N131: A dust bubble was born from the disruption of a gas filament?

Abstract

AbstractN131 is an infrared dust bubble residing in a molecular filament. We aim to study the formation and fragmentation of this bubble with multi-wavelength dust and gas observations. Towards the bubble N131, we analyzed archival multi-wavelength observations including 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, 8.0, 24, 70, 160, 250, 350, 500 μm, 1.1 mm, and 21 cm. In addition, we performed new observations of CO (2-1), CO (1-0), and 13CO (1-0) with the IRAM 30-m telescope. Multi-wavelength dust and gas observations reveal a ringlike shell with compact fragments, two filamentary structures, and a secondary bubble N131-A. The bubble N131 is a rare object with a large hole at 24 μm and 21 cm in the direction of its center. The dust and gas clumps are compact and might have been compressed at the inner edge of the ringlike shell, while they are extended and might be pre-existing at the outer edge. The column density, excitation temperature, and velocity show a potentially hierarchical distribution from the inner to outer edge of the ringlike shell. We also detected the front and back sides of the secondary bubble N131-A in the direction of its center. The derived Lyman-continuum ionizing photon flux within N131-A is equivalent to an O9.5 star. Based on the above, we suggest that the bubble N131 might be triggered by the strong stellar winds from a group of massive stars inside the bubble. We propose a scenario in which the bubble N131 forms from the disruption of a gas filament by expansion of H II region, strong stellar winds, and fragments under self-gravity.