Detection of a Deeply Embedded Protocluster Candidate in NGC 602 with JWST
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2025
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| _version_ | 1866909782130032640 |
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| author | Meena, Beena Zeidler, Peter Sabbi, Elena Nota, Antonella Pacifici, Camilla Jones, Olivia C. |
| author_facet | Meena, Beena Zeidler, Peter Sabbi, Elena Nota, Antonella Pacifici, Camilla Jones, Olivia C. |
| contents | JWST NIRCam and MIRI photometry of NGC 602, a low-metallicity young star cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud, reveals an extended mid-infrared bright emission feature designated as MZS-1. This feature is prominent between 10 and 25.5 microns, but is extremely faint at 7.7 microns and entirely undetected at shorter wavelengths. MZS-1 exhibits an elliptical morphology with a major axis of approximately 8 arcseconds and a minor axis of about 4 arcseconds. Its elongated shape and multiple emission peaks in the two-dimensional flux map suggest a group of deeply embedded sources with blackbody-like temperatures ranging from 100 K to 140 K. SED fitting using the Robitaille 2017 model grids identifies these sources as Stage I young stellar objects (YSOs) with masses below approximately 3 solar masses and a total stellar mass of the protocluster of about 300 solar masses (based on a Salpeter IMF). The low YSO masses are consistent with their absence in Spitzer-based catalogs due to sensitivity limits. By revealing a deeply embedded, low-mass protocluster invisible in previous surveys, this work highlights JWST's unparalleled resolution and sensitivity in uncovering the earliest stages of low-mass cluster formation in the metal-poor regime. |
| format | Preprint |
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arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_09617 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Detection of a Deeply Embedded Protocluster Candidate in NGC 602 with JWST Meena, Beena Zeidler, Peter Sabbi, Elena Nota, Antonella Pacifici, Camilla Jones, Olivia C. Astrophysics of Galaxies Solar and Stellar Astrophysics JWST NIRCam and MIRI photometry of NGC 602, a low-metallicity young star cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud, reveals an extended mid-infrared bright emission feature designated as MZS-1. This feature is prominent between 10 and 25.5 microns, but is extremely faint at 7.7 microns and entirely undetected at shorter wavelengths. MZS-1 exhibits an elliptical morphology with a major axis of approximately 8 arcseconds and a minor axis of about 4 arcseconds. Its elongated shape and multiple emission peaks in the two-dimensional flux map suggest a group of deeply embedded sources with blackbody-like temperatures ranging from 100 K to 140 K. SED fitting using the Robitaille 2017 model grids identifies these sources as Stage I young stellar objects (YSOs) with masses below approximately 3 solar masses and a total stellar mass of the protocluster of about 300 solar masses (based on a Salpeter IMF). The low YSO masses are consistent with their absence in Spitzer-based catalogs due to sensitivity limits. By revealing a deeply embedded, low-mass protocluster invisible in previous surveys, this work highlights JWST's unparalleled resolution and sensitivity in uncovering the earliest stages of low-mass cluster formation in the metal-poor regime. |
| title | Detection of a Deeply Embedded Protocluster Candidate in NGC 602 with JWST |
| topic | Astrophysics of Galaxies Solar and Stellar Astrophysics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.09617 |