The superclouds of the local Milky Way
Lilly A. Kormann, Jo\~ao Alves, Michelangelo Pantaleoni Gonz\'alez, Cameren Swiggum, Torsten A. En{\ss}lin, Gordian Edenhofer

TL;DR
Recent 3D dust maps reveal seven large, elongated supercloud structures in the Milky Way's local neighborhood, many previously unknown, which are linked to star formation and galactic structure.
Contribution
This study identifies and characterizes seven superclouds in the Milky Way, revealing their properties and role in star formation, based on new Gaia-based 3D dust mapping.
Findings
Seven superclouds identified with specific orientations and masses
Most star-forming regions are located along supercloud axes
Superclouds exhibit size regulation maintaining pressure equilibrium
Abstract
Recent 3D dust maps of the local Milky Way are revolutionizing our understanding of the Sun's Galactic neighborhood, providing much needed insight into the large-scale organization of the interstellar medium. Focusing on the largest scales in -based 3D dust maps, we find a pattern of seven highly elongated, mostly parallel structures in the local , five of which were previously unknown. These structures show pitch angles of and masses ranging from to . We refer to these structures as superclouds. Nearly all known star-forming regions in the solar neighborhood lie within the superclouds, primarily along their central axes, supporting the idea that they act as gas reservoirs for the formation of giant molecular clouds. All but one of the seven superclouds show an underlying undulation, indicating…
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Taxonomy
TopicsAstrophysics and Star Formation Studies · Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena · Astronomy and Astrophysical Research
