On the formation of Perseus OB1 at high galactic latitudes

Abstract

The Per OB1 association, which contains the remarkable double cluster h and χ Per, is unusual in not having a giant molecular cloud in its vicinity. We show from Hipparcos data that the luminous members of this association exhibit a bulk motion away from the Galactic plane, such that their average velocity increases with height above the Galactic plane. We find HAeBe and T Tauri stars toward probable remnant molecular clouds associated with Per OB1. These star-forming regions lie well beyond the location of the luminous member stars at heights of 280-400 pc above the Galactic plane, far higher than that previously found for embedded clusters. We argue that the observed motion of the luminous member stars is most naturally explained if many formed from molecular gas pushed and accelerated outward by an expanding superbubble, driven presumably by stellar winds and perhaps also by supernova explosions. A large shell of atomic hydrogen gas and dust that lies just beyond the remnant molecular clouds, believed to be driven by just such a superbubble, may comprise the swept-up remains of the parental giant molecular cloud from which this association formed. In support of this picture, we find a weak trend for the younger O star members to lie at higher Galactic latitudes than the older supergiant members. The star-forming regions located at even larger heights above the Galactic plane presumably correspond to more recent episodes of star formation at or near the periphery of this superbubble. © 2008. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.