Michigan Astronomy

DirectoryDirectory

Jeffrey Fogel

Contact Information

1037 Dennison
500 Church St.
Ann Arbor, Mi 48109
Phone: 615-6138
Department Phone: (734) 764-3440
Fax: (734) 763-6317

Email: fogel (append "@umich.edu" to send email)
Homepage: http://www.astro.lsa.umich.edu/~fogel

Research Statement:

Until recently, the primary source of information about the formation of planetary systems had been determined from studying meteorites, comets and planetary atmospheres in our own solar system. With current millimeter-wave observatories, however, we are now able to detect numerous molecules in the proto-planetary disks that surround T Tauri stars. The purpose of my project is to model the chemical evolution of these disks in order to learn more about the initial conditions of planet formation.

Along with the proto-planetary disk chemistry I am working to characterize the chemical composition of a forming proto-planet. By comparing the chemistry of the forming planet with that of the disk as a whole my goal to be able to provide tracers that future telescopes such as ALMA can use to look for forming planets in these disks.