The APEX Telescope Large Area Survey of the Galaxy (ATLASGAL) is an unbiased 870 µm submillimetre survey of the inner Galactic plane (| | < 60 • with |b| < 1.5 • ). It is the largest and most sensitive ground-based submillimetre wavelength Galactic survey to date and has provided a large and systematic inventory of all massive, dense clumps in the Galaxy (≥1000 M at a heliocentric distance of 20 kpc) and includes representative samples of all of the earliest embedded stages of high-mass star formation. Here we present the first detailed census of the properties (velocities, distances, luminosities and masses) and spatial distribution of a complete sample of ∼8000 dense clumps located in the Galactic disk (5 • < | | < 60 • ). We derive highly reliable velocities and distances to ∼97 per cent of the sample and use midand far-infrared survey data to develop an evolutionary classification scheme that we apply to the whole sample. Comparing the evolutionary subsamples reveals trends for increasing dust temperatures, luminosities and line-widths as a function of evolution indicating that the feedback from the embedded proto-clusters is having a significant impact on the structure and dynamics of their natal clumps. We find that the vast majority of the detected clumps are capable of forming a massive star and 88 per cent are already associated with star formation at some level. We find the clump mass to be independent of evolution suggesting that the clumps form with the majority of their mass in-situ. We estimate the statistical lifetime of the quiescent stage to be ∼5×10 4 yr for clump masses ∼1000 M decreasing to ∼1×10 4 yr for clump masses >10000 M . We find a strong correlation between the fraction of clumps associated with massive stars and peak column density. The fraction is initially small at low column densities but reaching 100 per cent for column densities above 10 23 cm −2 ; there are no clumps with column density clumps above this value that are not already associated with massive star formation. All of the evidence is consistent with a dynamic view of star formation wherein the clumps form rapidly and are initially very unstable so that star formation quickly ensues.

Context. While low mass clouds have been relatively well studied, our picture of high-mass star formation remains unclear. Infrared Dark Clouds appear to be the long sought population of cold and dense aggregations with the potential of harbouring the earliest stages of massive star formation. Up to now there has been no systematic study on the temperature distribution, velocity fields, chemical and physical state toward this new cloud population. Aims. Knowing these properties is crucial for understanding the presence, absence and the very potential of star formation. The present paper aims at addressing these questions. We analyse temperature structures and velocity fields and gain information on their chemical evolution. Methods. We mapped the (J, K) = (1, 1) and (2, 2) inversion transitions of ammonia in 9 infrared dark clouds. Our observations allow the most reliable determination of gas temperatures in IRDCs to date. Results. The gas emission is remarkably coextensive with the extinction seen at infrared wavelengths and with the submillimeter dust emission. Our results show that IRDCs are on average cold (T < 20 K) and have variations among the different cores. IRDC cores are in virial equilibrium, are massive (M > 100 M ), highly turbulent (1-3 km s −1 ) and exhibit significant velocity structure (variations around 1-2 km s −1 over the cloud). Conclusions. We find an increasing trend in temperature from IRDCs with high ammonia column density to high mass protostellar objects and Ultracompact H regions, stages of early warm high-mass star formation. The linewidths of IRDCs are smaller than those observed in high mass protostellar objects and hot core/Ultracompact H regions. On basis of this sample, and by comparison of the ammonia gas properties within a cloud and between different clouds, we infer that while active star formation is not yet pervasive in most IRDCs, local condensations might collapse in the future or have already begun forming stars.

Context. The Galactic center is the closest region where we can study star formation under extreme physical conditions like those in high-redshift galaxies. Aims. We measure the temperature of the dense gas in the central molecular zone (CMZ) and examine what drives it. Methods. We mapped the inner 300 pc of the CMZ in the temperature-sensitive J = 3-2 para-formaldehyde (p-H 2 CO) transitions. We used the 3 2,1 −2 2,0 / 3 0,3 −2 0,2 line ratio to determine the gas temperature in n ∼ 10 4 −10 5 cm −3 gas. We have produced temperature maps and cubes with 30 and 1 km s −1 resolution and published all data in FITS form. Results. Dense gas temperatures in the Galactic center range from ∼60 K to >100 K in selected regions. The highest gas temperatures T G > 100 K are observed around the Sgr B2 cores, in the extended Sgr B2 cloud, the 20 km s −1 and 50 km s −1 clouds, and in "The Brick" (G0.253+0.016). We infer an upper limit on the cosmic ray ionization rate ζ CR < 10 −14 s −1 . Conclusions. The dense molecular gas temperature of the region around our Galactic center is similar to values found in the central regions of other galaxies, in particular starburst systems. The gas temperature is uniformly higher than the dust temperature, confirming that dust is a coolant in the dense gas. Turbulent heating can readily explain the observed temperatures given the observed line widths. Cosmic rays cannot explain the observed variation in gas temperatures, so CMZ dense gas temperatures are not dominated by cosmic ray heating. The gas temperatures previously observed to be high in the inner ∼75 pc are confirmed to be high in the entire CMZ.

Whether or not molecular clouds and embedded cloud fragments are stable against collapse is of utmost importance for the study of the star formation process. Only "supercritical" cloud fragments are able to collapse and form stars. The virial parameter α = M vir /M, which compares the virial mass to the actual mass, provides one way to gauge stability against collapse. Supercritical cloud fragments are characterized by α 2, as indicated by a comprehensive stability analysis considering perturbations in pressure and density gradients. Past research has suggested that virial parameters α 2 prevail in clouds. This would suggest that collapse toward star formation is a gradual and relatively slow process and that magnetic fields are not needed to explain the observed cloud structure. Here, we review a range of very recent observational studies that derive virial parameters 2 and compile a catalog of 1325 virial parameter estimates. Low values of α are in particular observed for regions of high-mass star formation (HMSF). These observations may argue for a more rapid and violent evolution during collapse. This would enable "competitive accretion" in HMSF, constrain some models of "monolithic collapse," and might explain the absence of high-mass starless cores. Alternatively, the data could point at the presence of significant magnetic fields ∼1 mG at high gas densities. We examine to what extent the derived observational properties might be biased by observational or theoretical uncertainties. For a wide range of reasonable parameters, our conclusions appear to be robust with respect to such biases.

We present 1.3mm continuum and spectral line images of two massive molecular clumps P1 and P2 in the G28.34+0.06 region with the Submillimeter Array. While the two clumps contain masses of 1000 and 880 M ⊙ , respectively, P1 has a luminosity < 10 2 L ⊙ , and a lower gas temperature and smaller line width than P2. Thus, P1 appears to be at a much earlier stage of massive star formation than P2. The high resolution SMA observations reveal two distinctive cores in P2 with masses of 97 and 49 M ⊙ , respectively. The 4 GHz spectral bandpass captures line emission from CO isotopologues, SO, CH 3 OH, and CH 3 CN, similar to hot molecular cores harboring massive young stars. The P1 clump, on the other hand, is resolved into five cores along the filament with masses from 22 to 64 M ⊙ and an average projected separation of 0.19 pc. Except 12 CO, no molecular line emission is detected toward the P1 cores at a 1σ rms of 0.1 K. Since strong 12 CO and C 18 O emissions are seen with the single dish telescope at a resolution of 11 ′′ , the non-detection of these lines with the SMA indicates a depletion factor upto 10 3 . While the spatial resolution of the SMA is better than the expected Jeans length, the masses in P1 cores are much larger than the thermal Jeans mass, indicating the importance of turbulence and/or magnetic fields in cloud fragmentation. The hierarchical structures in the P1 region provide a glimpse of the initial phase of massive star and cluster formation.

We present a new assessment of the ability of Infrared Dark Clouds (IRDCs) to form massive stars and clusters. This is done by comparison with an empirical mass-size threshold for massive star formation (MSF). We establish m(r) > 870 M ⊙ (r/pc) 1.33 as a novel approximate MSF limit, based on clouds with and without MSF. Many IRDCs, if not most, fall short of this threshold. Without significant evolution, such clouds are unlikely MSF candidates. This provides a first quantitative assessment of the small number of IRDCs evolving towards MSF. IRDCs below this limit might still form stars and clusters of up to intermediate mass, though (like, e.g., the Ophiuchus and Perseus Molecular Clouds). Nevertheless, a major fraction of the mass contained in IRDCs might reside in few 10 2 clouds sustaining MSF.

We present SMA λ = 0.88 and 1.3 mm broad-band observations, and VLA observations in NH 3 (J, K) = (1,1) up to (5,5), H 2 O and CH 3 OH maser lines toward the two most massive molecular clumps in IRDC G11.11-0.12. Sensitive high-resolution images reveal hierarchical fragmentation in dense molecular gas from the ∼1 pc clump scale down to ∼0.01 pc condensation scale. At each scale, the mass of the fragments is orders of magnitude larger than the Jeans mass. This is common to all four IRDC clumps we studied, suggesting that turbulence plays an important role in the early stages of clustered star formation. Masers, shock heated NH 3 gas, and outflows indicate intense ongoing star formation in some cores while no such signatures are found in others. Furthermore, chemical differentiation may reflect the difference in evolutionary stages among these star formation seeds. We find NH 3 ortho/para ratios of 1.1 ± 0.4, 2.0 ± 0.4, and 3.0 ± 0.7 associated with three outflows, and the ratio tends to increase along the outflows downstream. Our combined SMA and VLA observations of several IRDC clumps present the most in depth view so far of the early stages prior to the hot core phase, revealing snapshots of physical and chemical properties at various stages along an apparent evolutionary sequence.

Using spectral-line observations of HNCO, N 2 H + , and HNC, we investigate the kinematics of dense gas in the central ∼ 250 pc of the Galaxy. We present scouse (Semi-automated multi-COmponent Universal Spectral-line fitting Engine), a line-fitting algorithm designed to analyse large volumes of spectral-line data efficiently and systematically. Unlike techniques which do not account for complex line profiles, scouse accurately describes the {l, b, v LSR } distribution of Central Molecular Zone (CMZ) gas, which is asymmetric about Sgr A* in both position and velocity. Velocity dispersions range from 2.6 km s −1 < σ < 53.1 km s −1 . A median dispersion of 9.8 km s −1 , translates to a Mach number, M 3D 28. The gas is distributed throughout several "streams", with projected lengths ∼ 100 − 250 pc. We link the streams to individual clouds and sub-regions, including Sgr C, the 20 and 50 km s −1 clouds, the dust ridge, and Sgr B2. Shell-like emission features can be explained by the projection of independent molecular clouds in Sgr C and the newly identified conical profile of Sgr B2 in {l, b, v LSR } space. These features have previously invoked supernova-driven shells and cloud-cloud collisions as explanations. We instead caution against structure identification in velocity-integrated emission maps. Three geometries describing the 3-D structure of the CMZ are investigated: i) two spiral arms; ii) a closed elliptical orbit; iii) an open stream. While two spiral arms and an open stream qualitatively reproduce the gas distribution, the most recent parameterisation of the closed elliptical orbit does not. Finally, we discuss how proper motion measurements of masers can distinguish between these geometries, and suggest that this effort should be focused on the 20 km s −1 and 50 km s −1 clouds and Sgr C.