to the lower-lying ammonia lines, all
peaking to the NW of CM2, indicating the likely presence of an additional MYSO
in this protocluster. By modeling the ammonia and 1.3 mm continuum data, we
obtain gas temperatures of 20-220 K and masses of 20-130 solar. The diversity
of continuum emission properties and gas temperatures suggest that objects in a
range of evolutionary states exist concurrently in this protocluster.Comment: To appear in Astrophysical Journal Letters Special Issue on the EVLA.
16 pages, 3 figures. Includes the complete version of Figure 3, which was
unable to fit into the journal article due to the number of panel
The Protocluster G18.67+0.03: A Test Case for Class I Methanol Masers as Evolutionary Indicators for Massive Star Formation
We present high angular resolution Submillimeter Array (SMA) and Karl G.
Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) observations of the massive protocluster
G18.67+0.03. Previously targeted in maser surveys of GLIMPSE Extended Green
Objects (EGOs), this cluster contains three Class I methanol maser sources,
providing a unique opportunity to test the proposed role of Class I masers as
evolutionary indicators for massive star formation. The millimeter observations
reveal bipolar molecular outflows, traced by 13CO(2-1) emission, associated
with all three Class I maser sources. Two of these sources (including the EGO)
are also associated with 6.7 GHz Class II methanol masers; the Class II masers
are coincident with millimeter continuum cores that exhibit hot core line
emission and drive active outflows, as indicated by the detection of SiO(5-4).
In these cases, the Class I masers are coincident with outflow lobes, and
appear as clear cases of excitation by active outflows. In contrast, the third
Class I source is associated with an ultracompact HII region, and not with
Class II masers. The lack of SiO emission suggests the 13CO outflow is a relic,
consistent with its longer dynamical timescale. Our data show that massive
young stellar objects associated only with Class I masers are not necessarily
young, and provide the first unambiguous evidence that Class I masers may be
excited by both young (hot core) and older (UC HII) MYSOs within the same
protocluster.Comment: Astrophysical Journal Letters, accepted. emulateapj, 7 pages
including 4 figures and 1 table. Figures compressed. v2: coauthor affiliation
updated, emulateapj versio
VLA Observations of the Infrared Dark Cloud G19.30+0.07
We present Very Large Array observations of ammonia (NH3) (1,1), (2,2), and
CCS (2_1-1_0) emission toward the Infrared Dark Cloud (IRDC) G19.30+0.07 at
~22GHz. The NH3 emission closely follows the 8 micron extinction. The NH3 (1,1)
and (2,2) lines provide diagnostics of the temperature and density structure
within the IRDC, with typical rotation temperatures of ~10 to 20K and NH3
column densities of ~10^15 cm^-2. The estimated total mass of G19.30+0.07 is
~1130 Msun. The cloud comprises four compact NH3 clumps of mass ~30 to 160
Msun. Two coincide with 24 micron emission, indicating heating by protostars,
and show evidence of outflow in the NH3 emission. We report a water maser
associated with a third clump; the fourth clump is apparently starless. A
non-detection of 8.4GHz emission suggests that the IRDC contains no bright HII
regions, and places a limit on the spectral type of an embedded ZAMS star to
early-B or later. From the NH3 emission we find G19.30+0.07 is composed of
three distinct velocity components, or "subclouds." One velocity component
contains the two 24 micron sources and the starless clump, another contains the
clump with the water maser, while the third velocity component is diffuse, with
no significant high-density peaks. The spatial distribution of NH3 and CCS
emission from G19.30+0.07 is highly anti-correlated, with the NH3 predominantly
in the high-density clumps, and the CCS tracing lower-density envelopes around
those clumps. This spatial distribution is consistent with theories of
evolution for chemically young low-mass cores, in which CCS has not yet been
processed to other species and/or depleted in high-density regions.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication by ApJ. Please contact
the authors for higher resolution versions of the figure
3-D Models of Embedded High-Mass Stars: Effects of a Clumpy Circumstellar Medium
We use 3-D radiative transfer models to show the effects of clumpy
circumstellar material on the observed infrared colors of high mass stars
embedded in molecular clouds. We highlight differences between 3-D clumpy and
1-D smooth models which can affect the interpretation of data. We discuss
several important properties of the emergent spectral energy distribution
(SED): More near-infrared light (scattered and direct from the central source)
can escape than in smooth 1-D models. The near- and mid-infrared SED of the
same object can vary significantly with viewing angle, depending on the clump
geometry along the sightline. Even the wavelength-integrated flux can vary with
angle by more than a factor of two. Objects with the same average circumstellar
dust distribution can have very different near-and mid-IR SEDs depending on the
clump geometry and the proximity of the most massive clump to the central
source.
Although clumpiness can cause similar objects to have very different SEDs,
there are some observable trends. Near- and mid-infrared colors are sensitive
to the weighted average distance of clumps from the central source and to the
magnitude of clumpy density variations (smooth-to-clumpy ratio). Far-infrared
emission remains a robust measure of the total dust mass. We present simulated
SEDs, colors, and images for 2MASS and Spitzer filters. We compare to
observations of some UCHII regions and find that 3-D clumpy models fit better
than smooth models. In particular, clumpy models with fractal dimensions in the
range 2.3-2.8, smooth to clumpy ratios of <50%, and density distributions with
shallow average radial density profiles fit the SEDs best.Comment: accepted to ApJ; version with full-res figures:
http://www.astro.virginia.edu/~ri3e/clumpy3d.pd
OVI, NV and CIV in the Galactic Halo: II. Velocity-Resolved Observations with Hubble and FUSE
We present a survey of NV and OVI (and where available CIV) in the Galactic
halo, using data from the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) and the
Hubble Space Telescope (HST) along 34 sightlines. These ions are usually
produced in nonequilibrium processes such as shocks, evaporative interfaces, or
rapidly cooling gas, and thus trace the dynamics of the interstellar medium.
Searching for global trends in integrated and velocity-resolved column density
ratios, we find large variations in most measures, with some evidence for a
systematic trend of higher ionization (lower NV/OVI column density ratio) at
larger positive line-of-sight velocities. The slopes of log[N(NV)/N(OVI)] per
unit velocity range from -0.015 to +0.005, with a mean of
-0.0032+/-0.0022(r)+/-0.0014(sys) dex/(km/s). We compare this dataset with
models of velocity-resolved high-ion signatures of several common physical
structures. The dispersion of the ratios, OVI/NV/CIV, supports the growing
belief that no single model can account for hot halo gas, and in fact some
models predict much stronger trends than are observed. It is important to
understand the signatures of different physical structures to interpret
specific lines of sight and future global surveys.Comment: ApJ in press 43 pages, 22 fig
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