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A molecular cloud, sometimes called a stellar nursery (if star formation is occurring within), is a type of interstellar cloud, the density and size of which permit absorption nebulae, the formation of molecules (most commonly molecular hydrogen, H 2), and the formation of H II regions.
In the dense nebulae where stars are produced, much of the hydrogen is in the molecular (H 2) form, so these nebulae are called molecular clouds. [4] The Herschel Space Observatory has revealed that filaments, or elongated dense gas structures, are truly ubiquitous in molecular clouds and central to the star formation process. They fragment ...
The core of the molecular cloud has a shape like a shepherd's crook and is currently producing new stars. [23] [24] The cluster of OB and pre–main-sequence (PMS) stars lies just eastward of the bend in this filament. The cloud core was also observed in radio light produced by CO, which allows the mass of the core to be estimated at 200–300 ...
The molecular cloud at these wavelengths is traced by emission from warm dust in the clouds, allowing the structure of the clouds to be probed. Wavelet analysis of the molecular clouds in the approximately 11 square degree Herschel field of view breaks up the clouds into numerous filaments, mostly in and around the Westerhout 40 region. [ 20 ]
In astronomy, the initial mass function (IMF) is an empirical function that describes the initial distribution of masses for a population of stars during star formation. [1] IMF not only describes the formation and evolution of individual stars, it also serves as an important link that describes the formation and evolution of galaxies.
The cloud in the top left corner is LBN 1093 and Sh2-1 with the bright star being Pi Scorpii and the yellowish cloud in the middle on the left being Sh2-7 with Dschubba at its center. A starchart of the Galactic Center area, with the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex marked as large green area in the middle of the right half of the chart.
In supercritical filaments, observations have revealed quasi-periodic chains of dense cores with spacing comparable to the filament inner width, and embedded two protostars with gas outflows. [4] A protostar continues to grow by accretion of gas and dust from the molecular cloud, becoming a pre-main-sequence star as it reaches its final mass ...
Elephant trunks (more formally, cold molecular pillars [1]) are a type of interstellar matter formations found in molecular clouds. They are located in the neighborhood of massive O type and B type stars , which, through their intense radiation, can create expanding regions of ionized gas known as H II regions .