C-12/C-13 isotope ratio across the Galaxy from observations of C-13/O-18 in molecular clouds

1990 ◽  
Vol 357 ◽  
pp. 477 ◽  
Author(s):  
William D. Langer ◽  
Arno A. Penzias
Keyword(s):  
Isotope Ratio ◽  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
O 18

A reassessment of the double isotope ratio (C-13)O/C(O-18) in molecular clouds

1989 ◽  
Vol 341 ◽  
pp. 293 ◽  
Author(s):  
David K. Taylor ◽  
R. L. Dickman
Keyword(s):  
Isotope Ratio ◽  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
O 18 ◽  
Double Isotope

scholarly journals The global star formation law: from dense cores to extreme starbursts

2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (S237) ◽  
pp. 331-335
Author(s):  
Yu Gao
Keyword(s):  
Star Formation ◽  
Linear Correlation ◽  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
High Redshift ◽  
Gas Content ◽  
Molecular Gas ◽  
Giant Molecular Clouds ◽  
Active Star ◽  
Dense Cores ◽  
The Galaxy

AbstractActive star formation (SF) is tightly related to the dense molecular gas in the giant molecular clouds' dense cores. Our HCN (measure of the dense molecular gas) survey in 65 galaxies (including 10 ultraluminous galaxies) reveals a tight linear correlation between HCN and IR (SF rate) luminosities, whereas the correlation between IR and CO (measure of the total molecular gas) luminosities is nonlinear. This suggests that the global SF rate depends more intimately upon the amount of dense molecular gas than the total molecular gas content. This linear relationship extends to both the dense cores in the Galaxy and the hyperluminous extreme starbursts at high-redshift. Therefore, the global SF law in dense gas appears to be linear all the way from dense cores to extreme starbursts, spanning over nine orders of magnitude in IR luminosity.

scholarly journals Mapping the 13CO/C18O abundance ratio in the massive star-forming region G29.96−0.02

2018 ◽  
Vol 617 ◽  
pp. A14 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Paron ◽  
M. B. Areal ◽  
M. E. Ortega
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
Abundance Ratio ◽  
High Mass ◽  
Local Thermal Equilibrium ◽  
Mass Star ◽  
Galactocentric Distance ◽  
Star Forming ◽  
Physical Conditions ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Molecular Abundances

Aims. Estimating molecular abundances ratios from directly measuring the emission of the molecules toward a variety of interstellar environments is indeed very useful to advance our understanding of the chemical evolution of the Galaxy, and hence of the physical processes related to the chemistry. It is necessary to increase the sample of molecular clouds, located at different distances, in which the behavior of molecular abundance ratios, such as the 13CO/C18O ratio, is studied in detail. Methods. We selected the well-studied high-mass star-forming region G29.96−0.02, located at a distance of about 6.2 kpc, which is an ideal laboratory to perform this type of study. To study the 13CO/C18O abundance ratio (X13∕18) toward this region, we used 12CO J = 3–2 data obtained from the CO High-Resolution Survey, 13CO and C18O J = 3–2 data from the 13CO/C18O (J = 3–2) Heterodyne Inner Milky Way Plane Survey, and 13CO and C18O J = 2–1 data retrieved from the CDS database that were observed with the IRAM 30 m telescope. The distribution of column densities and X13∕18 throughout the extension of the analyzed molecular cloud was studied based on local thermal equilibrium (LTE) and non-LTE methods. Results. Values of X13∕18 between 1.5 and 10.5, with an average of about 5, were found throughout the studied region, showing that in addition to the dependency of X13∕18 and the galactocentric distance, the local physical conditions may strongly affect this abundance ratio. We found that correlating the X13∕18 map with the location of the ionized gas and dark clouds allows us to suggest in which regions the far-UV radiation stalls in dense gaseous components, and in which regions it escapes and selectively photodissociates the C18O isotope. The non-LTE analysis shows that the molecular gas has very different physical conditions, not only spatially throughout the cloud, but also along the line of sight. This type of study may represent a tool for indirectly estimating (from molecular line observations) the degree of photodissociation in molecular clouds, which is indeed useful to study the chemistry in the interstellar medium.

scholarly journals Observations of Interstellar CH at 9 cm Wavelength

1976 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 211 ◽  
Author(s):  
FF Gardner ◽  
BJ Robinson ◽  
MW Sinclair
Keyword(s):  
Transition Temperature ◽  
Ground State ◽  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
Hii Regions ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Galactic Sources

The 9 cm ground-state lines of CH have been observed in southern galactic sources, mainly HII regions. The F = 0-1 transition at 3264 MHz has been detected in emission in 16 sources; the F = 1-1 transition at 3335 MHz has been seen in absorption in 5 sources and in emission in 2 others. Where the F = 1-1 transition is in absorption the transition temperature is positive and below about 100 K. The F = 0-1 transition is generally inverted, with a transition temperature between -10 and 0 K. The column densities of CH are in the vicinity of lO'4 cm-2, slightly below those for OH but many times those for H2CO. There is no correlation between apparent optical depths of CH and those for OH or H2CO absorption. There is also no enhancement of CH in the dense molecular clouds near the centre of the Galaxy.

scholarly journals The relative orientation between the magnetic field and gas density structures in non-gravitating turbulent media

2020 ◽  
Vol 499 (4) ◽  
pp. 4785-4792
Author(s):  
Bastian Körtgen ◽  
Juan D Soler
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
Relative Orientation ◽  
Local Magnetic Field ◽  
Gas Formation ◽  
Initial Magnetization ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Dynamical Time ◽  
Isothermal Gas ◽  
The Magnetic Field

ABSTRACT Magnetic fields are a dynamically important agent for regulating structure formation in the interstellar medium. The study of the relative orientation between the local magnetic field and gas (column-) density gradient has become a powerful tool to analyse the magnetic field’s impact on the dense gas formation in the Galaxy. In this study, we perform numerical simulations of a non-gravitating, isothermal gas, where the turbulence is driven either solenoidally or compressively. We find that only simulations with an initially strong magnetic field (plasma-β < 1) show a change in the preferential orientation between the magnetic field and isodensity contours, from mostly parallel at low densities to mostly perpendicular at higher densities. Hence, compressive turbulence alone is not capable of inducing the transition observed towards nearby molecular clouds. At the same high initial magnetization, we find that solenoidal modes produce a sharper transition in the relative orientation with increasing density than compressive modes. We further study the time evolution of the relative orientation and find that it remains unchanged by the turbulent forcing after one dynamical time-scale.

Molecular Clouds in the Galaxy

The Galaxy ◽  
1987 ◽  
pp. 105-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. M. Solomon ◽  
A. R. Rivolo
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
The Galaxy

scholarly journals Molecular Clouds and Star Formation at Large R

1991 ◽  
Vol 144 ◽  
pp. 121-130
Author(s):  
J. Brand ◽  
J.G.A. Wouterloot
Keyword(s):  
Star Formation ◽  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
Density Wave ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Volume Density ◽  
Kinetic Temperature ◽  
Galactocentric Distance ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Cosmic Ray Flux

In the outer Galaxy (defined here as those parts of our system with galactocentric radii R>R0) the HI gas density (Wouterloot et al., 1990), the cosmic ray flux (Bloemen et al, 1984) and the metallicity (Shaver et al., 1983) are lower than in the inner parts. Also, the effect of a spiral density wave is much reduced in the outer parts of the Galaxy due to corotation. This changing environment might be expected to have its influence on the formation of molecular clouds and on star formation within them. In fact, some differences with respect to the inner Galaxy have been found: the ratio of HI to H2 surface density is increasing from about 5 near the Sun to about 100 at R≈20kpc (Wouterloot et al., 1990). Because of the “flaring” of the gaseous disk, the scale height of both the atomic and the molecular gas increases by about a factor of 3 between R0 and 2R0 (Wouterloot et al., 1990), so the mean volume density of both constituents decreases even more rapidly than their surface densities. The size of HII regions decreases significantly with increasing galactocentric distance (Fich and Blitz, 1984), probably due to the fact that outer Galaxy clouds are less massive (see section 3.3), and therefore form fewer O-type stars than their inner Galaxy counter parts. There are indications that the cloud kinetic temperature is lower by a few degrees (Mead and Kutner, 1988), although it is not clear to what extent this is caused by beam dilution.

scholarly journals Measurements of Isotopic Abundances in Interstellar Clouds

1980 ◽  
Vol 87 ◽  
pp. 397-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arno A. Penzias
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
General Framework ◽  
Galactic Center ◽  
Galactic Plane ◽  
Giant Molecular Clouds ◽  
Interstellar Clouds ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Isotopic Abundances ◽  
Si Isotopes

While an examination of the available data reveals some seemingly contradictory results, a general framework having the following outlines can be put forward:1. With the exception of the two galactic center sources SgrA and SgrB, the relative isotopic abundances exhibited by the giant molecular clouds in our Galaxy exhibit few, if any, significant variations from the values obtained by averaging the data from all these sources.2. The 13C/12C and 14N/15N abundance ratios are ∼130% and ∼150%, respectively, of their terrestrial values throughout the galactic plane and somewhat higher, ∼300%, near the galactic center.3. The 16O/18O and 17O/18O abundance ratios are ∼130% and ∼160%, respectively, of their terrestrial values throughout the Galaxy, although the former may be somewhat lower near the galactic center.4. The S and Si isotopes have generally terrestrial abundances.

The Magellanic Clouds at Millimetre Wavelengths: A Brief Overview

1996 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-188
Author(s):  
Lister Staveley-Smith
Keyword(s):  
Star Formation ◽  
Molecular Clouds ◽  
Magellanic Clouds ◽  
Low Frequencies ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Compact Array

There are several excellent reasons for studying the Magellanic Clouds at millimetre wavelengths with a telescope such as the AT Mopra antenna:• The Magellanic Clouds are the nearest young, gas-rich galaxies to the Galaxy. They are therefore ideal places to study the processes which lead to star formation, and for comparing these processes with Galactic processes.• The distances of the Clouds are well established at close to 50 kpc for the LMC and 60 kpc for the SMC.• The Mopra beam at 2·6 mm (CO) corresponds to ~10 pc, which is comparable with the size of molecular clouds and complexes in the LMC and SMC (e.g. Rubio et al. 1993). The Mopra beam is also complementary to that obtainable at low frequencies with the AT Compact Array for continuum and HI studies (e.g. the 750 m configuration at 21 cm will give a resolution of ~12pc).

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