Hierarchy and size distribution function of star formation regions in the spiral galaxy NGC 628

Abstract

Hierarchical structures and the size distribution of star formation regions in the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 628 are studied over a range of scales from 50 to 1000 pc using optical images obtained with the 1.5-m telescope of the Maidanak Observatory.We have found hierarchically structured concentrations of star formation regions in the galaxy, and smaller regions with a higher surface brightness are located inside larger complexes that have a lower surface brightness. We illustrate this hierarchy using a dendrogram, or structure tree, of the detected star formation regions, which demonstrates that most of these regions are combined into larger structures over several levels. We have found three characteristic sizes of young star groups: ≈65 pc (OB associations), ≈240 pc (stellar aggregates) and ≈600 pc (star complexes). The cumulative size distribution function of star formation regions is found to be a power law with a slope of approximately -1.5 on scales appropriate to diameters of associations, aggregates and complexes. This slope is close to the slope found earlier by B. Elmegreen et al. for star formation regions in the galaxy on scales from 2 to 100 pc.© 2014 The Author Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.