STUDY OF TRIGGERED STAR FORMATION IN A BRIGHT-RIMMED CLOUD

M. E. ORTEGA; S. PARON; E. GIACANI; A. PETRIELLA

Florianópolis, SC, Brasil

Congreso; LARIM 2013: XIV Latin American Regional IAU Meeting; 2013

Bright-rimmed clouds (BRCs) are small and densemolecular clouds located in the periphery of theevolved HII regions. The illumination of these darkclumps by nearby OB stars might be responsiblefor triggered collapse and subsequent star formationthrough the mechanism known as radiation-drivenimplosion (RDI). We carried out a multi-wavelengthstudy of a BRC located in the periphery of theevolved HII region G52.85-0.55. From the evaluationof the pressure balance between the ionized gaslocated at the illuminated border of the clump andthe molecular gas, we show that shocks are beingdriven in the external layers of the BRC. On theother hand the pressure balance suggests that thebirth of young stellar objects embedded in the BRCcould have been initiated by the RDI mechanism.