The results of the analysis of the occurrence of 22.2-GHz H_2_O maser emission in a sample of 1409 IRAS sources north of declination -30deg associated with star-forming regions are presented. Our sample contains all the IRAS sources that satisfy Emerson criteria for selecting molecular cores associated with the earliest evolutionary stages of the star-forming process. In a previous paper (Paper I, 1994MNRAS.266..123P), we have reported the results of the observations of about one third of the sample. In the present paper the observations of the remaining IRAS sources are presented: 18 of them are newly detected maser sources. The results show that 20 per cent of all IRAS sources that satisfy the Wood & Churchwell criteria have H2O water masers. This is in agreement with the assumption that these criteria select objects that are connected with the early phases of the evolution of high-mass star-forming regions. Moreover, about one third of the whole sample selected according to Emerson criteria contains IRAS sources that are not associated with massive star-forming processes, but probably with molecular cores in low-mass star-forming regions.

Cone search capability for table J/MNRAS/276/57/table2 (Subsample B)

Cone search capability for table J/MNRAS/276/57/table3 (Subsample C)

Cone search capability for table J/MNRAS/276/57/table1 (Subsample A)