An investigation into the physical processes of stellar variability: from accretion outbursts to the quiet Sun or Concerning stars

我们了解行星形成的大致轮廓，因为行星是在年轻恒星周围的圆盘中形成的。然而，重要的物理过程，如盘中的粘度和星子的形成，人们知之甚少。这使得预测行星形成过程的结果变得不可能，比如行星质量和轨道的分布。埃克塞特大学最近的研究表明，在行星形成过程中，当一股物质波穿过圆盘流向恒星时，圆盘会发生巨大的爆发。如果我们能在早期阶段发现这些爆发，并进行后续观察，就有可能深入了解这些圆盘的物理特性，从而了解行星的形成。新一代的巡天使我们有能力开展这项工作，从GAIA（目前正在彻底改变恒星天文学的欧空局任务）到大型综合巡天望远镜（2021-2年投入使用的8米望远镜，有可能每三天对整个可用天空进行成像）。但它们需要与定制的后续观察和创新软件（包括机器学习技术）相结合，这是该博士项目的核心。

We understand the broad outline of planet formation, in that planets form in the discs around young stars. However, important physical processes such as the viscosity in the disc and the formation of planetesimals are poorly understood. This makes it impossible to predict the outcomes of the planet-formation process, such as the distribution of planet masses and orbits. Recent work at Exeter has shown that during planet formation the disc can undergo huge outbursts, when a wave of material flows through the disc towards the star. If we can discover these outbursts in their early stages, and carry out follow-up observations they have the potential to give insights into the physics of these discs, and hence into planet formation.A new generation of sky surveys is giving us the ability to carry this work out, from GAIA (an ESA mission which is currently revolutionising stellar astronomy) to the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (an 8-m telescope commissioning in 2021-2 with the potential to image the entire available sky every three days). But they need to be coupled to the bespoke follow-up observations and the innovative software (including machine learning techniques) which form the core of this PhD project.