{
  "id": "1002.0608",
  "version": "v2",
  "published": "2010-02-02T23:15:11.000Z",
  "updated": "2010-02-04T19:11:46.000Z",
  "title": "The Mass-Size Relation from Clouds to Cores. I. A new Probe of Structure in Molecular Clouds",
  "authors": [
    "J. Kauffmann",
    "T. Pillai",
    "R. Shetty",
    "P. C. Myers",
    "A. A. Goodman"
  ],
  "comment": "accepted to ApJ; references updated in new version",
  "categories": [
    "astro-ph.GA"
  ],
  "abstract": "We use a new contour-based map analysis technique to measure the mass and size of molecular cloud fragments continuously over a wide range of spatial scales (0.05 < r / pc < 10), i.e., from the scale of dense cores to those of entire clouds. The present paper presents the method via a detailed exploration of the Perseus Molecular Cloud. Dust extinction and emission data are combined to yield reliable scale-dependent measurements of mass. This scale-independent analysis approach is useful for several reasons. First, it provides a more comprehensive characterization of a map (i.e., not biased towards a particular spatial scale). Such a lack of bias is extremely useful for the joint analysis of many data sets taken with different spatial resolution. This includes comparisons between different cloud complexes. Second, the multi-scale mass-size data constitutes a unique resource to derive slopes of mass-size laws (via power-law fits). Such slopes provide singular constraints on large-scale density gradients in clouds.",
  "revisions": [
    {
      "version": "v2",
      "updated": "2010-02-04T19:11:46.000Z"
    }
  ],
  "analyses": {
    "keywords": [
      "mass-size relation",
      "spatial scale",
      "scale-independent analysis approach",
      "large-scale density gradients",
      "molecular cloud fragments"
    ],
    "tags": [
      "journal article"
    ],
    "publication": {
      "doi": "10.1088/0004-637X/712/2/1137",
      "journal": "The Astrophysical Journal",
      "year": 2010,
      "month": "Apr",
      "volume": 712,
      "number": 2,
      "pages": 1137
    },
    "note": {
      "typesetting": "TeX",
      "pages": 0,
      "language": "en",
      "license": "arXiv",
      "status": "editable",
      "inspire": 845328,
      "adsabs": "2010ApJ...712.1137K"
    }
  }
}