Unusually bright 12CO(3-2) condensations in the tidally perturbed Small Magellanic Cloud "tail"

Abstract

We report on recent observations of molecular clouds in the tidal Magellanic Bridge; specifically, the ∼kpc-long, tidally extended "tail" of the Small Magellanic Cloud. In particular, we identify an unusually high 12CO(3-2)/12CO(1-0) ratio of 2-3 to 1, toward one of the clouds, suggesting a warm and dense molecular material associated with imminent or current formation of stars. Our ∼ 6 pc-resolution observations show that the target clouds have only a general correlation with bright 24 μm emission regions, occasionally offset by up to ∼ 15 pc. These detections support the scenario that stars are actively being created in this uniquely nearby tidal filament, in the present epoch, and that star formation is ongoing at a range of evolutionary stages or rates. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Astronomical Society of Japan. All rights reserved.