Imaging of the CCS 22.3 GHz emission in the Taurus Molecular Cloud complex

TL;DR

This study uses EVLA 22.3 GHz observations to image CCS emission in dense cores of the Taurus Molecular Cloud, revealing mostly starless core structures with significant diffuse emission.

Contribution

First high-resolution imaging of CCS 22.3 GHz emission in Taurus cores, highlighting the distribution of dense and diffuse molecular gas.

Findings

Clumpy CCS emission traces starless cores.

Compact structures account for 1-13% of total emission.

Significant large-scale diffuse CCS emission exists.

Abstract

Thioxoethenylidene (CCS) is an abundant interstellar molecule, and a good tracer of high density and evolutionary stage of dense molecular clouds. It is also a suitable candidate for Zeeman splitting observations for its high splitting factor and narrow thermal linewidths. We report here EVLA 22.3 GHz observations of three dense molecular cores TMC-1, TMC-1C and L1521B in the Taurus Molecular Cloud complex to image the CCS 2_1-1_0 transition. For all three sources, the clumpy CCS emission is most likely tracing the starless cores. However, these compact structures account for only ~ 1-13% of the integrated emission detected in single-dish observations, indicating the presence of significant large scale diffuse emission in favorable conditions for producing CCS.