Dichotomy in the Dynamical Status of Massive Cores in Orion

TL;DR

This study investigates the dynamical states of massive starless cores in Orion, revealing a dichotomy between inward and outward motions, which constrains models of core evolution and star formation.

Contribution

It provides the first large-scale observational evidence of a dichotomy in the kinematic states of high-mass cores, distinguishing collapsing from expanding cores.

Findings

2/3 of cores are non-static with asymmetries indicating motion.

9 cores show evidence of inward collapse motions.

10 cores exhibit outward re-expansion motions.

Abstract

To study the evolution of high mass cores, we have searched for evidence of collapse motions in a large sample of starless cores in the Orion molecular cloud. We used the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory telescope to obtain spectra of the optically thin (\H13CO+) and optically thick (\HCO+) high density tracer molecules in 27 cores with masses $>$ 1 \Ms. The red- and blue-asymmetries seen in the line profiles of the optically thick line with respect to the optically thin line indicate that 2/3 of these cores are not static. We detect evidence for infall (inward motions) in 9 cores and outward motions for 10 cores, suggesting a dichotomy in the kinematic state of the non-static cores in this sample. Our results provide an important observational constraint on the fraction of collapsing (inward motions) versus non-collapsing (re-expanding) cores for comparison with model simulations.