Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: Young massive star clusters (YMCs; ${\gtrsim}10^4\rm\,M_\odot$) represent a distinct, extreme mode of star formation and the closest present-day analogues of the environments in which globular clusters and Cosmic Noon stellar populations assembled. Given the extreme dust extinction in the earliest phase of YMC formation, (sub-)millimeter observations are the only means of probing their assembly and early feedback. Pioneering works with ALMA are limited to individual region studies and to the most massive YMCs in them, leaving many open questions about the initial conditions of YMC formation, the integrated star and cluster formation efficiencies, the dominant pre-supernova feedback channels, and the prevalence and reach of cluster-driven outflows. ALMA2040 will enable mass-complete, resolved surveys in hundreds of host galaxies, transforming the study of massive cluster formation and feedback from individual case analyses into statistical measurements across the full range of galactic environments.
Source: arXiv (Cornell University)
Institutions: University of Kentucky, Space Telescope Science Institute, University of Copenhagen, University of Maryland, College Park, National Radio Astronomy Observatory, University of Florida, The Ohio State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Kansas, University of Michigan, Spanish National Observatory, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, University of Manchester
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7222526555