Physical Processes in Circumstellar Disks around Young Stars

Published by University of Chicago Press 2011

Physical Processes in Circumstellar Disks around Young Stars

Edited by: Paulo J. V. Garcia

https://doi.org/10.7208/9780226282305

Overview
Contents

About this book

Circumstellar disks are vast expanses of dust that form around new stars in the earliest stages of their birth. Predicted by astronomers as early as the eighteenth century, they weren’t observed until the late twentieth century, when interstellar imaging technology enabled us to see nascent stars hundreds of light years away. Since then, circumstellar disks have become an area of intense study among astrophysicists, largely because they are thought to be the forerunners of planetary systems like our own—the possible birthplaces of planets.

This volume brings together a team of leading experts to distill the most up-to-date knowledge of circumstellar disks into a clear introductory volume. Understanding circumstellar disks requires a broad range of scientific knowledge, including chemical processes, the properties of dust and gases, hydrodynamics and magnetohydrodynamics, radiation transfer, and stellar evolution—all of which are covered in this comprehensive work, which will be indispensable for graduate students, seasoned researchers, or even advanced undergrads setting out on the study of planetary evolution.

Author information

Paulo J. V. Garcia is associate professor in the Department of Engineering Physics and researcher with the Laboratory for Systems, Instrumentation and Modeling in Science and Technology for Space and the Environment, both at the University of Porto in Portugal.

Reviews

“Written by some of the leading experts in the field, Physical Processes in Circumstellar Disks around Young Stars provides a comprehensive explanation of the basic physics of planet-forming disks. It serves both as a valuable introduction and as a thoroughly researched sourcebook for all those in the field.”

— James E. Pringle, University of Cambridge

“The authors have provided a rigorous presentation of many aspects of a topic that is certain to become of increasing interest to astronomers as our inventory of extra-solar-system planets and types of planets continues to grow. The stimulating last chapter, by Cathie Clarke, leaves the reader with a number of questions to work on in the future, the most notable and surprising of which is, How do stars get rid of their disks as fast as observations say they must, and still have time to form planets?!”

— Virginia Trimble, University of California, Irvine

“These essays provide a deep, insightful presentation of the key theoretical issues relevant to understanding the protoplanetary disks that are likely sites for future planet formation. Physical Processes in Circumstellar Disks around Young Stars will certainly be a fundamental contribution to astrophysical literature.”

— Suzan Edwards, Smith College

Topics

General Interest

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	v
1. Circumstellar Disks around Young Stars Paulo J. V. Garcia, Antonella Natta and Malcolm Walmsley Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
2. Protoplanetary Disk Structure and Evolution Nuria Calvet and Paola D’Alessio Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	14
3. The Chemical Evolution of Protoplanetary Disks Edwin A. Bergin Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	55
4. Dust Processing and Mineralogy in Protoplanetary Accretion Disks Thomas Henning and Gwendolyn Meeus Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	114
5. Disk Hydrodynamics Richard H. Durisen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	149
6. Magnetohydrodynamics of Protostellar Disks Steven A. Balbus Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	237
7. The Effects of Large-Scale Magnetic Fields on Disk Formation and Evolution Arieh Königl and Raquel Salmeron Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	283
8. The Dispersal of Disks around Young Stars Cathie Clarke Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	355
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	419
List of Contributors Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	421

Language: English
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Main content: 440
Illustrations
- Other: 12 color plates, 15 halftones, 78 line drawings, 5 tables
Keywords: new stars; dust; circumstellar disks; space; astronomy; solar system; universe; birth of a star; astrophysics; technology; interstellar; planetary systems; planets; stellar evolution; radiation; magnetohydrodynamics; hydrodynamics; gases; chemical processes; chemistry; physics; science; nonfiction; formation; protoplanetary structure; magnetic fields; dispersal; mineralogy; accretion

eBook

Published: April 15, 2011
ISBN: 9780226282305