NMA Imaging of Envelopes and Disks Around Low Mass Protostars and T Tauri Stars

Abstract

We are intensively studying low mass star formation with the radio telescopes at Nobeyama in Japan. Using both the Nobeyama 45 m dish equipped with a 2 × 2 array receiver and the Nobeyama Millimeter Array (NMA), we can cover a very wide spatial range from overall molecular clouds down to compact protoplanetary disks. With the 45 m dish we are investigating hierarchical structures of molecular clouds including star-forming cores. With NMA we are imaging disklike structures (i.e., envelopes, accretion disks, and protoplanetary disks) around protostars and T Tauri stars. Recently, we have completed our survey for dense disklike envelopes around eleven Class 0 & I protostars by NMA. In this paper, we will present our recent results of the disklike envelopes in addition to the previous NMA results of the disks around three T Tauri stars. On the basis of the data, we will discuss the evolution of the disklike structures (dense envelopes → tenuous ones → dispersing ones → accretion disks → protoplanetary ones), and propose a new scenario for the formation of low mass stars.