Where Do Stars Form?

Abstract

Star formation occurs in a wide range of environments, from dense, active star-forming regions such as the Orion Nebula Cluster or 30 Doradus in the Large Magellanic Cloud, to more dispersed environments such as the Taurus molecular cloud or the precursors of OB Associations such as Scorpius-Centaurus. The characteristics of the parent star-forming environment can influence the detailed properties of individual stars, notably the extent and density of surviving protoplanetary discs. Thus, the relative proportion of star formation occurs in a wide range of environments, from dense, active star-forming regions such as the Orion Nebula Cluster or 30 Doradus in the Large Magellanic Cloud, to more dispersed environments such as the Taurus molecular cloud or the precursors of OB Associations such as Scorpius-Centaurus. The characteristics of the parent star-forming environment can influence the detailed properties of individual stars, notably the extent and density of surviving protoplanetary discs. Thus, the relative proportion of stars forming in these varied environments has implications for the distribution of properties of stars in the general field. This chapter gives an overview of the observational properties of these different environments and considers their likely contributions to the current field star population in the Galactic disc.