China News Service, Beijing, April 10 (Reporter Sun Zifa) A reporter learned from the National Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences on the 10th that researchers such as Dr. Xu Jinlong used the 13.7-meter millimeter-wave telescope of the Purple Mountain Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the "Chinese Eye" of the National Observatory— —The observation data of the 500-meter-diameter spherical radio telescope (FAST), combined with public data from other bands, the research revealed that the first deep-buried star cluster in the California (California) macromolecular cloud was dismembered after being hit by another macromolecular cloud.
Research by Chinese astronomers revealed that the first deep-buried cluster in California's macromolecular cloud was dismembered after being hit by another macromolecular cloud. Photo courtesy of the National Observatory
Xu Jinlong said that the vast majority of stars in the universe are formed in clusters, and star clusters are formed in giant molecular clouds. After the parent molecular cloud disperses, what remains is the star cluster visible in the optical band. Stars in early clusters are very similar in age, and they formed almost at the same time, which requires a large amount of gas to accumulate rapidly in the cluster formation location.
The traditional model of astronomy says that the contraction of the giant molecular cloud under its own gravity may be the only reason for the formation of the cluster, but what exactly triggers the formation of the cluster? Especially in large-scale giant molecular clouds, more than one cluster can be formed, so how did the first cluster form? The formation of the first star cluster will be like the fire of a star that triggers the formation of other stars and star clusters in the entire macromolecular cloud. These are all scientific topics that have attracted much attention in the astronomy community.
Xu Jinlong said that California ’s macromolecular cloud is the largest mass of macromolecular cloud in the range of 500pc (seconds gap, a unit of astronomy, a distance of about 3.26 light-years) from the solar system. It is the same as Orion A (Orion A). The macromolecular cloud has a similar shape and scale, but the California macromolecular cloud currently has only one cluster (LkHα101) and several B-type massive stars, and these B-type massive stars are also located in the cluster.
The research team used the observation data of the 13.7-meter millimeter-wave telescope at the Purple Mountain Observatory to observe the carbon monoxide (CO) molecular line of the cluster and found a new fibrous giant molecular cloud interacting with the California giant molecular cloud. It happens to be at the intersection of two giant molecular clouds.
At the same time, the research team used FAST to observe the radioactive hydrogen (H) and carbon (C) composite lines in the ionized hydrogen region in association with the star cluster, and excluded the star cluster only in the visual direction and the intersection position by the speed of the detected composite line system. The possibility of overlapping directly confirms that the first deep-buried cluster in the California giant molecular cloud was dismembered after being hit by another giant molecular cloud. The research team inferred from this that the "fire" that formed the first cluster in the giant molecular cloud may have been caused by the impact of foreign gas.
Xu Jinlong pointed out that this latest research result will be a reference for the study of the origin of star clusters in the universe. Astronomy has entered an era of multi-band coordinated "combat". Often, the completion of a scientific goal requires multiple messengers to jointly realize. This research is mainly done in conjunction with China's domestic astronomical telescopes, which also reflects the cooperation of Chinese astronomical observation equipment. " "Combat" capability. The research team will follow up with more astronomical telescope equipment in the United Nations to continue to explore the physical and chemical dynamic structure of the interstellar medium and the formation mechanism of star clusters and stars. (Finish)