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Circumstellar disk evolution: Constraining theories of planet formation
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 October 2008
Abstract
Observations of circumstellar disks around stars as a function of stellar properties such as mass, metallicity, multiplicity, and age, provide constraints on theories concerning the formation and evolution of planetary systems. Utilizing ground- and space-based data from the far–UV to the millimeter, astronomers can assess the amount, composition, and location of circumstellar gas and dust as a function of time. We review primarily results from the Spitzer Space Telescope, with reference to other ground- and space-based observations. Comparing these results with those from exoplanet search techniques, theoretical models, as well as the inferred history of our solar system, helps us to assess whether planetary systems like our own, and the potential for life that they represent, are common or rare in the Milky Way galaxy.
Keywords
- Type
- Contributed Papers
- Information
- Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 4 , Symposium S258: The Ages of Stars , October 2008 , pp. 111 - 122
- Copyright
- Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2009
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