arXiv subjects

D. K. Ojha

Publications and source records attributed to D. K. Ojha.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

arXiv2011

Star formation in bright-rimmed clouds and cluster associated with W5 E H{\sc ii} region

The aim of this paper is to present the results of photometric investigations of the central cluster of the W5 E region as well as a follow-up study of the triggered star formation in and around bright-rimmed clouds (BRCs). We have carried out wide field $UBVI_c$ and deep $VI_c$ photometry of the W5 E H{\sc ii} region. A distance of $\sim$2.1 kpc and a mean age of $\sim$1.3 Myr have been obtained for the central cluster. The young stellar objects (YSOs) associated with the region are identified on the basis of near-infrared and mid-infrared observations. We confirmed our earlier results that the average age of the YSOs lying on/inside the rim are younger than those lying outside the rim. The global distribution of the YSOs shows an aligned distribution from the ionising source to the BRCs. These facts indicate that a series of radiation driven implosion processes proceeded from near the central ionising source towards the periphery of the W5 E H{\sc ii} region. We found that, in general, the age distributions of the Class II and Class III sources are the same. This result is apparently in contradiction with the conclusion by Bertout, Siess & Cabrit (2007) and Chauhan et al. (2009) that classical T Tauri stars evolve to weak-line T Tauri stars. The initial mass function of the central cluster region in the mass range $0.4 \le M/M_\odot \le 30$ can be represented by $Γ= -1.29 \pm 0.03$. The cumulative mass functions indicate that in the mass range $0.2 \le M/M_\odot \le 0.8$, the cluster region and BRC NW have more low mass YSOs in comparison to BRCs 13 and 14.

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arXiv2010

A multi-wavelength census of stellar contents in the young cluster NGC 1624

We present a comprehensive multi-wavelength analysis of the young cluster NGC 1624 associated with the H II region Sh2-212 using optical UBVRI photometry, optical spectroscopy and GMRT radio continuum mapping along with the near-infrared (NIR) JHK archival data. Reddening E(B-V) and distance to the cluster are estimated to be 0.76 - 1.00 mag and 6.0 +/- 0.8 kpc, respectively. Present analysis yields a spectral class of O6.5V for the main ionizing source of the region. The distribution of YSOs in (J-H)/ (H-K) NIR colour-colour diagram shows that a majority of them have A_V $\le$ 4 mag. Based on the NIR excess characteristics, we identified 120 probable candidate YSOs in this region which yield a disk frequency of ~ 20%. These YSOs are found to have an age spread of ~ 5 Myr with a median age of ~ 2-3 Myr and a mass range of ~ 0.1 - 3.0 $M_\odot$. A significant number of YSOs are located close to the cluster centre and we detect an enhanced density of reddened YSOs located/projected close to the molecular clumps at the periphery of NGC 1624. This indicates that the YSOs located within the cluster core are relatively older in comparison to those located/projected near the clumps. From the radio continuum flux, spectral class of the ionizing source of the ultra-compact H II region at the periphery of Sh2-212 is estimated to be ~ B0.5V. From optical data, slope of the mass function (MF) $Γ$, in the mass range $1.2 \le M/M_{\odot}<27$ can be represented by a single power law with a slope -1.18 +/- 0.10, whereas the NIR data in the mass range $0.65 \le M/M_{\odot}<27$ yields $Γ$ = -1.31 +/- 0.15. The slope of the K-band luminosity function (KLF) for the cluster is found to be 0.30 +/- 0.06 which is in agreement with the values obtained for other young clusters.

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arXiv2010

Multi-wavelength polarimetric study towards the open cluster NGC 1893

We present multi-wavelength linear polarimetric observations for 44 stars of the NGC 1893 young open cluster region along with V-band polarimetric observations of stars of other four open clusters located between l ~160 to ~175 degree. We found evidence for the presence of two dust layers located at a distance of ~170 pc and ~360 pc. The dust layers produce a polarization Pv ~2.2%. It is evident from the clusters studied in the present work that, in the Galactic longitude range l ~160 to 175 degree and within the Galactic plane (|b| < 2 degree), the polarization angles remain almost constant, with a mean ~163 degree and a dispersion of 6 degree. The small dispersion in polarization angle could be due to the presence of uniform dust layer beyond 1 kpc. Present observations reveal that in case of NGC 1893, the foreground two dust layers, in addition to the intracluster medium, seems to be responsible for the polarization effects. It is also found that towards the direction of NGC 1893, the dust layer that exists between 2-3 kpc has a negligible contribution towards the total observed polarization. The weighted mean for percentage of polarization (Pmax) and the wavelength at maximum polarization (λmax) are found to be 2.59 \pm 0.02% and 0.55 \pm 0.01 \mum respectively. The estimated mean value of λmax indicates that the average size of the dust grains within the cluster is similar to that in the general interstellar medium. The spatial variation of the polarization is found to decrease towards the outer region of the cluster. In the present work, we support the notion, as already has been shown in previous studies, that polarimetry, in combination with (U-B)/(B-V) colour-colour diagram, is a useful tool for identifying non-members in a cluster.

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arXiv2010

The sequence of low and high mass star formation in the young stellar cluster IRAS 19343+2026

BVRIJHK photometry, Spitzer-GLIMPSE photometry and HK band spectroscopy were used to study the stellar content of IRAS 19343+2026, a (proto)star/cluster candidate, located close to the Galactic plane. The data suggest that IRAS 19343+2026 is a rich cluster associated with a massive protostar of 7.6 Msol with an age of ~ 10^5 yr. Three point sources in the vicinity of the far-infrared (FIR) peak are also found to be early B type stars. The remaining (predominantly low mass) members of the cluster are best represented by a 1 - 3 Myr pre-main-sequence (PMS) population. HK band spectra of two bright and five faint point sources in the cluster confirm that the results obtained from the photometry are good representations of their young stellar object (YSO) nature. Thus, IRAS 19343+2026 is a young cluster with at least four early B-type stars classified as young (10^4 - 10^5 yr), that are surrounded by a somewhat older (1 - 3 Myr) population of low mass YSOs. Together, these results argue for a scenario in which low mass stars form prior to massive stars in a cluster forming environment. We compute the Initial Mass Function (IMF) for this cluster using the K-band luminosity function; the slope of the IMF is shallower than predicted by the Salpeter's mass function. The cluster mass, Mtot, is estimated to be in the range ~ 307 Msol (from the data completeness limit) - 585 Msol (extrapolated down to the brown dwarf limit, assuming a certain IMF).

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arXiv2010

A multiwavelength study of star formation in the vicinity of Galactic HII region Sh2-100

We present multiwavelength investigation of morphology, physical-environment, stellar contents and star formation activity in the vicinity of star-forming region Sh 2-100. It is found that the Sh 2-100 region contains seven HII regions of ultracompact and compact nature. The present estimation of distance for three HII regions, along with the kinematic distance for others, suggests that all of them belong to the same molecular cloud complex. Using NIR photometry, we identified the most probable ionizing sources of six HII regions. Their approximate photometric spectral type estimates suggest that they are massive early-B to mid-O ZAMS stars and agree well with radio continuum observations at 1280 MHz. The morphology of the complex shows a non-uniform distribution of warm and hot dust, well mixed with the ionized gas, which correlates well with the variation of average visual extinction (~ 4.2 - 97 mag) across the region. We estimated the physical parameters of ionized gas with the help of radio continuum observations. We detected an optically visible compact nebula located to the south of the 850 micron emission associated with one of the HII regions and the diagnostic of the optical emission line ratios gives electron density and electron temperature of ~ 0.67 x 10^3 cm^-3 and ~ 10^4 K, respectively. The physical parameters suggest that all the HII regions are in different stages of evolution, which correlate well with the probable ages in the range ~ 0.01 - 2 Myr of the ionizing sources. The positions of IR excess stars, ultracompact and compact HII regions at the periphery of an HI shell, possibly created by a WR star, indicate that star formation in Sh 2-100 region might have been induced by an expanding HI shell.

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arXiv2010

The IMF of stellar clusters: effects of accretion and feedback

(abridged) We develop a model which describes the coevolution of the mass function of dense cores and of the IMF in a protocluster clump. In the model, cores injected in the clump evolve under the effect of gas accretion. Accretion onto the cores follows a time-dependent accretion rate that describes accretion in a turbulent medium. Once the accretion timescales of cores exceed their contraction timescales, they are turned into stars. We include the effect of feedback by the newly formed massive stars through their stellar winds. A fraction of the wind's energy is assumed to counter gravity and disperse the gas from the protocluster and as a consequence, quench further star formation. The latter effect sets the final IMF of the cluster. We apply our model to a clump that is expected to resemble the progenitor clump of the Orion Nebula Cluster (ONC). Our model is able to reproduce both the shape and normalization of the ONC's IMF and the mass function of dense cores in Orion. The complex features of the ONC's IMF,i.e., a shallow slope in the mass range ~0.3-2.5 Msol,a steeper slope in the mass range ~2.5-12 Msol, and a nearly flat tail at the high mass end are reproduced. The model predicts a 'rapid' star formation process with an age spread for the stars of 2.3 10^5 yr which is consistent with the fact that 80% of the ONC's stars have ages of <=0.3 Myr. The model predicts a primordial mass segregation with the most massive stars being born in the region between 2-4 times the core radius of the cluster. In parallel, the model also reproduces, simultaneously, the mass function of dense cores in Orion. We study the effects of varying the model parameters on the resulting IMF and show that the IMF of stellar clusters is expected to show significant variations, provided variations in the clumps and cores properties exist.

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arXiv2009

Triggered Star Formation and Evolution of T-Tauri stars in and around Bright-Rimmed Clouds

The aim of this paper is to quantitatively testify the "{\it small-scale sequential star formation}" hypothesis in and around bright-rimmed clouds (BRCs). As a continuation of the recent attempt by Ogura et al. (2007, Paper I), we have carried out $BVI_{c}$ photometry of four more BRC aggregates along with deeper re-observations of 2 previously observed BRCs. Again quantitative age gradients are found in almost all the BRCs studied in the present work. Archival Spitzer/IRAC data also support this result. The global distribution of NIR excess stars in each HII region studied here clearly shows evidence that a series of radiation driven implosion (RDI) processes proceeded in the past from near the central O star(s) towards the peripheries of the HII region. We found that in general weak-line T-Tauri stars (WTTSs) are somewhat older than classical T-Tauri stars (CTTSs). Also the fraction of CTTSs among the T-Tauri stars (TTSs) associated with the BRCs is found to decrease with age. These facts are in accordance with the recent conclusion by Bertout et al. (2007) that CTTSs evolve into WTTSs. It seems that in general the EW of H$α$ emission in TTSs associated with the BRCs decreases with age. The mass function (MF) of the aggregates associated with the BRCs of the morphological type "A" seems to follow that found in young open clusters, whereas "B/C" type BRCs show significantly steeper MF.

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arXiv2008

Young Brown Dwarfs in the Core of the W3 Main Star-Forming Region

We present the results of deep and high-resolution (FWHM ~ 0".35) JHK NIR observations with the Subaru telescope, to search for very low mass young stellar objects (YSOs) in the W3 Main star-forming region. The NIR survey covers an area of ~ 2.6 arcmin^2 with 10-sigma limiting magnitude exceeding 20 mag in the JHK bands. The survey is sensitive enough to provide unprecedented details in W3 IRS 5 region and reveals a census of the stellar population down to objects below the hydrogen-burning limit. We construct JHK color-color (CC) and J-H/J and H-K/K color-magnitude (CM) diagrams to identify very low luminosity YSOs and to estimate their masses. Based on these CC and CM diagrams, we identified a rich population of embedded YSO candidates with infrared excesses (Class I and Class II), associated with the W3 Main region. A large number of red sources (H-K > 2) have also been detected around W3 Main. We argue that these red stars are most probably pre-main-sequence (PMS) stars with intrinsic color excesses. Based on the comparison between theoretical evolutionary models of very low-mass PMS objects with the observed CM diagram, we find there exists a substantial substellar population in the observed region. The mass function (MF) does not show the presence of cutoff and sharp turnover around the substellar limit, at least at the hydrogen-burning limit. Furthermore, the MF slope indicates that the number ratio of young brown dwarfs and hydrogen-burning stars in the W3 Main is probably higher than those in Trapezium and IC 348. The presence of mass segregation, in the sense that relatively massive YSOs lie near the cluster center, is seen. The estimated dynamical evolution time indicates that the observed mass segregation in the W3 Main may be the imprint of the star formation process.

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arXiv2008

Near-Infrared Photometry and Radio Continuum Study of the Massive Star Forming Regions IRAS 21413+5442 and IRAS 21407+5441

IRAS 21413+5442 and IRAS 21407+5441 are two massive star forming regions of high luminosity, likely associated with each other. Near-infrared photometry on these two IRAS sources was performed at UKIRT using the UFTI under excellent seeing conditions yielding an angular resolution of $\sim$ 0.5 arcsec. Our results reveal details of stellar content to a completeness limit (90%) of J = 18.5, H = 18.0, and K = 17.5 mag in the two regions. In IRAS 21413+5442, we identify a late O type star, having large (H-K) color, to be near the centre of the CO jets observed by earlier authors. The UKIRT images reveal in IRAS 21407+5441, a faint but clear compact HII region around a central high - intermediate mass star cluster. We have detected a number of sources with large (H-K) color which are not detected in J band. We also present the GMRT radio continuum map at 1.28 GHz covering the entire region surrounding the two star forming clouds. The radio continuum fluxes are used to estimate the properties of HII regions which seem to support our near-IR photometric results. Based on our radio continuum map and the archival MSX 8.2 $μ$m image, we show that the two IRAS sources likely belong to the same parent molecular cloud and conjecture that a high mass star of large IR colors, present in between the two sources, might have triggered star formation in this region. However one can not rule out the alternative possibility that Star A could be a nearby foreground star.

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arXiv2008

Infrared study of the southern Galactic star forming regions associated with IRAS 10049-5657 and IRAS 10031-5632

The physical conditions of the interstellar medium and stellar components in the regions of the southern Galactic star forming complexes associated with IRAS 10049-5657 and IRAS 10031-5632 have been investigated. These regions have been mapped simultaneously in two far infrared bands lambda_eff ~ 150 & 210 micron, with ~ 1' angular resolution using the TIFR 1-m balloon borne telescope. Spatial distribution of the temperature of cool dust and optical depth at 200 micron have been obtained. Using the 2MASS sources, the stellar populations of the embedded young clusters have been studied. A rich cluster of OB stars in the IRAS 10049-5657 region has been found with a cluster radius ~ 2 pc. The source in the cluster closest to the IRAS peak, lies above the ZAMS curve of spectral type O5 in the colour-magnitude diagram. Unlike IRAS 10049-5657, a small cluster comprising of a few deeply embedded sources is seen at the location of IRAS 10031-5632. Self consistent radiative transfer modelling aimed at extracting important physical and geometrical details of the two IRAS sources show that the best fit models are in good agreement with the observed spectral energy distributions. The geometric details of the associated cloud and optical depths (at 100 micron) have been estimated. A uniform density distribution of dust and gas is implied for both the sources. In addition, the infrared ionic fine-structure line emission from gas has been modelled for both these regions and compared with data from IRAS-Low Resolution Spectrometer. For IRAS 10049-5657, the observed and modelled luminosities for most lines agree to within a factor of four while for IRAS 10031-5632, we find a discrepancy of a factor of 100.

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arXiv2007

Stellar contents and star formation in the young open cluster Stock 8

We present $UBVI_c$ CCD photometry of the young open cluster Stock 8 with the aim to study the basic properties and star formation scenario in this region. The radius of the cluster is found to be $\sim 6^{\prime}$ ($\sim 3.6$ pc) and the reddening within the cluster region varies from $E(B-V)=0.40$ to 0.60 mag. The cluster is located at a distance of $2.05 \pm 0.10$ kpc. Using H$α$ slitless spectroscopy and 2MASS NIR data we identified H$α$ emission and NIR excess young stellar objects (YSOs), respectively. The colour-magnitude diagrams of these YSOs reveal that majority of these objects have ages between 1 to 5 Myr indicating a non-coeval star formation in the cluster. Massive stars in the cluster region reveal an average age of $\le$ 2 Myr. In the cluster region ($r \le 6^\prime$) the slope of the mass function (MF), $Γ$, in the mass range $\sim 1.0 \le M/M_\odot < 13.4$ can be represented by a power law having a slope of $-1.38\pm0.12$, which agrees well with Salpeter value (-1.35). In the mass range $0.3 \le M/M_\odot < 1.0$, the MF is also found to follow a power law with a shallower slope of $Γ= -0.58\pm 0.23$ indicating a break in the slope of the IMF at $\sim 1 M_\odot$. The slope of the $K$-band luminosity function for the cluster ($r \le 6^\prime$) is found to be $0.31\pm0.02$, which is smaller than the average value ($\sim$ 0.4) obtained for embedded star clusters. A significant number of YSOs are distributed along a Nebulous Stream towards the east side of the cluster. A small cluster is embedded in the Nebulous Stream. The YSOs lying in the Nebulous Stream and in the embedded cluster are found to be younger than the stars in the cluster Stock 8. It appears that star formation activity in the Nebulous Stream and embedded cluster may be independent from that of Stock 8.

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arXiv2007

Stellar contents and star formation in the young star cluster Be 59

We present $UBVI_C$ CCD photometry of the young open cluster Be 59 with the aim to study the star formation scenario in the cluster. The radial extent of the cluster is found to be $\sim$ 10 arcmin (2.9 pc). The interstellar extinction in the cluster region varies between $E(B-V) \simeq$ 1.4 to 1.8 mag. The ratio of total-to-selective extinction in the cluster region is estimated as $3.7\pm0.3$. The distance of the cluster is found to be $1.00\pm0.05$ kpc. Using near-infrared colours and slitless spectroscopy, we have identified young stellar objects (YSOs) in the open cluster Be 59 region. The ages of these YSOs range between $<1$ Myr to $\sim$ 2 Myr, whereas the mean age of the massive stars in the cluster region is found to be $\sim$ 2 Myr. There is evidence for second generation star formation outside the boundary of the cluster, which may be triggered by massive stars in the cluster. The slope of the initial mass function, $Γ$, in the mass range $2.5 < M/M_\odot \le 28$ is found to be $-1.01\pm0.11$ which is shallower than the Salpeter value (-1.35), whereas in the mass range $1.5 < M/M_\odot \le 2.5$ the slope is almost flat. The slope of the K-band luminosity function is estimated as $0.27\pm0.02$, which is smaller than the average value ($\sim$0.4) reported for young embedded clusters. Approximately 32% of H$α$ emission stars of Be 59 exhibit NIR excess indicating that inner disks of the T-Tauri star (TTS) population have not dissipated. The MSX and IRAS-HIRES images around the cluster region are also used to study the emission from unidentified infrared bands and to estimate the spatial distribution of optical depth of warm and cold interstellar dust.

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arXiv2007

A multiwavelength study of Galactic HII region Sh2-294

We present the observational results of Galactic HII region S294, using optical photometry, narrow-band imaging and radio continuum mapping at 1280 MHz, together with archival data from 2MASS, MSX and IRAS surveys. The stellar surface density profile indicates that the radius of the cluster associated with the S294 region is ~ 2.3 arcmin. We found an anomalous reddening law for the dust inside the cluster region and the ratio of total-to-selective extinction is found to be 3.8+-0.1. We estimate the minimum reddening E (B-V) = 1.35 mag and distance of 4.8+-0.2 kpc to the region from optical CC and CM diagrams. We identified the ionizing source of the HII region, and spectral type estimates are consistent with a star of spectral type ~ B0 V. The 2MASS JHKs images reveal a partially embedded cluster associated with the ionizing source along with a small cluster towards the eastern border of S294. The ionization front seen along the direction of small cluster in radio continuum and Halpha images, might be due to the interaction of ionizing sources with the nearby molecular cloud. We found an arc shaped diffuse molecular hydrogen emission at 2.12 micron and a half ring of MSX dust emission which surrounds the ionized gas in the direction of the ionization front. Self consistent radiative transfer model of mid- to far-infrared continuum emission detected near small cluster is in good agreement with the observed spectral energy distribution of a B1.5 ZAMS star. The morphological correlation between the ionised and molecular gas, along with probable time scale involved between the ionising star, evolution of HII region and small cluster, indicates that the star-formation activity observed at the border is probably triggered by the expansion of HII region.

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arXiv2007

High mass-loss AGB stars detected by MSX in the "intermediate" and "outer" Galactic bulge

We present a study of MSX point sources in the Galactic bulge (|l| < 3 deg, 1 deg < |b| < 5 deg), observed at A, C, D and E-band (8 to 21 micron), with a total area ~ 48 deg^2. We discuss the nature of the MSX sources (mostly AGB stars), their luminosities, the interstellar extinction, the mass-loss rate distribution and the total mass-loss rate in the bulge. The MIR data of MSX point sources have been combined with the NIR (J, H and Ks) data of 2MASS survey. The cross-identification was restricted to Ks-band detected sources with Ks <= 11 mag. However, for those bright MSX D-band sources ([D] < 4.0 mag), which do not satisfy this criteria, we have set no Ks-band magnitude cut off. The relation between Mdot and (Ks-[15])0 was used to derive the mass-loss rate of each MSX source in the bulge fields. Except for very few post-AGB stars, PNe and OH/IR stars, a large fraction of the detected sources at 15 micron (MSX D-band) are AGB stars well above the RGB tip. A number of them show an excess in ([A]-[D])0 and (Ks-[D])0 colours, characteristic of mass-loss. These colours, especially (Ks-[D])0, enable estimation of the mass-loss rates (Mdot) of the sources in the bulge fields which range from 10^{-7} to 10^{-4} Msun/yr. Taking into consideration the completeness of the mass-loss rate bins, we find that the contribution to the integrated mass-loss is probably dominated by mass-loss rates larger than 3x10^{-7} Msun/yr and is about 1.96 x 10^{-4} Msun/yr/deg^2 in the "intermediate" and "outer" bulge fields of sources with mass-loss rates, Mdot > 3x10^{-7} Msun/yr. The corresponding integrated mass-loss rate per unit stellar mass is 0.48x10^{-11} yr^{-1}. Apart from this, the various MIR and NIR CC and CM diagrams are discussed in the paper to study the nature of the stellar population in the MSX bulge fields.

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arXiv2007

Star formation in young star cluster NGC 1893

We present a comprehensive multi-wavelength study of the star-forming region NGC 1893 to explore the effects of massive stars on low-mass star formation. Using near-infrared colours, slitless spectroscopy and narrow-band $Hα$ photometry in the cluster region we have identified candidate young stellar objects (YSOs) distributed in a pattern from the cluster to one of the nearby nebulae Sim 129. The $V, (V-I)$ colour-magnitude diagram of the YSOs indicates that majority of these objects have ages between 1 to 5 Myr. The spread in the ages of the YSOs may indicate a non-coeval star formation in the cluster. The slope of the KLF for the cluster is estimated to be $0.34\pm0.07$, which agrees well with the average value ($\sim 0.4$) reported for young clusters. For the entire observed mass range $0.6 < M/M_\odot \le 17.7$ the value of the slope of the initial mass function, $`Γ$', comes out to be $-1.27\pm0.08$, which is in agreement with the Salpeter value of -1.35 in the solar neighborhood. However, the value of $`Γ$' for PMS phase stars (mass range $0.6 < M/M_\odot \le 2.0$) is found to be $-0.88\pm0.09$ which is shallower than the value ($-1.71\pm0.20$) obtained for MS stars having mass range $2.5 < M/M_\odot \le 17.7$ indicating a break in the slope of the mass function at $\sim 2 M_\odot$. Estimated $`Γ$' values indicate an effect of mass segregation for main-sequence stars, in the sense that massive stars are preferentially located towards the cluster center. The estimated dynamical evolution time is found to be greater than the age of the cluster, therefore the observed mass segregation in the cluster may be the imprint of the star formation process. There is evidence for triggered star formation in the region, which seems to govern initial morphology of the cluster.

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arXiv2007

A multiwavelength study of the ultracompact HII region associated with IRAS 20178+4046

We present a multiwavelength study of the ultra compact HII region associated with IRAS 20178+4046. This enables us to probe the different components associated with this massive star forming region. The radio emission from the ionized gas was mapped at 610 and 1280 MHz using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT), India. We have used 2MASS $J H K_{s}$ data to study the nature of the embedded sources associated with IRAS 20178+4046. Submillimetre emission from the cold dust at 450 and 850 $μ$m was studied using JCMT-SCUBA. The high-resolution radio continuum maps at 610 and 1280 MHz display compact spherical morphology. The spectral type of the exciting source is estimated to be $\sim$ B0.5 from the radio flux densities. However, the near-infrared (NIR) data suggest the presence of several massive stars (spectral type earlier than O9) within the compact ionized region. Submillimetre emission shows the presence of two dense cloud cores which are probably at different evolutionary stages. The total mass of the cloud is estimated to be $\sim$ 700 -- 1500 $\rm M_{\odot}$ from the submillimetre emission at 450 and 850 $μ$m. The multiwavelength study of this star forming complex reveals an interesting scenario where we see the presence of different evolutionary stages in star formation. The ultra compact HII region coinciding with the southern cloud core is at a later stage of evolution compared to the northern core which is likely to be a candidate protocluster.

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arXiv2006

Infrared study of the Southern Galactic star forming region associated with IRAS 14416-5937

Aims: We have carried out an infrared study of the southern Galactic massive star forming region associated with IRAS 14416-5937. Methods: This star forming region has been mapped simultaneously in two far infrared bands at ~ 150 & 210 micron using the TIFR 1-m balloon borne telescope with ~ 1' angular resolution. We have used 2MASS JHK$_s$ as well as Spitzer-GLIMPSE data of this region to study the stellar populations of the embedded young cluster. This region comprises of two sources, designated as A & B and separated by ~ 2 pc. The spectrum of a region located close to the source A obtained using the Long Wavelength Spectrometer (LWS) on-board the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO), is presented. Emission from warm dust and from Unidentified Infrared Bands (UIBs) is estimated using the mid-infrared data of the MSX survey. Results: The spatial distributions of (1) the temperature of cool dust and (2) optical depth at 200 micron have been obtained taking advantage of the similar beams in both the TIFR bands. A number of atomic fine structure lines have been detected in the ISO-LWS spectrum, which have been used to estimate the electron density and the effective temperature of the ionising radiation in this region. From the near and mid infrared images, we identify a dust lane due north-west of source A. The dust lane is populated by Class I type sources. Class II type sources are found further along the dust lane as well as below it. Self consistent radiative transfer models of the two sources (A and B) are in good agreement with the observed spectral energy distributions. Conclusions: The spatial distribution of young stellar objects in and around the dust lane suggests that active star formation is taking place along the dust lane and is possibly triggered by the expanding HII regions of A and B.

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arXiv2006

Post-Outburst Phase of McNeil's Nebula (V1647 Orionis)

We present a detailed study of the post-outburst phase of McNeil's nebula (V1647 Ori) using optical B,V,R,I and NIR J,H,K photometric and low resolution optical spectroscopic observations. The observations were carried out with the HFOSC, NIRCAM, TIRCAM and NICMOS cameras on the 2m HCT and 1.2m PRL telescopes during the period 2004 Feb-2005 Dec. The optical/NIR observations show a general decline in brightness of the exciting source of McNeil's nebula (V1647 Ori). Our recent optical images show that V1647 Ori has faded by more than 3 mags since Feb 2004. The optical/NIR photometric data also show a significant variation in the mags (Delta V = 0.78 mag, Delta R = 0.44 mag, Delta I = 0.21 mag, Delta J = 0.24 mag and Delta H = 0.20 mag) of V1647 Ori within a period of one month, which is possibly undergoing a phase similar to eruptive variables, like EXors or FUors. The optical spectra show a few features such as strong Halpha emission with blue-shifted absorption and the CaII IR triplet (8498A, 8542A and 8662A) in emission. As compared to the period just after outburst, there is a decrease in the depth and extent of the blue-shifted absorption component, indicating a weakening in the powerful stellar wind. The presence of the CaII IR triplet in emission confirms that V1647 Ori is a PMS star. The long-term, post-outburst photometric observations of V1647 Ori suggest an EXor, rather than an FUor event. An optical/IR comparison of the region surrounding McNeil's nebula shows that the optical nebula is more widely and predominantly extended to the north, whereas the IR nebula is relatively confined (dia ~ 60 arcsec), but definitely extended, to the south, too.

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