C2D: Millimeter Sources Catalog for Three Molecular Clouds

A catalog of millimeter sources observed toward the Ophiuchus, Perseus, and Serpens molecular clouds as part of the Cores to Disks (C2D) Spitzer Legacy Program. The program used Spitzer instruments to observe sources spanning the evolutionary sequence from molecular cores to protoplanetary disks. The catalog was created by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and was last updated in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Identify candidate protostars and substellar objects based on millimeter-wavelength observations.
• Study the evolution of circumstellar dust, the raw material for planetary cores, in systems up to about 10 Myr old.
• Compare star-forming environments across a range of cloud masses and stellar masses.
• Cross-reference millimeter sources with infrared data from Spitzer's IRAC, MIPS, and IRS instruments.

Strengths

• Data originates from the Spitzer Space Telescope's three instruments (IRAC, MIPS, IRS), a major NASA observatory.
• Targets about 150 known compact cores and surveys five of the nearest large molecular clouds.
• Observes about 190 systems likely in early stages of planetary system formation.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect observational bias inherent to the specific molecular clouds and instruments used.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Observational data from the Spitzer Space Telescope's Cores to Disks (C2D) Legacy Program, specifically from ancillary Bolocam millimeter observations.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 16:52:38.522583; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Ophiuchus (OPH), Perseus (PER), and Serpens (SER) molecular clouds.