Dr. Jonathan Tan (University of Florida)

"Turmoil in Orion: The Nearest Massive Protostar"

Abstract:
Massive star formation is a complicated process, so theories describing it
need to be tested closely against observations. The Orion KL nebula,
inside the Orion Nebular Cluster, is the nearest and best-studied region
that is thought to harbor a massive protostar. Unfortunately, it
exhibits great complexity and there is good evidence that the gas has been
influenced by some unusual dynamical events in the last 1000 years. I
review the observations of this region and describe how a model of massive
star formation from turbulent massive gas cores is still very relevant to
understanding what is happening in Orion KL.