High Resolution Near-Infrared Survey of the Pipe Nebula I: A Deep
  Infrared Extinction Map of Barnard 59
  We present our analysis of a fully sampled, high resolution dust extinction
map of the Barnard 59 complex in the Pipe Nebula. The map was constructed with
the infrared color excess technique applied to a photometric catalog that
combines data from both ground and space based observations. The map resolves
for the first time the high density center of the main core in the complex,
that is associated with the formation of a small cluster of stars. We found
that the central core in Barnard 59 shows an unexpected lack of significant
substructure consisting of only two significant fragments. Overall, the
material appears to be consistent with being a single, large core with a
density profile that can be well fit by a King model. A series of NH$_3$
pointed observations towards the high column density center of the core appear
to show that the core is still thermally dominated, with sub-sonic non-thermal
motions. The stars in the cluster could be providing feedback to support the
core against collapse, but the relatively narrow radio lines suggest that an
additional source of support, for example a magnetic field, may be required to
stabilize the core. Outside the central core our observations reveal the
structure of peripheral cores and resolve an extended filament into a handful
of significant substructures whose spacing and masses appear to be consistent
with Jeans fragmentation.
