SPYGLASS. VI. Feedback-driven Star Formation in the Circinus Complex

Abstract

Young associations provide a record that traces the star formation process, and the youngest populations connect progenitor gas dynamics to the resulting stellar populations. We therefore conduct the first comprehensive overview of the Circinus Complex, an understudied and massive (∼1500 M _⊙ ) region consisting of approximately 3100 recently formed stars alongside the Circinus Molecular Cloud. We find a clear age pattern in the contiguous central region (CirCe), where younger stars are found farther from the massive central cluster, and where the velocities are consistent with uniform expansion. By comparing this structure to an analogous STARFORGE simulation, we find that the age structure and dynamics of the association are consistent with star formation in two stages: the global collapse of the parent cloud that builds the 500 M _⊙ central cluster ASCC 79, followed by triggered star formation in a shell swept up after the first massive stars form. We also find that filaments with a range of distances from the central cluster can naturally produce multigenerational age sequences due to differences in feedback strength and exposure. Outlying populations show velocities consistent with formation independent from the CirCe region, but with similar enough velocities that they may be difficult to distinguish from one another later in their expansion. We therefore provide a new alternative view of sequential star formation that relies on feedback from a single central cluster rather than the multiple sequential generations that are traditionally invoked, while also providing insight into the star formation history of older populations.

Keywords

• Stellar associations
• Stellar kinematics
• Stellar ages
• Star formation
• Star forming regions
• Pre-main sequence stars