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H. G. Arce (AMNH), N. Calvet (CfA), A. Sargent (Caltech)
In this study, we combine the complementary information obtained from Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) millimeter array observations of molecular gas around protostars and HST (WFPC2 and NICMOS) archival images of reflection nebulae to obtain the best information available on the physical and dynamical properties of infalling circumstellar envelopes and the outflow-envelope interaction. The HST images of protostellar nebulae probe the dust component of the envelope, and are the best tracers of the geometry of the cavities in the envelope down to regions very close to the central source. The interferometric molecular line observations from OVRO probe the gas component, which constitutes most of the mass, and provide kinematic information that directly reflects the energetics and directions of the outflows, and the distribution of the infalling gas. We plan to analyze the information provided by these two sets of data using scattered light models of protostellar envelopes of different geometries in which cavities due to infall and/or winds with different morphologies and strength have been carved. Preliminary results show that the cavities traced by nebular emission are most likely produced by the interaction of wide-angle protostellar winds and the stellar envelope, rather than by infall of the envelope material onto the forming star.
Support for this study is provided in part by an STScI HST Archival grant (HST-AR-09909.01-A). HGA is supported by an NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship under award AST-0401568.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 36 5
© 2004. The American Astronomical Society.