Star Formation Rates in the Galactic Center of the Milky Way

• Project/Area Number: 18K13589
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 16010:Astronomy-related
• Research Institution: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
• Principal Investigator: Lu Xing 国立天文台, アルマプロジェクト, 特任研究員 (40794425)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2021-03-31
• Project Status: Completed (Fiscal Year 2020)
• Budget Amount: ¥910,000 (Direct Cost: ¥700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥210,000); Fiscal Year 2019: ¥390,000 (Direct Cost: ¥300,000、Indirect Cost: ¥90,000); Fiscal Year 2018: ¥520,000 (Direct Cost: ¥400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥120,000)
• Keywords: Galactic Center / Star Formation Rate / Central Molecular Zone / Star Formation

Outline of Final Research Achievements

I used high resolution interferometer observations to study the star formation activities in the so-called Central Molecular Zone around the center of our Galaxy. I found that the star formation rate of the whole Central Molecular Zone as well as those of most individual molecular clouds in the Central Molecular Zone are at least 10 times lower than expected. I also found that star formation at small spatial scales (smaller than 0.3 light years) in this zone is just normal. Therefore, the key of the inefficient star formation in this zone must be in the large spatial scales (a few light years and larger), for example, strong turbulence that presents the clouds from collapsing.

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

The research provides new insights into star formation in the extreme environments in the Central Molecular Zone, and changes the preconception that the Central Molecular Zone around our Galactic Center is not suitable for star formation.

Research Products

• [Journal Article] ALMA Observations of Massive Clouds in the Central Molecular Zone: Ubiquitous Protostellar Outflows (2021)
  • Author(s): Lu Xing、Li Shanghuo、Ginsburg Adam、Longmore Steven N.、Kruijssen J. M. Diederik、Walker Daniel L.、Feng Siyi、Zhang Qizhou、Battersby Cara、Pillai Thushara、Mills Elisabeth A. C.、Kauffmann Jens、Cheng Yu、Inutsuka Shu-ichiro
  • Journal Title: The Astrophysical Journal Volume: 909 Issue: 2 Pages: 177-177
  • DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/abde3c
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Star formation in ‘the Brick’: ALMA reveals an active protocluster in the Galactic centre cloud G0.253+0.016 (2021)
  • Author(s): Walker Daniel L、Longmore Steven N、Bally John、Ginsburg Adam、Diederik Kruijssen J M、Zhang Qizhou、Henshaw Jonathan D、Lu Xing、Alves Joao、Barnes Ashley T、Battersby Cara、Beuther Henrik、Contreras Yanett A、Gomez Laura、Ho Luis C、Jackson James M、Kauffmann Jens、Mills Elisabeth A C、Pillai Thushara
  • Journal Title: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Volume: 503 Issue: 1 Pages: 77-95
  • DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stab415
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] ALMA Observations of Massive Clouds in the Central Molecular Zone: Jeans Fragmentation and Cluster Formation (2020)
  • Author(s): Lu Xing、Cheng Yu、Ginsburg Adam、Longmore Steven N.、Diederik Kruijssen J. M.、Battersby Cara、Zhang Qizhou、Walker Daniel L.
  • Journal Title: The Astrophysical Journal Letters Volume: 894 Issue: 2 Pages: 14-14
  • DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ab8b65
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] CMZoom. II. Catalog of Compact Submillimeter Dust Continuum Sources in the Milky Way’s Central Molecular Zone (2020)
  • Author(s): Hatchfield H Perry、Battersby Cara、Keto Eric、Walker Daniel、Barnes Ashley、Callanan Daniel、Ginsburg Adam、Henshaw Jonathan D.、Kauffmann Jens、Kruijssen J. M. Diederik、Longmore Steve N.、Lu Xing、Mills Elisabeth A. C.、Pillai Thushara、Zhang Qizhou、et al.
  • Journal Title: The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series Volume: 251 Issue: 1 Pages: 14-14
  • DOI: 10.3847/1538-4365/abb610
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Cloud-cloud collision as drivers of the chemical complexity in Galactic Centre molecular clouds (2020)
  • Author(s): Zeng S、Zhang Q、Jimenez-Serra I、Tercero B、Lu X、Martin-Pintado J、de Vicente P、Rivilla V M、Li S
  • Journal Title: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Volume: 497 Issue: 4 Pages: 4896-4909
  • DOI: 10.1093/mnras/staa2187
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] CMZoom: Survey Overview and First Data Release (2020)
  • Author(s): Battersby Cara、Keto Eric、Walker Daniel、Barnes Ashley、Callanan Daniel、Ginsburg Adam、Hatchfield H Perry、Henshaw Jonathan、Kauffmann Jens、Kruijssen J. M. Diederik、Longmore Steven N.、Lu Xing、Mills Elisabeth A. C.、Pillai Thushara、Zhang Qizhou、et al.
  • Journal Title: The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series Volume: 249 Issue: 2 Pages: 35-35
  • DOI: 10.3847/1538-4365/aba18e
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] A Census of Early-phase High-mass Star Formation in the Central Molecular Zone (2019)
  • Author(s): Lu, Xing; Mills, Elisabeth A. C.; Ginsburg, Adam; Walker, Daniel L.; Barnes, Ashley T.; Butterfield, Natalie; Henshaw, Jonathan D.; Battersby, Cara; Kruijssen, J. M. Diederik; Longmore, Steven N.; Zhang, Qizhou; Bally, John; Kauffmann, Jens; Ott, Jurgen; Rickert, Matthew; Wang, Ke
  • Journal Title: The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series Volume: 244 Issue: 2 Pages: 35-55
  • DOI: 10.3847/1538-4365/ab4258
  • Peer Reviewed / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Star Formation Rates of Massive Molecular Clouds in the Central Molecular Zone (2019)
  • Author(s): Lu, Xing; Zhang, Qizhou; Kauffmann, Jens; Pillai, Thushara; Ginsburg, Adam; Mills, Elisabeth A. C.; Kruijssen, J. M. Diederik; Longmore, Steven N.; Battersby, Cara; Liu, Hauyu Baobab; Gu, Qiusheng
  • Journal Title: The Astrophysical Journal Volume: 872 Issue: 2 Pages: 171-204
  • DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ab017d
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Deciphering Star Formation Enigmas in the Central Molecular Zone (2021)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: East Asian ALMA Science Workshop 2021
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Witnessing Star Cluster Formation in the Central Molecular Zone (2020)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: East-Asian ALMA Science Workshop 2019
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Witnessing Formation of High-mass Star Clusters in the Central Molecular Zone (2019)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: Galatic Center Workshop 2019
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Star Formation Rates of Massive Molecular Clouds in the Central Molecular Zon (2019)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: Galatic Center Workshop 2019
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] A Census of Early Phase High-mass Star Formation in the inner Central Molecular Zone (2019)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: Galatic Center Workshop 2019
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Crouching Monsters: Deeply Embedded Star Formation in Massive Clouds in the Central Molecular Zone (2018)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: Tracing the Flow: Galactic Environments and the Formation of Massive Stars
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Star Formation Rates of Massive Molecular Clouds in the Central Molecular Zone (2018)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: ASJ 2018 Autumn Annual Meeting
• [Presentation] Low Star Formation Rates in Clouds but High Star Formation Efficiency in Dense Cores in the Central Molecular Zone (2018)
  • Author(s): Xing Lu
  • Organizer: East Asian ALMA Science Workshop 2018
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Remarks] ALMA science highlight
• [Remarks] NAOJ new release
  • URL: https://www.nao.ac.jp/en/news/science/2021/20210329-alma.html
• [Remarks] ALMA press release
  • URL: https://www.almaobservatory.org/en/press-releases/stellar-eggs-near-galactic-center-hatching-into-baby-stars/
• [Remarks] Nature research highlights
  • URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00907-1
• [Remarks] NSF research news
  • URL: https://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=302439
• [Remarks] Submillimeter Array Newsletter July 2019
  • URL: https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/sma/Newsletters/pdfFiles/SMA_NewsJuly2019.pdf
• [Remarks] Research & Publications
  • URL: https://xinglunju.github.io/research.html