Low Mass Stars as Tracers of Star Formation in Diverse Environments

Background: low-mass starsare the dominant product of the star formationprocess, and they trace star formationover the full range of environments, from isolated globules to clusters in the central molecular zone. In the past two decades, our understanding of the spatial distribution and properties of young low-mass starsand protostarshas been revolutionized by sensitive space-based observations at X-ray and IR wavelengths. By surveying spatial scales from clusters to molecular clouds, these data provide robust measurements of key star formationproperties. Goal: with their large numbers and their presence in diverse environments, censuses of low mass starsand protostarscan be used to measure the dependence of star formationon environmental properties, such as the density and temperature of the natal gas, strengths of the magnetic and radiation fields, and the density of stars. Here we summarize how such censuses can answer three basic questions: i.) how is the star formationrate influenced by environment, ii.) does the IMF vary with environment, and iii.) how does the environment shape the formation of bound clusters? Answering these questions is an important step toward understanding starand cluster formation across the extreme range of environments found in the Universe. Requirements: sensitivity and angular resolutionimprovements will allow us to study the full range of environments found in the Milky Way. High spatial dynamic range ( 1degree scales) imaging with space-based telescopes at X-ray, mid-IR, and far-IR and ground-based facilities at near-IR and sub-mm wavelengths are needed to identify and characterize young stars.