EFFECTS OF STAR FORMATION ON BOUNDEDNESS IN LMC CLOUDS

Green, Alex

Permalink

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/122617 Copy

Description

Title

EFFECTS OF STAR FORMATION ON BOUNDEDNESS IN LMC CLOUDS

Author(s)

Green, Alex

Contributor(s)

• Madden, Suzanne C
• Rubio, Mónica
• Tarantino, Elizabeth
• Bolatto, Alberto
• Nayak, Omnarayani
• Indebetouw, Rémy
• Wong, Tony

Issue Date

2023-06-21

Keyword(s)

Astronomy

Abstract

To investigate the effects of stellar feedback on the gravitational state of giant molecular clouds, we study ALMA maps of nine molecular clouds distributed throughout the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), the nearest star-forming galaxy to our own. Each cloud has been observed in both CO and ¹³CO, enabling analysis based on assuming LTE conditions. We trace molecular hydrogen mass using the J=1-0 transitions for five of the clouds and J=2-1 for the other four. We perform noise and resolution matching on the sample, with a common resolution of 3.5 arcseconds (0.9 pc at the LMC distance of 50 kpc), and use the SCIMES clustering algorithm to identify discrete substructure, or ”clumps.” We supplement these data with tracers of recent star formation, such as resolution-matched Spitzer IRAC 8µm maps. The CO (¹³CO) clumps identified cover a range of 4.4 (2.6) dex in luminosity-based mass and 2.3 dex in average 8µm surface brightness. The excess linewidth relative to the best-fit size-linewidth relation is well-correlated to the average 8µm flux in a clump, suggesting that the combined effects of radiative feedback and turbulence driven on large scales can explain the local energy injection observed at the clump scales. The magnitude of the excess linewidths we measure does not appear to result from opacity broadening. Further multi-line analysis may better constrain the assumptions made in these calculations.

Publisher

International Symposium on Molecular Spectroscopy

Type of Resource

Text

Language

eng

Handle URL

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/122617

Owning Collections