Star Formation and the Interstellar Medium

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" Star Formation and the Interstellar Medium "AST- 0098365Star formation is of central importance in modern astrophysics. Stars, particularly massive stars, have a profound effect on their environment through both the winds they produce and the radiation they emit. The overall goal of the research covered by this award is to understand how stars form from the turbulent interstellar medium and how, in turn, energy injection from stars determines the properties of the interstellar medium out of which the stars form. A series of investigations is proposed, each of which is concerned with the problem of star formation both in our galaxy and in disk galaxies other than our own. In our own galaxy, special attention will be given to the process of low-mass star formation. Star formation in large clusters will also be investigated. Large clusters contain stars much more massive than the Sun and it is not at all clear how star formation can even proceed in the presence of the environmental disruption produced by just the first few stars. A third effort addressed during the present award will be an attempt to understand the distribution of gas among various phases. The relative proportions of molecular, cold atomic and warm atomic gas will be determined which will lead in turn to a self-consistent star formation rate within galaxies in general.