Setting the Stage for the Planet Formation Imager
John D. Monnier (University of Michigan), 48 endorsers

TL;DR
The paper discusses the planning and design of the Planet Formation Imager, a next-generation infrared interferometer array aimed at imaging planet formation processes and young exoplanets, highlighting scientific goals, technical challenges, and future activities.
Contribution
It defines a baseline architecture for PFI capable of achieving its science goals and identifies key technical challenges and activities needed to realize this facility.
Findings
PFI will enable imaging of active planet formation regions.
A baseline architecture for PFI is proposed.
Technical challenges include scaling telescope designs to 8 m-class.
Abstract
An international group of scientists has begun planning for the Planet Formation Imager (PFI, www.planetformationimager.org), a next-generation infrared interferometer array with the primary goal of imaging the active phases of planet formation in nearby star forming regions and taking planetary system 'snapshots' of young systems to understand exoplanet architectures. PFI will be sensitive to warm dust emission using mid-infrared capabilities made possible by precise fringe tracking in the near-infrared. An L/M band beam combiner will be especially sensitive to thermal emission from young exoplanets (and their circumplanetary disks) with a high spectral resolution mode to probe the kinematics of CO and H2O gas. In this brief White Paper, we summarize the main science goals of PFI, define a baseline PFI architecture that can achieve those goals, and identify key technical challenges…
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Taxonomy
TopicsStellar, planetary, and galactic studies · Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies · Astro and Planetary Science
