Star Formation in Extreme Environments

极端环境中的恒星形成

• 批准号: 1764218
• 负责人: Jessica Lu
• 金额: $ 28.35万
• 依托单位: University of California-Berkeley
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2016-08-15 至 2020-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1764218&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Star; Formation; Extreme; Environments

The formation of stars is a fundamental astrophysical process that gives rise to planetary systems, enriches interstellar gas, and affects the formation and evolution of galaxies. Despite its importance, we still lack a predictive theory of star formation that has been tested over a broad range of environments. To test competing theories of star formation, we must extend beyond the neighborhood of our Sun. In this program, the team will study how stars form in extreme environments found in the Galaxy's most massive star clusters and at its center. Studying these distant, crowded, and dusty young star clusters requires high-fidelity images at infrared wavelengths. The team will precisely measure each star's motion in the sky to separate stars in the cluster, which move together, from contaminating field stars, which move more randomly. They will compare the young stars in these extreme environments to those found in our Sun's neighborhood, which will provide a deeper understanding of the physics of how stars form. The Ph.D. students working on this research will also share these and other results with undergraduate students in Hawaii by participating in education training and a practical teaching experience that emphasizes scientific inquiry and diverse learning styles. This investigation will concentrate on a small sample of massive young clusters throughout the Milky Way and determine how the properties of the stars and clusters change in different environments. The team will use infrared observations from the largest ground-based telescopes equipped with adaptive optics and from the Hubble space telescope. They have developed a suite of analysis tools that deliver some of the most precise star motions ever achieved at infrared wavelengths, which is essential when studying these star clusters. The team will measure the structure and dynamics of the clusters as well as the distribution of star masses. They will also compare the clusters in our sample with each other, with star clusters in the Sun's neighborhood, and with theoretical simulations. Taken together, this study of massive young clusters will provide powerful constraints on theories of star and cluster formation. Graduate students working on this research will also participate in an intensive professional development program through the Hawaii chapter of the Institute for Scientist and Engineer Educators, where they will train in inquiry-based teaching methods and diverse learning styles. They will gain practical experience by teaching in Hawaii-based venues that target under-served groups, including Native Hawaiians, at the undergraduate level. Both the scientific results and new inquiry activities developed through this program will be disseminated broadly to astronomers to multiply their impact.

恒星的形成是一个基本的天体物理过程，它产生了行星系统，丰富了星际气体，并影响了星系的形成和演化。尽管它很重要，但我们仍然缺乏一个经过广泛环境测试的恒星形成预测理论。为了验证恒星形成的相互竞争的理论，我们必须延伸到太阳附近以外的地方。在这个项目中，研究小组将研究在银河系最大的星团及其中心的极端环境中恒星是如何形成的。研究这些遥远的、拥挤的、充满尘埃的年轻星团需要红外波长的高保真图像。该团队将精确测量每颗恒星在天空中的运动，以将星团中一起运动的恒星与随机运动的污染恒星分开。他们将把这些极端环境下的年轻恒星与在太阳附近发现的恒星进行比较，这将对恒星形成的物理原理有更深入的了解。从事这项研究的博士生还将通过参加教育培训和强调科学探究和多样化学习方式的实践教学经验，与夏威夷的本科生分享这些和其他成果。这项调查将集中在整个银河系的一个小样本的大质量年轻星团，并确定恒星和星团的性质如何在不同的环境中变化。该团队将使用配备自适应光学系统的最大地面望远镜和哈勃太空望远镜进行红外观测。他们开发了一套分析工具，可以在红外波长下提供一些最精确的恒星运动，这在研究这些星团时是必不可少的。该小组将测量星团的结构和动力学以及恒星质量的分布。他们还会将我们样本中的星团相互比较，与太阳附近的星团进行比较，并与理论模拟进行比较。总的来说，这项对大质量年轻星团的研究将为恒星和星团形成的理论提供强有力的约束。从事这项研究的研究生还将通过科学家和工程教育工作者协会夏威夷分会参加一个密集的专业发展项目，在那里他们将接受探究式教学方法和多样化学习方式的培训。他们将在夏威夷的教学场所获得实践经验，目标是服务不足的群体，包括夏威夷原住民，在本科阶段。通过该项目开展的科学成果和新的探究活动将广泛传播给天文学家，以扩大其影响。