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UK funding (£1,488,222): A Programme in Astrophysical Theory and Observations at Leeds Ukri1 Apr 2017 UK Research and Innovation, United Kingdom
Overview
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A Programme in Astrophysical Theory and Observations at Leeds
| Abstract | This research programme principally addresses how stars and planets form from clouds of dust and gas. Stars form from the clouds of gas that occupy interstellar space and the small dust grains mixed in them. The clouds are highly filamentary and magnetic fields, that also pervade space, are likely to have had a role in shaping them, and controlling their collapse under gravity to form stars. We will conduct computer simulations to ascertain how the beginning of the formation of stars like our Sun takes place. The formation of stars much more massive than our Sun has proved to be much more problematic as they are rare and distant and produce prodigious amounts of radiation that blow material away rather than let it fall in. As the infalling material gets close in to the star we expect it to complete its journey in a thin disc orbiting the star. Detailed mapping of the molecular emission with the ALMA telescope is beginning to reveal these discs. We will significantly extend these initial discoveries and interpret the data with sophisticated models to find out how material flows into these discs. The rich spectra due to molecules at these wavelengths will be explored with novel data mining techniques to search for ways that we can trace changes over time as these stars form. The inner regions of these discs where the material completes its journey on to the forming star will be studied using the techniques of infrared interferometry. This reveals spatial information at levels 10 to 100 times better than the Hubble Space Telescope, where we may start to see the material being channelled by magnetic fields instead. At the same time that material is spiralling onto a star via a disc, some of it is being ejected at high speeds along the rotation axis, again most likely by magnetic fields. To follow these jets further out we will use the highly sensitive network of radio dishes in the UK, e-MERLIN, to map their emission. Comparison with complex models will show whether particles are being accelerated to relativistic speeds in these jets, further enhancing their potential impact on their environment. As massive stars finally begin to clear away the material from which they were born the combined effect of the winds driven by their strong radiation fields has a dramatic effect. As the winds slam into the molecular material and each other they get heated to millions of degrees and emit strongly in the X-ray region as observed with NASA's Chandra satellite. The most massive stars have such short lives of a few million years that they can blow up as supernovae whilst still surrounded by the remnants of the molecular clouds. Computer simulations will be used to tackle this problem to investigate how these processes can terminate the star formation episodes in giant molecular clouds. The discs that surround stars like the Sun as they are forming are the sites where planets form, built up from the coalescence of dust grains. This is only thought to occur in the quieter regions of the disc where turbulence due to the magnetic fields is less strong. We will perform calculations of the chemical effects that occur where the icy grains are sublimated that then affect their charge, and hence, magnetic properties. How the charged dust particles move relative to the gas is important in the formation process and that will be examined with sophisticated computer simulations. Near the end of the lives of stars, the very dust grains that begin the planet formation process are themselves produced. We will perform detailed chemical calculations to work out how these silicate minerals are built up from the gaseous elements in the rich, cool, atmospheres of giant stars. Many of these heavier elements themselves are first made in the exploding stars known as supernovae. We will perform state-of-the-art simulations of the thermo-nuclear detonation of these stars, and examine how this affects the production of elements in the cosmos. |
| Category | Research Grant |
| Reference | ST/P00041X/1 |
| Status | Closed |
| Funded period start | 01/04/2017 |
| Funded period end | 31/03/2021 |
| Funded value | £1,488,222.00 |
| Source | https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ST%2FP00041X%2F1 |
Participating Organisations
| University of Leeds | |
| National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) | |
| Liverpool John Moores University | |
| University of Calgary | |
| DePaul University | |
| Catania Astrophysical Observatory | |
| University of Leuven | |
| National Institute for Astrophysics | |
| European Space Agency | |
| Saclay Nuclear Research Centre | |
| Harvard University | |
| Observatory of Paris | |
| University of Colorado | |
| Leiden University | |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison | |
| University of Toronto | |
| Sapienza University of Rome | |
| Nagoya University | |
| University of Amsterdam | |
| University of Jaen | |
| National Autonomous University of Mexico | |
| University of Rome Tor Vergata | |
| National Astronomical Observatories of China | |
| University of Tasmania | |
| Marseille Observatory | |
| NRC Canada | |
| Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation | |
| UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON | |
| Monash University | |
| Catholic University of Louvain | |
| University of Lancashire | |
| CARDIFF UNIVERSITY | |
| University of Sydney | |
| University of Hertfordshire | |
| Imperial College London | |
| University of Laval | |
| UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER | |
| University of California, Berkeley | |
| University of Maryland | |
| Max Planck Society | |
| University of Oxford | |
| University Of New South Wales | |
| Boston University | |
| University of Cambridge | |
| Rutherford Appleton Laboratory | |
| Armagh Observatory and Planetarium | |
| University of Southampton | |
| Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) | |
| Instituto de Radioastronomía Milimétrica | |
| University of Barcelona | |
| European Southern Observatory (ESO) | |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) | |
| Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory | |
| University of Western Australia | |
| Queen's University Belfast | |
| University of Cologne | |
| National Astronomical Research Institute Of Thailand | |
| Durham University | |
| Laboratory of Astrophysics of Bordeaux | |
| Chalmers University of Technology | |
| California Institute of Technology | |
| UNIVERSITY OF EXETER | |
| University of Bristol |
The filing refers to a past date, and does not necessarily reflect the current state. The current state is available on the following page: University of Leeds, Leeds.
