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The Young Stars & Star Formation group at the Universitäts-Sternwarte München (USM) of the Faculty of Physics at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München is lead by Prof. Dr. Thomas Preibisch. We perform, analyze, and interpret observations of individual young stars and whole star forming regions at optical, infrared, X-ray, and sub-mm wavelengths. The main areas of research are currently:
We study the properties and the circumstellar environment of selected Young Stellar Objects (YSOs) with various techniques, including infrared imaging, interferometry, and spectroscopy. One important aim is to investigate the structure and properties of the protoplanetary disks and to get new insight into the conditions for planets forming in these disks.
The very strong X-ray emission from young stars has far-reaching implications for the formation of planetary systems, and the evolution of protoplanetary atmospheres. X-ray observations are also an important tool for the investigation of the stellar populations of star-forming regions.
Most stars form in large clusters and associations, close to massive OB stars, which affect their environment by ionizing radiation, stellar winds, and, finally, supernova explosions. Studies of the stellar populations and the star formation history in OB associations provide important insights into interactions and feedback effects. We are also interested in the effect of the surroundings on the evolution of the protoplanetary disks around individual YSOs and the planets forming in these disks. |