2008/06/10 by Michael M. Dunham, Antonio Crapsi, Neal J. Evans II +4 · 4 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Luminosity #Population #Protostar #Radiative transfer #Spectral energy distribution #Spitzer Space Telescope #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/591085
97 pages, 11 Tables, 22 Figures. Accepted by ApJS. Version with high-resolution figures available at http://peggysue.as.utexas.edu/SIRTF
arxiv created 2008/06/10 · openalex publication_date 2008/10/29 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We present the results of a search for all embedded protostars with internal luminosities ≤1.0 L ☉ in the full sample of nearby, low-mass star-forming regions surveyed by the Spitzer Space Telescope Legacy Project "From Molecular Cores to Planet Forming Disks" (c2d). The internal luminosity of a source, L int , is the luminosity of the central source and excludes luminosity arising from external heating. On average, the Spitzer c2d data are sensitive to embedded protostars with L int ⩾ 4 × 10 −3 ( d /140 pc) 2 L ☉ , a factor of 25 better than the sensitivity of the Infrared Astronomical Satellite ( IRAS ) to such objects. We present a set of selection criteria used to identify candidates from the Spitzer data and examine complementary data to decide whether each candidate is truly an embedded protostar. We find a tight correlation between the 70 μm flux and internal luminosity of a protostar, an empirical result based on both observations and detailed two-dimensional radiative transfer models of protostars. We identify 50 embedded protostars with L int ⩽ 1.0 L ☉ ; 15 have L int ⩽ 0.1 L ☉ . The intrinsic distribution of source luminosities increases to lower luminosities. While we find sources down to the above sensitivity limit, indicating that the distribution may extend to luminosities lower than probed by these observations, we are able to rule out a continued rise in the distribution below L int = 0.1 L ☉ . Between 75% and 85% of cores classified as starless prior to being observed by Spitzer remain starless to our luminosity sensitivity; the remaining 15%-25% harbor low-luminosity, embedded protostars. We compile complete spectral energy distributions for all 50 objects and calculate standard evolutionary signatures ( L bol , T bol , and L bol / L smm ) and argue that these objects are inconsistent with the simplest picture of star formation, wherein mass accretes from the core onto the protostar at a constant rate.