Early Stages of Massive Protostars and Dusty Galaxies: Integrating the Observational and Theoretical Arenas

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AST-0502503Chakrabarti, SukanyaDr. Chakrabarti is awarded an NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship to carry out a program of research and education at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Dr. Chakrabarti will accurately determine the mass spectrum of prestellar cores in massive star-forming regions by application of a radiative transfer model. She will calculate the stability of embedded sources in flattened structures by using the results of self-consistent, two-dimensional radiative transfer solutions. Having determined the stability of these structures, Dr. Chakrabarti will perform collapse solutions of massive cores and calculate the full three-dimensional radiative transfer solutions of the resultant density structures. To resolve the current interpretational dilemma of massive disk-like structures, Dr. Chakrabarti will compare these solutions to observations of massive cores in their early embedded stages.Dr. Chakrabarti will also carry out a program to promote and encourage the representation of women in the physical sciences. Her program will consist of three components: creating a Society for Women in the Physical Sciences (SWPS) chapter and launching and organizing mentoring activities for the new group; creating a scientific exchange forum geared towards presentations by women and minorities in physics and astronomy on their current research; and sponsoring a colloquium series to bring female and minority scientists from major U.S. research institutions to speak and interact with students, postdoctoral scholars and faculty.