gram is oriented around this question.
In the field of galactic research, the Institute concentrates
on the formation of stars in large interstellar clouds made of
gas and dust. In the field of extra-galactic astronomy, the focus
is on the question of the large-scale structure of the cosmos,
the search for the protogalaxies and research into active galaxies
and quasars. These are remote stellar systems with an enormous
radiation power. The observing astronomers are supported by a
theoretical group, which uses sophisticated computer simulations
to recreate processes in the universe extending over tens of thousands
or millions of years. In this way, the MPIA achieves a fruitful
synthesis of observation and theory.
Galactic Research
One important
aspect of galactic research at the MPIA is the formation of stars.
The very first phases of this process unfold in the interior of
the dust clouds, which mean that they remain hidden from our view
in visible light. However, infrared radiation is capable of penetrating
the dust, which is why this wavelength range is preferable for
studying the early stages of the birth of stars.
The newly born star is surrounded by a dense
equatorial dust disk in which the material can condense either
to form more stars or to form planets.
After a few million years, the disk finally disintegrates. This
is also how astronomers imagine the birth of our solar system,
4.5 thousand million years ago. Empirical evidence for the actual
existence of the protoplanetary disks began to be assembled more
intensively during the 1980’s, thanks in particular to a
great deal of work carried out at the MPIA. Nowadays, the following
questions are at the forefront of this Institute’s activities:
how many of the young stars form a disk around themselves, and
for how long can it exist? Which factors decide whether one or
more stars - or on the other hand planets - will form in a dust
disk of this sort? Over what period do the disks disintegrate?
One interesting phenomenon whose causes
are related to the dust disks is that of the collimated gas jets
which shoot out into space at high speed, perpendicularly to the
disk. These jets, whose cause has still to be clarified, are among
the bipolar flows - short-lived but fundamental phenomena in the
birth of stars - which have been studied intensively and with
great success at the MPIA since the start of the 1980’s (Chapter
IV.1). In every
