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Register a new userHCN hyperfine ratio analysis of massive molecular clumps
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We report a new analysis protocol for HCN hyperfine data, based on the PYSPECKIT package, and results of using this new protocol to analyse a sample area of seven massive molecular clumps from the Census of High- and Medium-mass Protostars (CHaMP) survey, in order to derive maps of column density for this species. There is a strong correlation between the HCN integrated intensity, IHCN, and previously reported IHCO+ in the clumps, but IN2H+ is not well correlated with either of these other two dense gas tracers. The four fitted parameters from PYSPECKIT in this region fall in the range of VLSR = 8-10 km/s, {sigma} V = 1.2-2.2 km/s, Tex = 4-15 K, and {tau} = 0.2-2.5. These parameters allow us to derive a column density map of these clouds, without limiting assumptions about the excitation or opacity. A more traditional (linear) method of converting IHCN to total mass column gives much lower clump masses than our results based on the hyperfine analysis. This is primarily due to areas in the sample region of low I, low Tex, and high {tau} . We conclude that there may be more dense gas in these massive clumps not engaged in massive star formation than previously recognized. If this result holds for other clouds in the CHaMP sample, it would have dramatic consequences for the calibration of the Kennicutt-Schmidt star formation laws, including a large increase in the gas depletion time-scale in such regions.
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Context. The gas kinetic temperature (TK) determines the physical and chemical evolution of the Interestellar Medium (ISM). However, obtaining reliable TK estimates usually requires expensive observations including the combination of multi-line analysis and dedicated radiative transfer calculations. Aims. This work explores the use of HCN and HNC observations, and particularly its I(HCN)/I(HNC) intensity ratio of their J=1-0 lines, as direct probe of the gas kinetic temperature in the molecular ISM. Methods. We obtained a new set of large-scale observations of both HCN and HNC (1-0) lines along the Integral Shape Filament (ISF) in Orion. In combination with ancillary gas and dust temperature measurements, we find a systematic temperature dependence of the observed I(HCN)/I(HNC) intensity ratio across our maps. Additional comparisons with chemical models demonstrate that these observed I(HCN)/I(HNC) variations are driven by the effective destruction and isomerization mechanisms of HNC under low energy barriers. Results. The observed variations of I(HCN)/I(HNC) with TK can be described with a two-part linear function. This empirical calibration is then used to create a temperature map of the entire ISF. Comparisons with similar dust temperature measurements in this cloud, as well as in other regions and galactic surveys, validate this simple technique to obtain direct estimates of the gas kinetic temperature in a wide range of physical conditions and scales with an optimal working range between 15 K and 40 K. Conclusions. Both observations and models demonstrate the strong sensitivity of the I(HCN)/I(HNC) ratio to the gas kinetic temperature. Since these lines are easily obtained in observations of local and extragalactic sources, our results highlight the potential use of this observable as new chemical thermometer for the ISM.
Molecules with hyperfine splitting of their rotational line spectra are useful probes of optical depth, via the relative line strengths of their hyperfine components.The hyperfine splitting is particularly advantageous in interpreting the physical conditions of the emitting gas because with a second rotational transition, both gas density and temperature can be derived. For HCN however, the relative strengths of the hyperfine lines are anomalous. They appear in ratios which can vary significantly from source to source, and are inconsistent with local thermodynamic equilibrium. This is the HCN hyperfine anomaly, and it prevents the use of simple LTE models of HCN emission to derive reliable optical depths. In this paper we demonstrate how to model HCN hyperfine line emission, and derive accurate line ratios, spectral line shapes and optical depths. We show that by carrying out radiative transfer calculations over each hyperfine level individually, as opposed to summing them over each rotational level, the anomalous hyperfine emission emerges naturally. To do this requires not only accurate radiative rates between hyperfine states, but also accurate collisional rates. We investigate the effects of different sets of hyperfine collisional rates, derived via the proportional method and through direct recoupling calculations. Through an extensive parameter sweep over typical low mass star forming conditions, we show the HCN line ratios to be highly variable to optical depth. We also reproduce an observed effect whereby the red-blue asymmetry of the hyperfine lines (an infall signature) switches sense within a single rotational transition.
For a general understanding of the physics involved in the star formation process, measurements of physical parameters such as temperature and density are indispensable. The chemical and physical properties of dense clumps of molecular clouds are strongly affected by the kinetic temperature. Therefore, this parameter is essential for a better understanding of the interstellar medium. Formaldehyde, a molecule which traces the entire dense molecular gas, appears to be the most reliable tracer to directly measure the gas kinetic temperature.We aim to determine the kinetic temperature with spectral lines from formaldehyde and to compare the results with those obtained from ammonia lines for a large number of massive clumps.Three 218 GHz transitions (JKAKC=303-202, 322-221, and 321-220) of para-H2CO were observed with the 15m James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) toward 30 massive clumps of the Galactic disk at various stages of high-mass star formation. Using the RADEX non-LTE model, we derive the gas kinetic temperature modeling the measured para-H2CO 322-221/303-202and 321-220/303-202 ratios. The gas kinetic temperatures derived from the para-H2CO (321-220/303-202) line ratios range from 30 to 61 K with an average of 46 K. A comparison of kinetic temperature derived from para-H2CO, NH3, and the dust emission indicates that in many cases para-H2CO traces a similar kinetic temperature to the NH3 (2,2)/(1,1) transitions and the dust associated with the HII regions. Distinctly higher temperatures are probed by para-H2CO in the clumps associated with outflows/shocks. Kinetic temperatures obtained from para-H2CO trace turbulence to a higher degree than NH3 (2,2)/(1,1) in the massive clumps. The non-thermal velocity dispersions of para-H2CO lines are positively correlated with the gas kinetic temperature. The massive clumps are significantly influenced by supersonic non-thermal motions.
We have conducted a search for ionized gas at 3.6 cm, using the Very Large Array, towards 31 Galactic intermediate- and high-mass clumps detected in previous millimeter continuum observations. In the 10 observed fields, 35 HII regions are identified, of which 20 are newly discovered. Many of the HII regions are multiply peaked indicating the presence of a cluster of massive stars. We find that the ionized gas tends to be associated towards the millimeter clumps; of the 31 millimeter clumps observed, 9 of these appear to be physically related to ionized gas, and a further 6 have ionized gas emission within 1. For clumps with associated ionized gas, the combined mass of the ionizing massive stars is compared to the clump masses to provide an estimate of the instantaneous star formation efficiency. These values range from a few percent to 25%, and have an average of 7 +/- 8%. We also find a correlation between the clump mass and the mass of the ionizing massive stars within it, which is consistent with a power law. This result is comparable to the prediction of star formation by competitive accretion that a power law relationship exists between the mass of the most massive star in a cluster and the total mass of the remaining stars.
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