An Estimation of the Star Formation Rate in the Perseus Complex

Abstract

Abstract We present the results of our investigation of the star-forming potential in the Perseus star-forming complex. We build on previous starless core, protostellar core, and young stellar object (YSO) catalogs from Spitzer (3.6–70 μm), Herschel (70–500 μm), and SCUBA (850 μm) observations in the literature. We place the cores and YSOs within seven star-forming clumps based on column densities greater than cm−2. We calculate the mean density and free-fall time for 69 starless cores as ∼5.55 g cm−3 and ∼0.1 Myr, respectively, and we estimate the star formation rate for the near future as ∼150 M ⊙ Myr−1. According to Bonnor–Ebert stability analysis, we find that majority of starless cores in Perseus are unstable. Broadly, these cores can collapse to form the next generation of stars. We found a relation between starless cores and YSOs, where the numbers of young protostars (Class 0 + Class I) are similar to the numbers of starless cores. This similarity, which shows a one-to-one relation, suggests that these starless cores may form the next generation of stars with approximately the same formation rate as the current generation, as identified by the Class 0 and Class I protostars. It follows that if such a relation between starless cores and any YSO stage exists, the SFR values of these two populations must be nearly constant. In brief, we propose that this one-to-one relation is an important factor in better understanding the star formation process within a cloud.