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[6.02] A FLAMINGOS Survey for Young Brown Dwarfs in the L1630 Molecular Cloud

J. L. Levine, E. A. Lada, R. J. Elston (University of Florida)

We present the results of a deep near-infrared (NIR) imaging survey of >6.1 square degrees in the Orion B (L1630) molecular cloud. With an average age of ~1 Myr, Orion B is ideal for the detection of brown dwarfs in their natal environments. Using FLAMINGOS on the KPNO 2.1m telescope, we have observed 50 individual 21'by 21' fields to depths of J~18.5, H~18.0, and K~17.5. Brown dwarf candidates in four young clusters (NGC 2023, NGC 2024, NGC 2068, NGC 2071), a number of star forming cores, and portions of the distributed cloud population are identified using NIR color-magnitude diagrams. A comparison of the brown dwarf fractions of these regions is presented to investigate variations in modes of brown dwarf formation. Specifically, is the formation of substellar objects restricted to dense clusters (as for low mass stars) or is there a distributed mode of formation unique to brown dwarfs?

This work has been supported by the National Science Foundation grants AST97-3367 and AST02-02976 to the University of Florida.

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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35#5
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.