Cardiff University | Prifysgol Caerdydd ORCA
Online Research @ Cardiff 
WelshClear Cookie - decide language by browser settings

Kinematics of the interstellar medium using Gaia: A catalogue of 102 YSO-MC associations within 3.5 kpc from the Sun with 3D velocities

Zhou, Ji-Xuan, Li, Guang-Xing and Chen, Bing-Qiu 2025. Kinematics of the interstellar medium using Gaia: A catalogue of 102 YSO-MC associations within 3.5 kpc from the Sun with 3D velocities. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 542 , pp. 52-61. 10.1093/mnras/staf1222

[thumbnail of staf1222.pdf] PDF - Published Version
Download (1MB)
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
License Start date: 28 July 2025

Abstract

Kinematic information is crucial for understanding the evolution of complex systems, such as interstellar gas. Obtaining full 3D kinematic information is a crucial final step for modeling and interpretation. Molecular clouds are nurseries where stars are born. Stars at a very early stage, like young stellar objects (YSOs), inherit the spatial and kinematic structure of the gas patches they originate from. In this paper, we combine measurements of radial velocities towards the gas and the kinematic information of YSOs from Gaia DR3 to derive 3D velocities of a sample of YSO (Young Stellar Object)-MC (Molecular Cloud) complexes at d≲3.5kpc from the Sun. We find that the molecular interstellar medium traced by the YSO-MC complexes generally follows Galactic rotation, with an additional peculiar velocity of 8.6 km s−1. The random motion of these complexes in the Galactic XY plane is more energetic than motion along the Z direction. A catalogue containing the 3D velocities of the YSO-MC complexes at different reference frames is available, and the distances and 3D velocities of well-known molecular clouds are presented. Our results set the foundation for exploring the interplay between the Galaxy, the molecular ISM, and star formation.

Item Type: Article
Date Type: Published Online
Status: Published
Schools: Schools > Physics and Astronomy
Additional Information: License information from Publisher: LICENSE 1: URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, Start Date: 2025-07-28
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISSN: 0035-8711
Date of First Compliant Deposit: 11 August 2025
Date of Acceptance: 16 July 2025
Last Modified: 11 Aug 2025 11:45
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/180336

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item Edit Item

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

View more statistics