protoplanetary disk
Let an agent describe protoplanetary disks by host star, structure, age and planet formation evidence, with sourced observations.
Research draft, second pass
A second pass drafted this model: the structure a model of this thing needs, and what is known about it in the world. The line under this one says how the second half was obtained - researched against sources, or recalled without web access, in which case nothing here was read anywhere and every claim is a lead to verify. Unreviewed either way.
written by Claude from model knowledge without web access - no source was read, every claim is a lead to verify
Researched by: Claude
Purpose and description
Let an agent describe protoplanetary disks by host star, structure, age and planet formation evidence, with sourced observations.
A rotating disk of gas and dust around a young star from which planets form, lasting a few million years; imaged as rings and gaps in some systems and seen as proplyds in star-forming regions such as Orion.
What it is for: Understanding how planets and planetary systems form.
It can be describe disk structure; relate gaps to possible planets; follow observations from radio and infrared telescopes; compare with debris disks.
Distinguishing features
Gas and dust around young stars
Sites of planet formation
Short-lived
Imaged with interferometers
What it looks like
Flattened disks with rings and gaps in high-resolution images.
Physical character
lifetime: about 1-10 million years
radius: about 10-1000 au - typical range
How it is recognised
Disks around young stars
Rings and gaps in millimetre images
Debris disks are later-stage
Related models
is a kind of - category
surrounds - host
forms - product
is contrasted with - later stage
In practice
Families and kinds
classical protoplanetary disks
transition disks
proplyds (photoevaporating disks)
circumbinary disks
Identifiers
host star designation catalogue ids systems
Standards and regulation
IAU nomenclature
Failure modes and hazards
Claiming planets from gaps without confirmation
Presenting images without noting processing
Also called
Where this came from
wikidata · CC0 1.0
Drafted structure
Bundle to layer to finding to question, as the second pass will find it: 4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions.
System Which disk.
Host and age.
Host
Star.
Host
Host star.
- Which young star hosts the disk? provenance
- How old is the system? measurement
Type
Classical or transition.
Type
Disk type.
- What type of disk is it? definition
- What distinguishes it? definition
Structure Rings and gaps.
Structure hints at planets.
Features
Rings, gaps, spirals.
Features
Disk features.
- Which rings, gaps or spirals are observed? provenance
- At what resolution? measurement
Planets
Evidence.
Planets
Planet evidence.
- Is there confirmed evidence of planets forming in the disk? boundary
- Or are gaps only suggestive? boundary
Composition Gas and dust.
Chemistry matters.
Dust
Grains.
Dust
Dust.
- What do observations reveal about dust grains? provenance
- How is dust mass estimated? measurement
Gas
Molecules.
Gas
Gas.
- Which molecules are detected? provenance
- What does that imply for planets? provenance
Observation Telescopes.
Interferometers image disks.
Instruments
Radio and infrared.
Instruments
Instruments.
- Which telescopes observed it? provenance
- In which wavelengths? definition
Images
Processing.
Images
Image processing.
- How was the image processed? provenance
- Are colours representative? boundary
What the second pass must settle
- Should disk types be separate entries?
- How should survey data be linked?
- How should planet claims be marked?