Surface Astrophysics
The regions of space between the stars are commonly known as the interstellar
medium. In some regions of the interstellar medium giant clouds of gas
and dust agglomerate together, and it is here that new stars and planetary
systems are forming. Most of these 'clouds' are only visible because they
obscure the background starlight from reaching the Earth. The chemical
and physical processes that govern the star formation in these clouds are
very poorly understood, and it has become clear over the last decade that
gas-phase schemes alone cannot account for the variety and richness of
chemistry that is occurring in the interstellar medium. Consequently, gas-dust
interactions must also play a key role, so here in Nottingham we have
constructed an experiment to simulate the harsh interstellar conditions
and investigate the gas-dust interactions that are occurring there.
The Surface Astrophysics experiment is part of 
Nottingham Astronomy Research Forum
and is based in the Surface
Science Group in the School
of Chemistry at the University
of Nottingham
These pages were last updated 14/10/01
