The formation of young massive clusters by colliding flows

Abstract

Young massive clusters (YMCs) are the most intense regions of star formation in galaxies. Formulating a model for YMC formation whilst at the same time meeting the constraints from observations is highly challenging however. We show that forming YMCs requires clouds with densities $\gtrsim$ 100 cm${}^{-3}$ to collide with high velocities ($\gtrsim$ 20 km s${}^{-1}$). We present the first simulations which, starting from moderate cloud densities of $\sim 100$ cm${}^{-3}$, are able to convert a large amount of mass into stars over a time period of around 1 Myr, to produce dense massive clusters similar to those observed. Such conditions are commonplace in more extreme environments, where YMCs are common, but atypical for our Galaxy, where YMCs are rare.

6 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS Letters

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Cited by in corpus (6)

• The formation of massive stellar clusters in converging galactic flows with photoionisation
• The role of collision speed, cloud density, and turbulence in the formation of young massive clusters via cloud-cloud collisions
• The properties of clusters, and the orientation of magnetic fields relative to filaments, in magnetohydrodynamic simulations of colliding clouds
• Far and extreme UV radiation feedback in molecular clouds and its influence on the mass and size of star clusters
• MUSE observations of the blue compact dwarf galaxy Haro 14. Data analysis and first results on morphology and stellar populations
• Studying the interstellar medium to look for relics of triggered star formation among stellar clusters