RCW 38: 624 Young Stellar Objects Cataloged via Spitzer and Chandra

624 young stellar objects are identified in the high-mass star-forming region RCW 38, including 23 class 0/I and 90 flat spectrum protostars. The catalog combines Spitzer IRAC and 2MASS infrared photometry with Chandra X-ray data to classify objects by their circumstellar material. This table was created by NASA HEASARC in January 2012 based on data from a published astrophysical study.

Use Cases

• Classifying young stellar object evolutionary stages based on infrared excess and X-ray luminosity criteria described in the study.
• Analyzing spatial subclustering of protostars and pre-main-sequence stars within the RCW 38 region.
• Studying infrared variability in young stellar objects, as 72 stars in the catalog exhibit this property.
• Investigating the gas-to-dust ratio in massive star-forming regions by comparing X-ray derived column density with K-band extinction.

Strengths

• Catalog contains 624 confirmed young stellar objects with specific classifications (23 class 0/I, 90 flat spectrum, 437 class II, 74 class III).
• Data is derived from multiple, established astronomical instruments (Spitzer IRAC, 2MASS, Chandra).
• The study provides evidence of three subclusters and distinct spatial distributions of stellar types within RCW 38.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The table excludes 177 tentative candidate YSOs, 24 candidate variable YSOs, and 21 candidate O-star members identified in the source paper.

Provenance

Source

NASA HEASARC, based on tables from a published paper in The Astrophysical Journal.

Collection Method

Combined Spitzer IRAC (3-8 micron) and 2MASS near-IR photometry with Chandra X-ray data to identify YSOs via IR-excess and X-ray luminosity.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 18:39:32.622041; freshness should be verified.

Geography

The RCW 38 star-forming region.