2012 Astronomy Lecture Series – Jessica Lu (UH)

<strong>Stars born in extreme environments</strong>

Many stars like the Sun were born in fairly quiet regions of the Milky Way galaxy.  Others formed in very extreme environments, including those around the supermassive black hole at the very center of the galaxy. Do stars and star clusters form differently in the extremely harsh environment near the Galactic Center?  We need the biggest telescopes equipped with laser-guided adaptive optics systems to explore how a star’s birth and life are different in these conditions.