Related papers: Hierarchical Cluster Assembly in Globally Collapsi…
It has recently been suggested that high-density clusters have stellar age distributions narrower than that of the Orion Nebula Cluster, indicating a possible trend of narrower age distributions for denser clusters. We show this effect to…
We review the progress that has been made in observing and analyzing molecular cloud structure in recent years. Structures are self-similar over a wide range of scales with similar power law indices independent of the star forming nature of…
We analytically investigate the modes of gravity-induced star formation possible in idealized finite molecular clouds where global collapse competes against both local Jeans instabilities and discontinuous edge instabilities. We examine…
HST is very well tailored for observations of extragalactic star clusters. One obvious reason is HST's high spatial resolution, but equally important is the wavelength range offered by the instruments on board HST, in particular the blue…
Recent observations and hydrodynamical simulations of star formation inside a giant molecular cloud have revealed that, within a star forming region, stars do not form evenly distributed throughout this region, but rather in small…
Filamentary structures are ubiquitously seen in the interstellar medium. The concentrated molecular mass in the filaments allows fragmentation to occur in a shorter timescale than the timescale of the global collapse. Such hierarchical…
There is growing evidence that high-mass star formation and hub-filament systems (HFS) are intricately linked. The gas kinematics along the filaments and the forming high-mass star(s) in the central hub are in excellent agreement with the…
Massive star-forming regions (MSFRs) are commonly associated with hub-filament systems (HFSs) and sites of cloud-cloud collision (CCC). Recent observational studies of some MSFRs suggest a possible connection between CCC and the formation…
Collisions between giant molecular clouds (GMCs) are one of the pathways for massive star formation, due to the high densities created. However the enhancement of the star formation rate (SFR) is not well constrained. In this study we…
An overview of our current understanding of the formation and evolution of star clusters is given, with main emphasis on high-mass clusters. Clusters form deeply embedded within dense clouds of molecular gas. Left-over gas is cleared within…
Clusters of galaxies usually contain rich populations of globular clusters (GCs). We investigate how different star formation histories (SFHs) shape the final mass distribution of star clusters. We assume that every star cluster population…
The isothermal gravitational collapse and fragmentation of a molecular cloud region and the subsequent formation of a protostellar cluster is investigated numerically. The clump mass spectrum which forms during the fragmentation phase can…
Stars generally form faster than the ambipolar diffusion time, suggesting that several processes short circuit the delay and promote a rapid collapse. These processes are considered here, including turbulence compression in the outer parts…
Essentially all stars form in giant molecular clouds (GMCs). However, inside GMCs, most of the gas does not participate in star formation; rather, denser gas accumulates in clumps in the GMC, with the bulk of the stars in a given GMC…
In young star clusters, the density can be high enough and the velocity dispersion low enough for stars to collide and merge with a significant probability. This has been suggested as a possible way to build up the high-mass portion of the…
Studies of evolved massive stars indicate that they form in a clustered mode. During the earliest evolutionary stages, these regions are embedded within their natal cores. Here, we show high-spatial-resolution interferometric dust continuum…
We present the results of SPH simulations in which two clouds, each having mass $M_{_{\rm{o}}}\!=\!500\,{\rm M}_{_\odot}$ and radius $R_{_{\rm{o}}}\!=\!2\,{\rm pc}$, collide head-on at relative velocities of $\Delta v_{_{\rm{o}}}…
The projected distribution of stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) from the Magellanic Clouds Photometric Survey is analysed. Stars of different ages are selected via criteria based on V magnitude and V-I colour, and the degree of…
G22 is a hub-filament system composed of four supercritical filaments. Velocity gradients are detected along three filaments. A total mass infall rate of 440 $M_\odot$~Myr$^{-1}$ would double the hub mass in about six free-fall times. The…
A brief review is given of the basic observed features of the stellar IMF, and also of some of the theoretical ideas and simulations that may help to explain these features. The characteristic stellar mass of order one solar mass may derive…