N. Smith (U. Colorado), E. B. Churchwell, B. Whitney, M. Meade, B. Babler (U. Wisconsin), J. Bally (U. Colorado), K. G. Stassun (Vanderbilt U.), J. A. Morse (ASU), R. D. Gehrz (U. Minnesota)
We present initial results of a relatively large-area survey of the Carina Nebula (NGC3372) using IRAC on the Spitzer Space Telescope. This survey of numerous dust pillars in the southern part of the nebula gives an unprecedented view of a giant molecular cloud being shredded by feedback from nearby massive stars, uncovering new generations of stars born simultaneously within the dust pillars. Most (but not all) of these dramatic dust pillars point back toward the massive star Eta Carinae, which may have been responsible for shaping them. Carina is our best available laboratory (young, nearby, and low reddening) for studying the feedback from the most massive stars known --- especially their effect on low- and intermediate-mass stars with protoplanetary disks. Carina is the only HII region outside Orion where a large population of candidate proplyds have been discovered, and those included within our Spitzer survey region are seen to harbor embedded stars. Spitzer has revealed dozens of sites of potentially triggered star formation within these dust pillars, including embedded clusters and embedded sources of jet outflows.
Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 37 #2
© 2005. The American Astronomical Soceity.