Identifying young stars in massive star-forming regions for the MYStIX project

Abstract

The Massive Young star-forming Complex Study in Infrared and X-rays (MYStIX) project requires samples of young stars that are likely members of 20 nearby Galactic massive star-forming regions. Membership is inferred from statistical classification of X-ray sources, from detection of a robust infrared excess that is best explained by circumstellar dust in a disk or infalling envelope and from published spectral types that are unlikely to be found among field stars. We present the MYStIX membership lists here, and describe in detail the statistical classification of X-ray sources via a "Naive Bayes Classifier." These membership lists provide the empirical foundation for later MYStIX science studies. © 2013. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.