Related papers: The molecular cloud lifecycle
Molecular cloud structure is regulated by stellar feedback in various forms. Two of the most important feedback processes are UV photoionisation and supernovae from massive stars. However, the precise response of the cloud to these…
Recent observations have found that the age distribution of star clusters (SCs) in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) shows a sharp peak around 2 Gyr ago. However, it is theoretically unclear what physical processes are responsible for such…
Stars form by gravoturbulent fragmentation of interstellar gas clouds. The supersonic turbulence ubiquitously observed in Galactic molecular gas generates strong density fluctuations with gravity taking over in the densest and most massive…
A star formation efficiency per free fall time that evolves over the life time of giant molecular clouds (GMCs) may have important implications for models of supersonic turbulence in molecular clouds or for the relation between star…
We introduce a model for the large-scale, global 3D structure of molecular clouds. Motivated by the morphological appearance of clouds in surface density maps, we model clouds as cylinders, with the aim of backing out information about the…
It has been known for more than 30 years that star formation in giant molecular clouds (GMCs) is slow, in the sense that only ~1% of the gas forms stars every free-fall time. This result is entirely independent of any particular model of…
We present the first comparative study of extragalactic GMCs using complete data sets for entire galaxies and a uniform set of reduction and analysis techniques. We present results based on CO observations for the LMC, SMC, M33, M31, IC10…
Star clusters stand at the intersection of much of modern astrophysics: the interstellar medium, gravitational dynamics, stellar evolution, and cosmology. Here we review observations and theoretical models for the formation, evolution, and…
Observations find a median star formation efficiency per free-fall time in Milky Way Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs) on the order of $\epsilon_{\rm ff}\sim 1\%$ with dispersions of $\sim0.5\,{\rm dex}$. The origin of this scatter in…
We present simulations of the evolution of self-gravitating dense gas on kiloparsec-size scales in a galactic disk, designed to study dense clump formation from giant molecular clouds (GMCs). These dense clumps are expected to be the…
We review the formation and early evolution of the most massive and dense young stellar clusters, focusing on the role they can play in our understanding of star and planet formation as a whole. Young massive cluster (YMC) progenitor clouds…
We present maps of 4 galactic giant molecular clouds (GMCs) in the J=2-1 emission of both CO and $^{13}$CO. We use an LTE analysis to derive maps of the CO excitation temperature and column density and the distribution of total molecular…
Young massive clusters (YMCs) are the most compact, high-mass stellar systems still forming at the present day. The precursor clouds to such systems are, however, rare due to their large initial gas mass reservoirs and rapid dispersal…
We perform a high resolution zoom-in simulation of star cluster assembly including the merger of two sub-clusters with initial conditions taken from previous large scale giant molecular cloud (GMC) simulations. We couple hydrodynamics to…
We revisit the hypothesis that dense galactic nuclei are formed from inspiraling globular clusters. Recent advances in understanding of the continuous formation of globular clusters over cosmic time and the concurrent evolution of the…
In a new simple model I reconcile two contradictory views on the factors that determine the rate at which molecular clouds form stars -- internal structure vs. external, environmental influences -- providing a unified picture for the…
It is well known that the energy input from massive stars dominates the thermal and mechanical heating of typical regions in the interstellar medium of galaxies. These effects are amplified tremendously in the immediate environment of young…
The strong time-dependence of the dynamics of galactic bars yields a complex and rapidly evolving distribution of dense gas and star forming regions. Although bars mainly host regions void of any star formation activity, their extremities…
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…
We numerically investigate dynamical and chemical properties of star clusters (open and globular clusters, and ``super star clusters'', SSC) formed in interacting/merging galaxies. The investigation is two-fold: (1) large-scale…