Related papers: Star formation rates and efficiencies in the Galac…
We have derived the star formation history of the Milky Way disk over the last 2 Gyr from the age distribution diagram of a large sample of open clusters comprising more than 580 objects. By interpreting the age distribution diagram using…
In the local Universe, the efficiency for converting baryonic gas into stars is very low. In dark matter halos where galaxies form and evolve, the average efficiency varies with galaxy stellar mass and has a maximum of about twenty percent…
We develop a simple dynamical model for the evolution of gas in the centres of barred spiral galaxies, using the Milky Way's Central Molecular Zone (CMZ, i.e., the central few hundred pc) as a case study. We show that, in the presence of a…
Massive stars form in clusters within self-gravitating molecular clouds. The size scale of these clusters is sufficiently large that non-thermal, or turbulent, motions of the gas must be taken into account when considering their formation.…
The physical conditions in molecular clouds control the nature and rate of star formation, with consequences for planet formation and galaxy evolution. The focus of this review is on the conditions that characterize regions of star…
Star complexes are the largest globular regions of star formation in galaxies. If there is a spiral density wave, nuclear ring, tidal arm, or other well-defined stellar structure, then gravitational instabilities in the gaseous component…
Star formation lies at the center of a web of processes that drive cosmic evolution: generation of radiant energy, synthesis of elements, formation of planets, and development of life. Decades of observations have yielded a variety of…
Submillimeter bright galaxies in the early Universe are vigorously forming stars at ~1000 times higher rate than the Milky Way. A large fraction of stars is formed in the central 1 kiloparsec region, that is comparable in size to massive,…
We study the relation between the surface density of gas and star formation rate in twenty moderately-inclined, bulgeless disk galaxies (Sd-Sdm Hubble types) using CO(1-0) data from the IRAM 30m telescope, HI emission line data from the…
Several emerging links between high-redshift observational cosmology and the Galactic fossil evidence found in the kinematics, metallicities and ages of Milky Way stars are discussed. In a flat Cold Dark Matter model with $\Omega\simeq 0.3$…
We reassess the applicability of the Toomre criterion in galactic disks and we study the local star formation law in 16 disk galaxies for which abundance gradients are published. The data we use consists of stellar light profiles, atomic…
Stars form from the gravitational collapse of dense molecular cloud cores. In the protostellar phase, mass accretes from the core onto a protostar, likely through an accretion disk, and it is during this phase that the initial masses of…
Recent observations have revealed a variety of young star clusters, including embedded systems, young massive clusters, and associations. We study the formation and dynamical evolution of these clusters using a combination of simulations…
I briefly review recent observations of regions forming low mass stars. The discussion is cast in the form of seven questions that have been partially answered, or at least illuminated, by new data. These are the following: where do stars…
The realization that most stars form in clusters, raises the question of whether star/planet formation are influenced by the cluster environment. The stellar density in the most prevalent clusters is the key factor here. Whether dominant…
We investigate the evolution of the cosmic star formation rate density (SFRD) from redshift z=20 to z=0 and compare it with the observational one by Madau and Dickinson derived from recent compilations of UV and IR data. The theoretical…
We present a general star formation law where star formation rate depends upon efficiency $\alpha$, timescale $\tau$ of star formation, gas component $\sigma_{g}$ of surface mass density and a real exponent $n$. A given exponent $n$…
We study gravitational instability and consequent star formation in a wide range of isolated disk galaxies, using three-dimensional, smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations at resolution sufficient to fully resolve gravitational…
The fractal structure of star formation on large scales in disk galaxies is studied using the size distribution function of stellar aggregates in kpc-scale star fields. Achival HST images of 10 galaxies are Gaussian smoothed to define the…
We use 3035 Herschel-SPIRE 500$\mu$m sources from 20.3 sq deg of sky in the HerMES Lockman, ES1 and XMM-LSS areas to estimate the star-formation rate density at z = 1-6. 500 mu sources are associated first with 350 and 250 mu sources, and…