Title:

Formation of Stars and Stellar Clusters in a Turbulent Interstellar Medium




Andreas Burkert
University of Munich


Abstract:

Star formation is one of the most important unsolved problems of
astrophysics. I will summarize recent models of star formation
in turbulent gas clouds and present new simulations of the
formation of stellar clusters including energetic feedback
processes that in the late phases destroy the surrounding
molecular cloud. The conditions that lead to the formation of
bound, dense star and globular clusters or to diffuse open
clusters will be analysed. Evidence will be discussed that star
formation is an initial condition problem and related to the
question of molecular cloud formation. This leads to the
conclusion that the small-scale process of star formation is
intimately coupled with the large-scale dynamics and evolution
of galaxies. The conditions are discussed that allow star
formation in a galaxy to proceed in a low, self-regulated mode
or that trigger runaway star bursts.