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Paper: Disks, Young Stars, and Radio Waves: The Quest for Forming Planetary Systems
Volume: 395, Frontiers of Astrophysics: A Celebration of NRAO's 50th Anniversary
Page: 193
Authors: Chandler, C.J.; Shepherd, D.S.
Abstract: Kant and Laplace suggested the Solar System formed from a rotating gaseous disk in the 18th century, but convincing evidence that young stars are indeed surrounded by such disks was not presented for another 200 years. As we move into the 21st century the emphasis is now on disk formation, the role of disks in star formation, and on how planets form in those disks. Radio wavelengths play a key role in these studies, currently providing some of the highest-spatial-resolution images of disks, along with evidence of the growth of dust grains into planetesimals. The future capabilities of EVLA and ALMA provide extremely exciting prospects for resolving disk structure and kinematics, studying disk chemistry, directly detecting protoplanets, and imaging disks in formation.
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