Letters of Intent received in 2019

LoI 2021-2078
Accretion and Outflow: From Planets to Active Galactic Nuclei

Topics

Growth and fragmentation in accretion disks
Timescales for disk dissipation
Accretion onto central objects
Outflows from central objects
The relationship between accretion and outflow

Rationale

Accreting systems, from planets to active galactic nuclei, span several orders of magnitude in size, but they are governed by similar physical processes. Material accretes onto a compact central object via a disk that transfers angular momentum, and some fraction of the material is ejected in outflows.

Needless to say, researchers who study this variety of systems (at all scales) are guided by similar key questions. What sets the conditions for growth and fragmentation in the disk? How long do disks last, how do they replenish and dissipate, and what do they leave behind? How does material accrete onto the central object, and how is accretion regulated? How much material is ejected and to what effect? What is the relationship between accretion and outflow?

We propose a GA symposium that addresses the astrophysics of accretion disks, outflows, and their interactions at all scales. We will blend observation and theory content throughout and facilitate interactions to discuss, collaborate, and possibly produce deliverables.

This interdisciplinary symposium is timely in light of recent results, e.g., ALMA and VLT images of disk structure in young stellar objects and increasing evidence for AGN obscuring outflows originating from disk winds. It is also well timed relative to ongoing and upcoming missions and projects, including TESS, HST’s ULLYSES program for UV spectroscopy of T Tauri stars, and the leap in sensitivity of IR spectroscopy expected from JWST.

We will pay particular attention to gender and seniority balance both in the invited and contributed content, with a goal of 40% women and of 50% junior scientists participation at all levels. We append a list of potential SOC members that we aim to contact in the upcoming weeks.

Young stellar systems:
Zhaohuan Zhu (University of Nevada Las Vegas)
Jon Bjorkman (University of Toledo)
Marina Romanova (Cornell University)
Carlo Manara (ESO)
Ilaria Pascucci (University of Arizona)
Cathy Clarke (Cambridge University)
Stella Offner (University of Texas)
Dan Watson (University of Rochester)
Simone Scaringi (Texas Tech University)
Catherine Espaillat (Boston University)

AGN:
Julia Comerford (University of Colorado Boulder)
Sarah Gallagher (University of Western Ontario)
Smita Mathur (Ohio State University)
Daniel Proga (University of Nevada)
Demos Kazanas (NASA)
Benny Trakhtenbrot (Tel-Aviv University)
Francoise Combes (Observatoire de Paris)
Chris Done (Durham University)
Sera Markoff (University of Amsterdam)
Victoria Grinberg (University of Tübingen)