EPoS Contribution
EPoS Contribution
Constraining Star Formation with the MASSES Survey

Ian Stephens
CfA, Cambridge, US
The Mass Assembly of Stellar Systems and Their Evolution with the SMA (MASSES) survey observed all 74 known Class 0 and I protostars in the Perseus Molecular Cloud. At scales of 300-15000 au, MASSES is the largest spectral line and continuum survey of a complete protostellar population in a single cloud. This talk highlights the results of this completed survey, where we have produced statistical constraints on the star formation process. Finally I show, via three independent studies, that the Class 0 and I stages represent two distinct stages of protostellar evolution. The bipolar outflow opens a cavity in the envelope until the envelope can no longer feed the protostar.
Caption: The bipolar outflow images on the left show what we define as the outflow opening angle (Δθ) and the angle between the envelope major axis and the outflow (Δθeo). From left to right, the scatter plots show three parameters as a function of Tbol: Δθ, Δθeo, and the envelope mass (Me). These three independent measurements all point toward an evolutionary milestone for Tbol between 50 and 100 K.
Collaborators:
M. Dunham, SUNY Fredonia, US
P. Myers, CfA, US
T. Bourke, SKA, UK
Key publication

Suggested Session: Cores2Disks