English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

The low metallicities of dwarf irregular galaxies (dIrr) greatly influencethe formation and structure of molecular clouds. These clouds, which consistprimarily of H$_2$, are typically traced by CO, but low metallicity galaxiesare found to have little CO despite ongoing star formation. In order to probethe conditions necessary for CO core formation in dwarf galaxies, we have usedthe catalog of Rubio et al. (2022, in preparation) for CO cores in WLM, a LocalGroup dwarf with an oxygen abundance that is 13% of solar. Here we aim tocharacterize the galactic environments in which these 57 CO cores formed. Wegrouped the cores together based on proximity to each other and strong FUVemission, examining properties of the star forming region enveloping the coresand the surrounding environment where the cores formed. We find that high HIsurface density does not necessarily correspond to higher total CO mass, butregions with higher CO mass have higher HI surface densities. We also find thecores in star forming regions spanning a wide range of ages show no correlationbetween age and CO core mass, suggesting that the small size of the cores isnot due to fragmentation of the clouds with age. The presence of CO cores in avariety of different local environments, along with the similar propertiesbetween star forming regions with and without CO cores, leads us to concludethat there are no obvious environmental characteristics that drive theformation of these CO cores.

The Environments of CO Cores and Star Formation in the Dwarf Irregular Galaxy WLM