Related papers: Infall and Disk Processes - the Message from Meteo…
Our current understanding of the physical processes of star formation is reviewed, with emphasis on processes occurring in molecular clouds like those observed nearby. The dense cores of these clouds are predicted to undergo gravitational…
The cycling of material from the interstellar medium (ISM) into stars and the return of stellar ejecta into the ISM is the engine that drives the "galactic ecology" in normal spirals, a cornerstone in the formation and evolution of galaxies…
Recent spatially-resolved observations of protoplanetary disks revealed a plethora of substructures, including concentric rings and gaps, inner cavities, misalignments, spiral arms, and azimuthal asymmetries. This is the major breakthrough…
Comets hold answers to mysteries of the Solar System by recording presolar history, the initial states of planet formation and prebiotic organics and volatiles to the early Earth. Analysis of returned samples from a comet nucleus will…
Protoplanetary disks composed of dust and gas are ubiquitous around young stars and are commonly recognized as nurseries of planetary systems. Their lifetime, appearance, and structure are determined by an interplay between stellar…
We present theoretical results on the galactic abundance gradients of several chemical species for the Milky Way disk, obtained using an improved version of the two-infall model of Chiappini, Matteucci, & Gratton (1997) that incorporates a…
Although petrologic, chemical and isotopic studies of ordinary chondrites and meteorites in general have largely helped establish a chronology of the earliest events of planetesimal formation and their evolution, there are several questions…
The abundances of elements in the Earth and the terrestrial planets provide the initial conditions for life and clues as to the history and formation of the Solar System. We follow the pioneering work of Bond et al. (2010) and combine…
The subject of satellite formation is strictly linked to the one of planetary formation. Giant planets strongly shape the evolution of the circum-planetary disks during their formation and thus, indirectly, influence the initial conditions…
The recent progress in instrumentation and telescope development has brought us different ways to observe protoplanetary disks, including interferometers, space missions, adaptive optics, polarimetry, and time- and spectrally-resolved data.…
Sulfur is a critical element to life on Earth, and with detections of sulfur-bearing molecules in exoplanets and comets, questions arise as to how sulfur is incorporated into planets in the first place. In order to understand sulfur's…
It has been consensus that star-disk systems accrete most of their mass and angular momentum during the collapse of a prestellar core, such that the rotational direction of a system is equivalent to the net rotation of the core. Recent…
Deep photometric surveys of the Milky Way have revealed diffuse structures encircling our Galaxy far beyond the "classical" limits of the stellar disk. This paper reviews results from our own and other observational programs, which together…
Planet formation occurs over a few Myr within protoplanetary discs of dust and gas, which are often assumed to evolve in isolation. However, extended gaseous structures have been uncovered around many protoplanetary discs, suggestive of…
Most stars form in dense stellar environments, where frequent close encounters can strongly perturb and reshape the early architecture of planetary systems. The solar system, with its rich population of distant comets, provides a natural…
In this review we discuss all the relevant solar/stellar radiation and plasma parameters and processes that act together in the formation and modification of atmospheres and exospheres that consist of surface-related minerals. Magma ocean…
A key challenge for protoplanetary disks and planet formation models is to be able to make a reliable connection between observed structures in the disks emission, like bright and dark rings or asymmetries, and the supposed existence of…
Using numerical hydrodynamics simulations we studied the gravitational collapse of pre-stellar cores of sub-solar mass embedded into a low-density external environment. Four models with different magnitude and direction of rotation of the…
The formation of a star is a dynamic process fed by the gravitational collapse of a molecular cloud core. Theoretical models and observations suggest that the majority of this infalling material settles into a protoplanetary disk before…
I review theoretical models of star formation and how they apply across the stellar mass spectrum. Several distinct theories are under active study for massive star formation, especially Turbulent Core Accretion, Competitive Accretion and…