2017/10/02 by Bram B. Ochsendorf, Hans Zinnecker, Ochsendorf, Bram B. +13 · 1 voice · 1 citation
#astro-ph.GA #astro-ph.SR
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1710.00805
Within the early Universe, `extreme' star formation may have been the norm rather than the exception. Super Star Clusters (SSCs; M_⋆ \gtrsim 105 M_\odot) are thought to be the modern-day analogs of globular clusters, relics of a cosmic time (z \gtrsim 2) when the Universe was filled with vigorously star-forming systems. The giant HII region 30 Doradus in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is often regarded as a benchmark for studies of extreme star formation. Here, we report the discovery of a massive embedded star forming complex spanning ∼ 500 pc in the unexplored southwest region of the LMC, which manifests itself as a younger, embedded twin of 30 Doradus. Previously known as N79, this region has a star formation efficiency exceeding that of 30 Doradus by a factor of ∼ 2 as measured over the past \lesssim 0.5 Myr. Moreover, at the heart of N79 lies the most luminous infrared (IR) compact source discovered with large-scale IR surveys of the LMC and Milky Way, possibly a precursor to the central SSC of 30 Doradus, R136. The discovery of a nearby candidate SSC may provide invaluable information to understand how extreme star formation proceeds in the current and high-redshift Universe.