Related papers: Cloud and Star Formation in Spiral Arms
Studying star formation in spiral arms tells us not only about the evolution of star formation, and molecular clouds, but can also tell us about the nature of spiral structure in galaxies. I will address both these topics using the results…
All stars are born in molecular clouds, and most in giant molecular clouds (GMCs), which thus set the star formation activity of galaxies. We first review their observed properties, including measures of mass surface density, Sigma, and…
We investigate the formation and evolution of giant molecular clouds (GMCs) in a Milky-Way-like disk galaxy with a flat rotation curve. We perform a series of 3D adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) numerical simulations that follow both the…
We present numerical simulations of the passage of clumpy gas through a galactic spiral shock, the subsequent formation of giant molecular clouds (GMCs) and the triggering of star formation. The spiral shock forms dense clouds while…
The origin and types of spiral arms are reviewed with an emphasis on the connections between these arms and star formation. Flocculent spiral arms are most likely the result of transient instabilities in the gas that promote dense cloud…
We present ongoing hydrodynamic and MHD simulations of molecular cloud formation in spiral galaxies. The hydrodynamic results show the formation of molecular gas clouds where spiral shocks compress atomic gas to high densities. The spiral…
We investigate the formation of GMCs in spiral galaxies through both agglomeration of clouds in the spiral arms, and self gravity. The simulations presented include two-fluid models, which contain both cold and warm gas, although there is…
It remains unclear how galactic environment affects star formation and stellar cluster properties. This is difficult to address in Milky Way-mass galaxy simulations because of limited resolution and less accurate feedback compared to…
We investigate cloud-cloud collisions, and GMC evolution, in hydrodynamic simulations of isolated galaxies. The simulations include heating and cooling of the ISM, self--gravity and stellar feedback. Over timescales $<5$ Myr most clouds…
By resimulating a region of a global disc simulation at higher resolution, we resolve and study the properties of molecular clouds with a range of masses from a few 100's M$_{\odot}$ to $10^6$ M$_{\odot}$. The purpose of our paper is…
The formation and evolution of giant molecular clouds (GMCs) in spiral galaxies have been investigated in the traditional framework of the combined quasi-stationary density wave and galactic shock model. However, our understanding of the…
We present the results of a study of simulated Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs) formed in a Milky Way-type galactic disk with a flat rotation curve. This simulation, which does not include star formation or feedback, produces clouds with…
Stellar feedback, star formation and gravitational interactions are major controlling forces in the evolution of Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs). To explore their relative roles, we examine the properties and evolution of GMCs forming in an…
The nature of galactic spiral arms in disc galaxies remains elusive. Regardless of the spiral model, arms are expected to play a role in sculpting the star-forming interstellar medium. As such, different arm models may result in differences…
Star formation is enhanced in spiral arms because of a combination of orbit crowding, cloud collisions, and gravitational instabilities. The characteristic mass for the instability is 10^7 Msun in gas and 10^5 Msun in stars, and the…
Using 3D hydrodynamic calculations we simulate formation of molecular clouds in the Galaxy. The simulations take into account molecular hydrogen chemical kinetics, cooling and heating processes. Comprehensive gravitational potential…
We present a large suite of MHD simulations of turbulent, star-forming giant molecular clouds(GMCs) with stellar feedback, extending previous work by simulating 10 different random realizations for each point in the parameter space of cloud…
In this Letter, we analyse the distributions of stellar ages in Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs) in spiral arms, inter-arm spurs, and at large galactic radii, where the spiral arms are relatively weak. We use the results of numerical…
Using hydrodynamical simulations of entire galactic discs similar to the Milky Way, reaching 4.6pc resolution, we study the origins of observed physical properties of giant molecular clouds (GMCs). We find that efficient stellar feedback is…
We perform calculations of isolated disc galaxies to investigate how the properties of the ISM, the nature of molecular clouds, and the global star formation rate depend on the level of stellar feedback. We adopt a simple physical model,…