Astronomy at the Open University 2017-2020

我们的研究计划，天文学在开放大学，涵盖了宇宙演化的广度，从暗能量到行星的诞生。我们通过观察、实验室实验、模拟和建模来进行这项研究。我们使用专门设计的实验室和仪器，以及望远镜和航天器上的仪器来进行观察和测量。我们的小组设在俄勒冈大学物理科学系，那么我们想知道什么呢？我们有8个独立的项目，从系外行星和恒星到遥远的星系。我们已经知道了很多关于太阳系是如何形成的。太阳和行星形成于大约45.7亿年前的尘埃和气体云。云坍缩成一个旋转的圆盘，尘埃和气体螺旋向内。圆盘的核心变热，形成了太阳，而剩余的尘埃和气体形成了行星。巨石在引力作用下聚集在一起形成行星，但没有人知道尘埃颗粒是如何变成巨石的。我们正在试验在零重力条件下碰撞厘米大小的粒子，看看它们是否粘在一起，以找到行星形成的缺失环节。我们还研究了导致恒星随着年龄的变化而变化的过程。直到最近人们才认识到，许多恒星都是双星系统，其中两颗或更多的恒星密切相关，并相互影响对方的运动。这样的系统影响着质量和能量从星星中损失的方式，以及它们如何转移到星际介质中。我们将研究“双星”如何影响大质量恒星（>20倍太阳质量）和低质量恒星（<太阳质量）的行为，以及星星种群如何随着年龄的增长而变化。研究这些影响是至关重要的，因为星星的环境会影响它周围的任何行星。已经发现了数百颗围绕其他恒星（系外行星）的行星，我们正在努力描述这些行星的性质范围，特别是当它们靠近中心星星时。一颗星星甚至可以完全摧毁一颗近距离的系外行星，这可能是附近宇宙甚至早期宇宙遥远星系中重要的新尘埃来源。同样在早期宇宙中，我们可以利用星系扭曲空间和时间的方式来了解它们周围的暗物质，以及驱使它们分开的暗能量。我们还能做什么？我们为地面望远镜和太空任务制造和测试仪器，努力使它们更小，更轻，并探索如何将它们用于地球上的医疗或安全目的。我们的研究最重要的好处之一是，它有助于培养和激励学生：下一代的科学家和工程师。我们也喜欢告诉尽可能多的人关于我们的工作，以及我们从中学到的关于我们的起源。

Our research programme, Astronomy at the Open University, covers the breadth of cosmic evolution, from dark energy to the birth of planets. We do this research by observation, laboratory experiments, simulations and modelling. We use purpose-designed laboratories and instruments, and instruments on telescopes and spacecraft to make our observations and measurements. Our group is based in the Department of Physical Sciences at the OU.So what are we trying to find out? We have 8 separate projects, from exoplanets and stars to distant galaxies. We already know a lot about how the Solar System came about. The Sun and planets formed from a cloud of dust and gas about 4570 million years ago. The cloud collapsed to a spinning disk and dust and gas spiralled inwards. The core of the disk became hot, forming the Sun, while the leftover dust and gas formed the planets. Boulders gravitated together to make planets, but no-one knows how the dust grains became boulders. We are experimenting with colliding centimetre-sized particles in zero-gravity conditions to see if they stick together, to find the missing link in how planets form. We also look at processes that cause stars to change as they age. Only recently has it been recognised that so many stars are binary systems, where two or more stars are in close association and affect each others' motion. Such systems affect the way mass and energy is lost from a star, and how they are transferred into the interstellar medium. We will study how 'binarity' affects the behaviour of massive stars (>20 times the mass of the Sun) and low mass stars (< the mass of the Sun), and how star populations change as they age. Studying these effects is vital, because the environment of a star influences any planets that surround it. Many hundreds of planets have been discovered around other stars (exoplanets) and we are working to describe the range of properties of these planets, especially when they are located close to their central star. A star can even completely destroy a close-in exoplanet, which could be an important new source of dust in the nearby universe and even in distant galaxies in the early Universe. Also in the early Universe, we can use the way that galaxies warp space and time to learn about the dark matter that surrounds them, and the dark energy that drives them apart.What else do we do? We build and test instruments for ground-based telescopes and for space missions, striving to make them smaller and lighter, and explore how they can be used on Earth for medical or security purposes. One of the most important benefits of our research is that it helps to train and inspire students: the next generation of scientists and engineers. We also enjoy telling as many people as possible about our work, and what we have learned from it about our origins.