Critical Bonnor-Ebert Sphere Research Articles

Droplets. I. Pressure-dominated Coherent Structures in L1688 and B18

Abstract We present the observation and analysis of newly discovered coherent structures in the L1688 region of Ophiuchus and the B18 region of Taurus. Using data from the Green Bank Ammonia Survey, we identify regions of high density and near-constant, almost-thermal velocity dispersion. We reveal 18 coherent structures are revealed, 12 in L1688 and 6 in B18, each of which shows a sharp “transition to coherence” in velocity dispersion around its periphery. The identification of these structures provides a chance to statistically study the coherent structures in molecular clouds. The identified coherent structures have a typical radius of 0.04 pc and a typical mass of 0.4 M ☉, generally smaller than previously known coherent cores identified by Goodman et al., Caselli et al., and Pineda et al. We call these structures “droplets.” We find that, unlike previously known coherent cores, these structures are not virially bound by self-gravity and are instead predominantly confined by ambient pressure. The droplets have density profiles shallower than a critical Bonnor–Ebert sphere, and they have a velocity (V LSR) distribution consistent with the dense gas motions traced by NH3 emission. These results point to a potential formation mechanism through pressure compression and turbulent processes in the dense gas. We present a comparison with a magnetohydrodynamic simulation of a star-forming region, and we speculate on the relationship of droplets with larger, gravitationally bound coherent cores, as well as on the role that droplets and other coherent structures play in the star formation process.

Distortion of Magnetic Fields in a Starless Core. IV. Magnetic Field Scaling on Density and Mass-to-flux Ratio Distribution in FeSt 1-457

Abstract In the present study, the magnetic field scaling on density, , was revealed in a single starless core for the first time. The κ index of 0.78 ± 0.10 was obtained toward the starless dense core FeSt 1-457 based on the analysis of the radial distribution of the polarization angle dispersion of background stars measured at the near-infrared wavelengths. The result prefers κ = 2/3 for the case of isotropic contraction, and the difference of the observed value from κ = 1/2 is 2.8 sigma. The distribution of the ratio of mass-to-magnetic flux was evaluated. FeSt 1-457 was found to be magnetically supercritical near the center (λ ≈ 2), whereas nearly critical or slightly subcritical at the core boundary (λ ≈ 0.98). Ambipolar diffusion-regulated star formation models for the case of moderate magnetic field strength may explain the physical status of FeSt 1-457. The mass-to-flux ratio distribution for typical dense cores (critical Bonnor–Ebert sphere with central λ = 2 and κ = 1/2–2/3) was calculated, and found to be magnetically critical/subcritical at the core edge, which indicates that typical dense cores are embedded in and evolve from magnetically critical/subcritical diffuse surrounding medium.

UNVEILING THE DETAILED DENSITY AND VELOCITY STRUCTURES OF THE PROTOSTELLAR CORE B335

We present an observational study of the protostellar core B335 harboring a low-mass Class 0 source. The observations of the H13CO+(J=1-0) line emission were carried out using the Nobeyama 45 m telescope and Nobeyama Millimeter Array. Our combined image of the interferometer and single-dish data depicts detailed structures of the dense envelope within the core. We found that the core has a radial density profile of n(r) prop. r^-p and a reliable difference in the power-law indices between the outer and inner regions of the core: p~2 for r >= 4000 AU and p ~ 1.5 for r <= 4000 AU}. The dense core shows a slight overall velocity gradient of ~1.0 km s^-1 over the scale of 20,000 AU across the outflow axis. We believe that this velocity gradient represents a solid-body-like rotation of the core. The dense envelope has a quite symmetrical velocity structure with a remarkable line broadening toward the core center, which is especially prominent in the position-velocity diagram across the outflow axis. The model calculations of position-velocity diagrams do a good job of reproducing observational results using the collapse model of an isothermal sphere in which the core has an inner free-fall region and an outer region conserving the conditions at the formation stage of a central stellar object. We derived a central stellar mass of ~0.1 M_sun, and suggest a small inward velocity, v(r>r_inf) ~ 0 km s^-1 in the outer core at >= 4000 AU. We concluded that our data can be well explained by gravitational collapse with a quasi-static initial condition, such as Shu's model, or by the isothermal collapse of a marginally critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere.

CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL CONDITIONS IN MOLECULAR CLOUD CORE DC 000.4–19.5 (SL42) IN CORONA AUSTRALIS

Chemical reactions in starless molecular clouds are heavily dependent on interactions between gas phase material and solid phase dust and ices. We have observed the abundance and distribution of molecular gases in the cold, starless core DC 000.4-19.5 (SL42) in Corona Australis using data from the Swedish ESO Submillimeter Telescope. We present column density maps determined from measurements of C18O(J=2-1,1-0) and N2H+(J=1-0) emission features. Herschel data of the same region allow a direct comparison to the dust component of the cloud core and provide evidence for gas phase depletion of CO at the highest extinctions. The dust color emperature in the core calculated from Herschel maps ranges from roughly 10.7 to 14.0 K. This range agrees with the previous determinations from Infrared Space Observatory and Planck observations. The column density profile of the core can be fitted with a Plummer-like density distribution approaching n(r) ~ r^{-2} at large distances. The core structure deviates clearly from a critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere. Instead, the core appears to be gravitationally bound and to lack thermal and turbulent support against the pressure of the surrounding low-density material: it may therefore be in the process of slow contraction. We test two chemical models and find that a steady-state depletion model agrees with the observed C18O column density profile and the observed N(C18O) versus AV relationship.

Near-Infrared Imaging Survey of Bok Globules: Density Structure

On the basis of near-infrared imaging observations, we derived visual extinction (Av) distribution toward ten Bok globules through measurements of both the color excess (E_{H-K}) and the stellar density at J, H, and Ks (star count). Radial column density profiles for each globule were analyzed with the Bonnor-Ebert sphere model. Using the data of our ten globules and four globules in the literature, we investigated the stability of globules on the basis of xi_max, which characterizes the Bonnor-Ebert sphere as well as the stability of the equilibrium state against the gravitational collapse. We found that more than half of starless globules are located near the critical state (xi_max = 6.5 +/- 2). Thus, we suggest that a nearly critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere characterizes the typical density structure of starless globules. Remaining starless globules show clearly unstable states (xi_max > 10). Since unstable equilibrium states are not long maintained, we expect that these globules are on the way to gravitational collapse or that they are stabilized by non-thermal support. It was also found that all the star-forming globules show unstable solutions of xi_max >10, which is consistent with the fact that they have started gravitational collapse. We investigated the evolution of a collapsing gas sphere whose initial condition is a nearly critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere. We found that the column density profiles of the collapsing sphere mimic those of the static Bonnor-Ebert spheres in unstable equilibrium. The collapsing gas sphere resembles marginally unstable Bonnor-Ebert spheres for a long time. We found that the frequency distribution of xi_max for the observed starless globules is consistent with that from model calculations of the collapsing sphere.

N2H+] OBSERVATIONS OF MOLECULAR CLOUD CORES IN TAURUS

We report the millimeter-wave radio observations of molecular cloud cores in Taurus. The observed line is the <TEX>$N_2H^+$</TEX> emission at 93 GHz, which is known to be less affected by molecular depletion. We have compared starless (IRAS-less) cores with star-forming cores. We found that there is no large difference between starless and star-forming cores, in core radius, linewidth, core mass, and radial intensity profile. Our result is in contrast with the result obtained by using a popular molecular line, in which starless cores are larger and less condensed. We suggest that different results mainly come from whether the employed molecular line is affected by depletion or not. We made a virial analysis, and found that both starless and star-forming cores are not far from the critical equilibrium state, in Taurus. Together with the fact that Taurus cores are almost thermally supported, we conclude that starless Taurus cores evolve to star formation without dissipating turbulence. The critical equilibrium state in the virial analysis corresponds to the critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere in the Bonnor-Ebert analysis (Nakano 1998). It is suggested that the initial condition of the molecular cloud cores/globules for star formation is close to the critical equilibrium state/critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere, in the low-mass star forming region.

Molecular Evolution in Collapsing Prestellar Cores. III. Contraction of a Bonnor‐Ebert Sphere

The gravitational collapse of a spherical cloud core is investigated by numerical calculations. The initial conditions of the core lie close to the critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere with a central density of ~104 cm-3 in one model (α = 1.1), while gravity overwhelms pressure in the other (α = 4.0), where α is the internal gravity-to-pressure ratio. The α = 1.1 model shows reasonable agreement with the observed velocity field in prestellar cores. Molecular distributions in cores are calculated by solving a chemical reaction network that includes both gas-phase and grain-surface reactions. When the central density of the core reaches 105 cm-3, carbon-bearing species are significantly depleted in the central region of the α = 1.1 model, while the depletion is only marginal in the other model. The two different approaches encompass the observed variations of molecular distributions in different prestellar cores, suggesting that molecular distributions can be probes of contraction or accumulation timescales of cores. The central enhancement of the NH3/N2H+ ratio, which is observed in some prestellar cores, can be reproduced under certain conditions by adopting recently measured branching fractions for N2H+ recombination. Various molecular species, such as CH3OH and CO2, are produced by grain-surface reactions. The ice composition depends sensitively on the assumed temperature. Multideuterated species are included in our most recent gas-grain chemical network. The deuterated isotopomers of H are useful as probes of the central regions of evolved cores, in which gas-phase species with heavy elements are strongly depleted. At 10 K, our model can reproduce the observed abundance ratio of ND3/NH3 but underestimates the isotopic ratios of deuterated to normal methanol.

Fragmentation of a Molecular Cloud Core versus Fragmentation of the Massive Protoplanetary Disk in the Main Accretion Phase

The fragmentation of molecular cloud cores a factor of 1.1 denser than the critical Bonnor-Ebert sphere is examined though three-dimensional numerical simulations. A nested grid is employed to resolve fine structure down to 1 AU while following the entire structure of the molecular cloud core of radius 0.14 pc. A total of 225 models are shown to survey the effects of initial rotation speed, rotation law, and amplitude of bar mode perturbation. The simulations show that the cloud fragments whenever the cloud rotates sufficiently slowly to allow collapse but fast enough to form a disk before first-core formation. The latter condition is equivalent to $\Omega_0 t_{\rm ff} \gtrsim 0.05$, where $\Omega_0$ and $t_{\rm ff}$ denote the initial central angular velocity and the freefall time measured from the central density, respectively. Fragmentation is classified into six types: disk-bar, ring-bar, satellite, bar, ring, and dumbbell types according to the morphology of collapse and fragmentation. When the outward decrease in initial angular velocity is more steep, the cloud deforms from spherical at an early stage. The cloud deforms into a ring only when the bar mode m = 2 perturbation is very minor. The ring fragments into two or three fragments via ring-bar type fragmentation and into at least three fragments via ring type fragmentation. When the bar mode is significant, the cloud fragments into two fragments via either bar or dumbbell type fragmentation. These fragments eventually merge due to their low angular momenta, after which several new fragments form around the merged fragment via satellite type fragmentation.