English

Tracing expansion-driven star formation in the Perseus molecular cloud using young stellar objects

Solar and Stellar Astrophysics 2026-08-05 v1

Abstract

ContextContext. Recent studies have linked star formation in the solar neighbourhood to the expansion of the Local Bubble. The Per-Tau Shell (PTS), a vast 3D dust structure hosting the Perseus and Taurus clouds on its surface, is a candidate for such triggered formation. AimsAims. We aim to reconstruct the star formation history of the Perseus molecular cloud and investigate its potential link to the historical expansion of the PTS. MethodsMethods. We performed a 6D phase-space analysis of 406 young stellar objects (YSOs) of Perseus. Our approach integrates Gaia DR3 kinematics with Bayesian age inference and a heteroscedastic likelihood framework to resolve radial gradients in YSO ages and intrinsic tangential velocity dispersions relative to the PTS centre. We constructed a unified catalogue by integrating existing infrared-based classifications to examine the projected spatial segregation of different evolutionary stages and compared stellar 3D kinematics with 12^{12}CO and 13^{13}CO gas velocity fields to assess kinematic coherence. ResultsResults. The YSOs exhibit coherent outward motions relative to the centre of the PTS, a negative age-distance gradient with younger populations at larger radii, and a radial decline in tangential velocity dispersions. Younger YSO classes also show a stronger directional concentration towards the PTS centre. Both the coherent proper motions and the line-of-sight velocity gradients of these YSOs align with the gas velocity field, indicating large-scale kinematic coherence. ConclusionsConclusions. The Perseus YSOs exhibit concordant kinematic and temporal signatures consistent with an expansion-driven origin. These results provide robust evidence for a layered, inside-out pattern of star formation, suggesting that the historical expansion of the PTS triggered a sequential progression of star birth and effectively shaped the star formation history of the Perseus complex.

Cite

@article{arxiv.2608.04984,
  title  = {Tracing expansion-driven star formation in the Perseus molecular cloud using young stellar objects},
  author = {Chen-Rui Gu and Zhi-Kai Zhu and Zu-Jia Lu and Min Fang and Longhui Yang and Cheng-Yang He},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2608.04984},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

14 pages, 12 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics