High resolution images of the Orion Nebula in the millimeter wave emission lines of CS and CO taken with the 45-m telescope at Nobeyama are presented. They cover a field approximately 400″ square with a 15″ – 34″ resolution and reveal a wealth of information on kinematic and density structures. The images of the J=1-0 (49 GHz) and J=2-1 (98 GHz) lines of CS show a long (>1 pc) and narrow (∼0.1 pc) N-S ridge of dense molecular gas. On the ridge, two major clumps are recognized; one is associated with the KL object and the other is 100″ south of it. The images of the J=1-0 (115 GHz) CO line indicate interaction between the molecular cloud and the H II region formed by the Trapezium stars. Bright CO emission is found towards the edges of the denser part of the H II region delineated by radio continuum emission. The CO emission coincides with the emission of vibrationally excited H2 and the 3.3 μm dust emission feature. The CO images reveal filamentary structures (“streamers”) stretching radially from the KL region. On the streamers there are Herbig-Haro objects moving away from the KL region. They may be tracers of weak interaction between the ambient molecular gas and mostly unseen, highly collimated, high-velocity (>200 km/s) jets.

The electric quadrupole vibration-rotation transitions of molecular hydrogen can be excited either by thermal collisions in regions of high temperature or by ultraviolet absorption and fluorescence that leaves the molecules in excited levels, v>0, of the electronic ground state in interstellar clouds located very close to hot stars. Predictions of this fluorescent emission (Gould and Harwit 1963, Black and Dalgarno 1976) have only recently been confirmed by observations in Orion (Hayashi et al. 1985) and toward the reflection nebula NGC 2023 (Gatley and Kaifu 1987). Most previous observations of the 2 μm H2 lines have been consistent with thermal excitation in shocked regions.

A VLA radio continuum study of the H II region M17 (Felli, Churchwell and Massi, 1984) has shown the presence of an elongated sharp arc structure in the South Bar of the nebula, in a region of heavy obscuration. The arc has been interpreted as an ionization boundary, viewed edge on, located between the diffuse H II region, to the east, and a dense component of the extended molecular cloud, to the west. About 3″ to the west of this arc, an ultra-compact H II region has been found. This has a shell type structure, a linear diameter of 0.004 pc and probably is the result of induced star formation in the molecular cloud produced by the pressure front preceding the ionization front.

We present new far-IR and submillimeter broad-band and spectroscopic results on the dense and very luminous cores of massive star formation regions. The best-studied region, W51, contains one core around the source IRS2 and another around W51 MAIN. Our earlier submillimeter continuum mapping has shown that these two cores are very massive (2-4 × 104 M⊙) and have average densities of nH2 ∼ 105 over their inner parsec. New far-IR maps show that both cores are very luminous (L(MAIN) ∼2 × 106 L⊙; L(IRS2) ∼4x106 L⊙). Observations of the (1,1) and (2,1) transitions of NH3, indicate high kinetic temperatures (200-400 K) for the quiescent gas in the inner several arc seconds (0.1 pc) of both cores. Spectroscopy of the 370 μm J = 7 → 6 and 163 μm J = 16 → 15 transitions of CO toward the cores allows us to characterize the hot high velocity material seen previously on the H2O maser transitions and not readily visible in the low J transitions of CO. The high velocity flow in IRS2 is ∼ 60 times more massive than the very similar outflow in the ∼ 30 times less luminous Orion/KL core. The mass loss rate is ∼ 30 times greater than in Orion. Additional observations of W49 allow us to draw a few general conclusions about the most luminous star formation regions in our galaxy: (1) The luminous cores are 102-103 more massive than the Orion core with the same density. (2) Outflows and warm regions in these cores have physical conditions similar to those in their less luminous counterparts but far more mass is involved in the flows.

W49 is the most luminous H II region complex in the galaxy. VLA maps in the continuum reveal a complex of more than two dozen compact HII regions, including a ring-like distribution of a dozen such regions within a volume of 1 pc. In addition to the VLA maps, we have obtained high resolution maps in this field with the Hat Creek Millimeter Interferometer in the following molecular lines: HCO+(1-0), H13CO+(1-0), SiO(v = 0, J = 2-1), SiO(v = 1, J = 2-1), H13CN(1-0), HC15N(1-0), SO2 [8(3,5)-9(2,8)], SO2[8(1,7)-8(0,8)], SO[2(2)-1(1)], and CH3CH2CN[10(1,10)-9(1,9)], all near 3 mm wavelengh. These maps will be discussed. The HCO+distribution corresponds to the larger scale structures observed in the continuum maps. In contrast the SO and SiO sources are quite compact. Using the detailed molecular line results obtained in the ORION/KL region as a guide, we are able to identify these latter sources as regions in which the star formation is at an earlier stage, regions where there are outflows.

A fully sampled map of size ∼1′×3′ (R.A. Dec), centered on BN-KL has been made in the J = 1-0 line of 12C18O with 21″ angular resolution. The 12C18O emission is concentrated in a ← 40″ wide continuous strip running S to NE. Several maxima are superposed on the ridge, but none exceeds the average emission level by more than 40%. There is no intense peak of 12C18O J = 1-0 line emission centered on BN-KL, in contrast to maps of the dust emission. The dust and 12C18O results can be reconciled with a constant (CO/H2) ratio if there are variations in the kinetic temperature and column density of ∼50%. Peaks in both temperature and column density are then located near BN-KL, and 90″ to the south. From the estimated CO column density, about 10% of the carbon is in the form of CO. Near the BN-KL region, the 12C18O line profiles tend to become wider. These wider lines appear to be superposed on a weak, 18 km s−1 (FWHP) wide pedestal. In regions 40″ NE and 30″ S of BN-KL, the 12C18O lines have widths of less than 2 km s−1. Presumably, these are the locations of high density, quiescent molecular gas. The radial velocity of the CO emission increases from 6.5 km s−1 (at 90″ S) to 10.5 km s−1 (at 60″ NE) of BN-KL. Close to BN-KL, however, there is evidence that this trend is reversed.

A collaboration between Nobeyama Radio Observatory and UKIRT has produced high resolution images in CO and H2 of the star forming regions DR21, Orion, and M17. In each case the images in the two species are remarkably similar. This is a striking result, for the H2 traces a very hot component of the interstellar medium, either shocked to temperatures around 2000 K or highly excited by ultraviolet fluorescence.

Orion KL is a famous high-mass star forming region, and many investigations have studied its dynamical aspects. But the chemical aspects of Orion KL are still veiled. In this paper, from chemical and physical analysis, we show that there are differences in the chemistry among many “velocity elements” in the core of Orion KL.

We present new 13CO(J = 1-0) measurements of the Orion molecular cloud. The data were taken with the 4-m millimeter-wave telescope of Nagoya University with a beamwidth of 2.7′. The high velocity resolution of 0.1 km s−1 employed has revealed significant details of the 13CO emission toward the H II region.

The Orion bright bar, a bar shaped optical feature, is seen about 2 arcmin southeast of the Trapezium stars in the Orion nebula. Since the bright bar is probably an ionization front seen edge on, this region has an ideal configuration to investigate a shocked region generated by an expanding H II region.

We report on the first submillimetre wavelength spectral scan of the Orion A molecular cloud in the frequency range 342-463 GHz (0.88-0.65 mm) using the Queen Mary College Submillimetre Heterodyne Receiver at UKIRT. Twenty-eight molecular transitions were detected, the majority of these for the first time. The lines include transitions of CO, CS, HCN, HCO+, H2CO, H2CS, SO, SO2, CCH, SiO and CH3OH. Upper limits are reported for a number of lines including CO+ and the ground state transition of NH2. A number of the lines are surprisingly intense, and we will present maps of the relative distributions of HCO+, HCN, H2CO and CCH, which show striking differences in their spatial structures. We will present details of the excitation of a number of the lines based on the results from this survey.

We apply a 2-D, axisymmetric code for modeling H II regions (Rubin Ap. J. 287, 653, 1984) to observations of the Orion Nebula. The model solves for the ionization and thermal structure and radiative transfer for the quasi-equilibrium volume. Assuming that the Orion Nebula is viewed face-on (along the symmetry axis) and that the geometry/density distribution is plane parallel with an exponential density gradient perpendicular to the slab, we use a x2 minimization technique to best fit the radio continuum maps. The best fit to the Schraml and Mezger map (Astrophys. J. 156, 269, 1969) has a density at the star of ∼1800 cm−3, a scale height of ∼0.23 pc, and ∼1.5x1049 ionizing photons s−1 so that ∼ 1/3 of the ionizing photons from the exciting source are escaping the nebula through the frontal density-bounded direction. Our model for Orion requires circular symmetry in the plane of the sky; nonsymmetrical features such as the ionization bar toward the SE cannot be reproduced. Further modeling that compares with line observations has been delayed to incorporate the important role played by recombinations in populating low-lying [O II] levels (Rubin 1985, Astrophys. J., submitted).

We have adopted a detailed map in the CO J = 3-2 line of the M17 molecular cloud complex covering an area of about 60 square arc minutes. As well as the M17SW cloud core, the map covers the areas containing both ionization bars, and their surrounding molecular clouds. A complex dynamical picture will be presented, with evidence for fragmentation of the complex into a number of discrete clouds, as well as indications of wide-spread interaction between the ionization bars and the CO gas. The morphology revealed by the CO maps will be discussed in connection with the distributions of IR, radio and optical emission, and the overall dynamics of the whole M17 region.

The ∼20 pc square region around the continuum peak, (α(1950.0) = 17h44m 10.6s, δ(1950.0) = −28°22′05″) of Sgr B2 was observed using the 45-m telescope of Nobeyama Radio Observatory. The observed molecules are H2O, NH3, CH3OH, SiO, H13CN, H13CO+, CO, HNCO, HC3N, and so on.

The Sgr B2 region was mapped at 43 GHz (λ = 6.9 mm) with the 45m radio telescope of Nobeyama Radio Observatory. The observing parameters were: a) half power beamwidth 38″, b) pointing accuracy better than 10″, c) central frequency 43.0 GHz, d) bandwidth 500 MHz, and e) system noise temperature 400 K; and the observational aspects were: a) mapping with one polarization, b) liquid-nitrogen cooled load switching and c) reduction by NOD-2 programme. The obtained map is shown in Figure 1. Sgr B2 is resolved into several components which correspond to those by Martin and Downes (1972) and Downes et al. (1978). But the component at RA = 17h44m11.8s Dec. = −28°23′55″ at 1950 is not seen in Martin and Downes (1972) nor in the 5 GHz map of Downes et al. (1978), although the feature is seen in the 10.7 GHz map of Downes et al. (1978). The components derived from the map in Figure 1 by a morphological estimate are listed in Table 1. The total flux density of the region is 146J±30 Jy. The intensity calibration was made by observing NGC 7027.

H2CO and OH masers in the H II-region/molecular-cloud complex Sgr B2 have been observed with the VLA and combined with other observations of OH and H2O masers. It is found that groups of the masers and compact continuum components are located along a north-south line extending across the complex. The overall alignment suggests that star formation is being triggered by a single large-scale event such as an interaction between molecular clouds.

The core region of the W3 molecular cloud has high molecular line luminosities (Dickel et al. 1980; Brackman and Scoville 1980). This region contains luminous infrared sources and ultra compact H II regions. A young star cluster may be forming in this region. Recent interferometric high angular-resolution observation revealed a bipolar outflow toward IRS 5 in the CO emission (Claussen et al. 1984) and a mass condensation in the HCN emission (Wright et al. 1984) in this region.

Radio continuum observations of the core region of the compact H II region W3 at 6.5 and 4 mm wavelengths were made using the Nobeyama 45-m telescope. The 6.5-mm map agrees with lower-frequency maps, showing a major contribution of free-free H II emission. At 4 mm an excess over the H II emission is found, which indicates a contribution from dust grains. Comparing with sub-mm and FIR data, we suggest the existence of two dust components: normal dust at 50 K, and low-temperature (7 K), large-size grains (or interstellar “stones”) in the region west of the W3 core.

We have observed the CS (J = 1-0), C34S (J = 1-0) and H51α emission toward the W49A molecular cloud complex in an area of 3'x 2′ (α x δ) with an angular resolution of 33″. The CS emitting region is 100″ x 80″ or 6.7 pc x 5.4 pc (α x δ) at the half maximum level. Although the CO emission is self-absorbed due to the foreground cold gas, the CS optical depth of the foreground gas is found to be small. Therefore, the two CS peaks at VLSR = 4 km s−1 and 12 km s−1 imply the presence of two dense molecular clouds toward W49A. The brighter 12 km s−1 cloud peaks 35″ southeast of W49A IRS, the infrared and H2O/OH maser sources associated with the compact H II region, while the 4 km s−1 cloud has a peak at W49A IRS. The hydrogen column density through the c34S emitting region is (0.3-1.7) x 1024 cm−2. The estimated core mass of the W49A molecular cloud is (0.5-2.5) x 104 M⊙. This mass is closely packed in a small region of 3.4 pc in diameter, and is about an order of magnitude larger than the virial mass of the system. The massive core will collapse within 10 years unless there is some special supporting mechanism. There was a sudden increase in the star formation rate 104– 105 years ago, suggesting a triggered burst of star formation in the core of W49A. The collision of two velocity clouds might have triggered the formation of this massive core and the burst of star formation.

Small clusters of recently-formed massive stars with their associated compact H II regions are often found embedded in the dense cores of molecular clouds. The H2CO opacity is correlated with the compactness of the H II region and is especially high for those with associated maser activity although additional factors are involved for the ultra-compact H II regions (UCH II). VLA observations of H2CO at 2 cm have been made towards the UCH II regions of W49-north. The highest H2CO opacity of 1.0 is found towards region A which does not have maser activity; yet one of the most compact region C, has an H2CO opacity of only 0.3, For these sources the integrated H2CO opacity (over the entire profile) may be more indicative of compactness. This may be due to the broader H2CO lines which can occur towards the maser regions. For example, large line widths of 10 to 12 km s−1 ate found towards W49-north G where the most intense water masers are located and towards W49-north B which has OH masers. The H2CO line with the highest 2 cm opacity of 2.5 and a narrow width of 2 km s−1 is found towards the UCH II region ON 3 which has only weak H2O maser emission.