MBM12: The Nearest Known Star-Forming Cloud

Thomas Hearty
Jet Propulsion Laboratory

At a distance of ~ 60 pc the MBM12 (L1453-L1454, L1457, L1458) is the
nearest known star forming cloud to the Sun and as such offers the best
opportunity to study the star formation process at very high sensitivity and
spatial resolution. I will review efforts to determine a more accurate
distance to the cloud. In addition, given the estimated age of the stars in
the cloud (< 10 Myr), MBM12 appears to be similar other nearby associations
of young stars like the TW Hydrae Association and the Eta Chamaeleontis
Cluster. However, since the stars in MBM12 are still associated with their
parent molecular cloud and there is evidence for disks around 6 of the 8
currently known T Tauri stars, MBM12 is probably at an earlier evolutionary
stage. Thus, MBM12 may explain the origin of these other associations.
Therefore, I will discuss recent observations of the T Tauri stars in the
cloud at X-ray, Optical, and Infrared wavelengths as well as future
prospects.