Structure of the cluster NGC 2264 explored by researchers

By analyzing the information from ESA’s XMM-Newton and Gaia satellites, astronomers have investigated a younger star cluster often known as NGC 2264. Outcomes of the examine, revealed November 16 on the arXiv pre-print repository, shed extra mild on the construction of this object and may very well be useful in advancing our information about stellar evolution.

Normally, star clusters (SCs) are giant gravitationally certain teams of stars. They’re perceived as essential laboratories for learning the evolution of stars and the clusters themselves. SCs are additionally good tracers for exploring the construction of the Milky Way.

NGC 2264 (also called Dahm 2008) is a younger (estimated to be 3–5 million years previous) stellar cluster situated some 2,480 light years away, containing greater than a thousand stellar-mass members. On account of its proximity and the truth that the cluster’s exercise remains to be ongoing inside its parental cloud, it is likely one of the most accessible star-forming areas within the Milky Way.

So a bunch of astronomers led by Ettore Flaccomio of the Palermo Astronomical Observatory in Italy studied NGC 2264 intimately. For this function they analyzed new X-ray knowledge obtained with the XMM-Newton and knowledge from Gaia’s EDR3 (Early Knowledge Launch 3). The examine was complemented by datasets from varied catalogs.

“We revisit the construction, dynamics, and star-forming historical past of NGC 2264 with a view to advance our understanding of the processes that lead from molecular clouds to protostars, stellar associations, and the evolution of each,” the researchers wrote within the paper.

The out there knowledge allowed the group to create a catalog of two,257 candidate members of NGC 2264—due to this fact virtually twice as giant as earlier catalogs. Afterward, the astronomers analyzed the spatial distribution of those objects and outlined new substructures within the cluster.

Primarily based on the floor density map of candidate members, the scientists recognized 4 new substructures and designated them: compact S Mon(C) area, embedded Cone (C-IR), Prolonged Halo and the S Mon(ref) area. It turned out that the Prolonged Halo comprises virtually 80 % of all of the candidate members—1,794 objects. It was added that S Mon(C) is presumably older than the encircling area or has a distinctly decrease fraction of stars with disks and present process accretion.

The authors of the paper underlined that the identification of such a excessive variety of candidate members within the Prolonged Halo considerably enlarges the recognized extent of NGC 2264.

“The cluster is probably going even broader, however a much less contaminated membership is required with a view to characterize the outer inhabitants,” the researchers defined.

Summing up the outcomes, the astronomers famous that normally the celebs within the southern areas of NGC 2264 are youthful than these near S Mon—a bigger substructure containing the newly recognized S Mon(C)—within the north. They assume that star formation on this cluster began about 4 million years in the past within the S Mon area and prolonged progressively towards the south, the place it’s presently persevering with.

In keeping with the authors of the examine, the findings present that NGC 2264 will not be dynamically relaxed and its current configuration is because of a number of dynamical processes. They added that this SC is due to this fact top-of-the-line websites to research the formation mechanisms of stars and clusters.

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