Expectations vs Facts

The notion that the formation of planetary systems is a natural consequence of the formation of objects in the Milky Way galaxy, our home galaxy, is pervasive. Is this more than a belief?

Star Formation

Schematically, the star formation process is thought to go like:

How do our predictions fare when compared to detailed numerical simulations of the process?

• Animation of the sneaky trick nature played on us when we tried to form a binary star system (see also, for more spiral and bar formation).
• Work in progress:
  Star/Disk models and their evolution, one-armed spirals and star/disk systems.

A related, but separate issue concerns the origin of the Moon:

• approach
• impact
• accretion

The above scenario is a promising explanation for the origin of the Moon but, currently, no simulations can form the Moon out of the debris which was through into orbit. We are investigating possible ways in which we can help the process along to enable the Moon to form.

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