Three-dimensional Continuum Radiative Transfer Images of a Molecular Cloud Core Evolution

Abstract

We analyze a three-dimensional smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulation of an evolving and later collapsing pre-stellar core. Using a three-dimensional continuum radiative transfer program, we generate images at 7 micron, 15 micron, 175 micron, and 1.3 mm for different evolutionary times and viewing angles. We discuss the observability of the properties of pre-stellar cores for the different wavelengths. For examples of non-symmetric fragments, it is shown that, misleadingly, the density profiles derived from a one-dimensional analysis of the corresponding images are consistent with one-dimensional core evolution models. We conclude that one-dimensional modeling based on column density interpretation of images does not produce reliable structural information and that multidimensional modeling is required.

accepted by ApJL, 4 pages, 4 figures

References in corpus (9)

• Modelling Accretion in Protobinary Systems
• The Formation of a Star Cluster: Predicting the Properties of Stars and Brown Dwarfs
• Gravitational Collapse in Turbulent Molecular Clouds. I. Gasdynamical Turbulence
• Gravitational Collapse in Turbulent Molecular Clouds. II. Magnetohydrodynamical Turbulence
• Physical vs. Observational Properties of Clouds in Turbulent Molecular Cloud Models
• Turbulent Molecular Cloud Cores: Rotational Properties
• The 2D Continuum Radiative Transfer Problem: Benchmark Results for Disk Configurations
• Dynamic cores in hydrostatic disguise
• The structure of self-gravitating clouds

Cited by in corpus (5)

• Three-Dimensional Dust Radiative Transfer
• The Virial Balance of Clumps and Cores in Molecular Clouds
• A Millimeter Continuum Survey for Massive Protoclusters in the Outer Galaxy
• How to identify the youngest protostars
• Ray-tracing for complex astrophysical high-opacity structures