New insights in star and planet formation: the impacts of young stellar variability and forming planets on the structure of the circumstellar disks

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The formation of planetary systems within the dust- and gas disks around young stars is one of the most exciting areas of astrophysical research. Using the latest astronomical telescopes, it is possible to detect such disk structures as spiral arms, rings, gaps, or vortices, whose origin may be explained by the gravitational effects of forming planets. By studying these disk structures, we can infer the presence and properties of otherwise invisible planets. However, this task raises several currently unanswered questions: e.g., how does the radiation from stars affect the material in the disk, or what structures would form in the disk in the absence of planets? Our project aims to address two key problems through the collaboration of a Hungarian and a Chinese research group: (1) What is the effect on the composition and distribution of the disk material when material is falling onto the protostar and energy is released, particularly during outbursts? (2) How can we determine the mass, orbit, and other properties of planets from the structures observed in circumstellar disks? The foundation of the research is the observation of disks across multiple wavelengths, which will allow us to analyze the distribution of dust particles and molecules. In parallel, we will study the long-term effects on disk evolution due to variable radiation from young stars. We will use numerical simulations to understand the impact of planets with different masses and orbits on the disk structures, creating a "template library" from the results. With artificial intelligence, we will constrain planet parameters. We will utilize world-class instruments, including ESO/VLTI, NASA/IRTF, ALMA, Gaia, and the James Webb Space Telescope. The data and conclusions obtained during this research will significantly contribute to a deeper understanding of the evolution of the solar system and other planetary systems around far-away stars.

Recent results

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  • Publications
  • Talks
  • Proposals
  • Press releases

Inside the Cosmic Dust Trap: ALMA Unveils Secrets of Potential Planet Nursery around Young Star

Press release on HD 34282 at Konkoly Observatory's webpage in Hungarian and in English.

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PEBBLES: Protosolar-system Environments with BroadBand Look at Evolution of Solids

Prachi Chavan is part of the multi-wavelength dust analysis team of the accepted ALMA Large Program 2026.1.00994.L PEBBLES.

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Multi-frequency analysis of protoplanetary disks: Constraining dust properties across evolutionary classes

Prachi Chavan gave a contributed talk at the "Bridging It: Connecting Observations and Models of (Exo)planets and their Formation" conference in Heidelberg, Germany.

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The group submitted two ALMA proposals for high-resolution imaging of protoplanetary disks

ALMA

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Our Team at Konkoly Observatory

Ágnes Kóspál
PI, research advisor
Péter Ábrahám
research advisor
Prachi Chavan
research fellow
Botond Máté Marosi
BSc student
Bernadett Pál
research fellow
Zsolt Regály
senior research fellow
Zsolt Sándor
associate professor
Lis Zwicky
PhD student