LRP2020: Signposts of planet formation in protoplanetary disks

TL;DR

Recent high-resolution observations of protoplanetary disks have significantly advanced our understanding of planet formation, revealing complex structures and raising new questions that require next-generation instruments for further exploration.

Contribution

This paper reviews recent observational breakthroughs in protoplanetary disks and discusses future challenges and directions for connecting theory with observations in planet formation.

Findings

Disks show rings, gaps, asymmetries, and spiral arms.

High sensitivity enables large surveys and molecular studies.

Observations are transforming models of planet and disk evolution.

Abstract

Successful exoplanet surveys in the last decade have revealed that planets are ubiquitous throughout the Milky Way, and show a large diversity in mass, location and composition. At the same time, new facilities such as the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and optical/infrared facilities including Gemini/GPI have provided us with sharper images than ever before of protoplanetary disks around young stars, the birth cradles of planets. The high spatial resolution has revealed astonishing structures in disks, such as rings, gaps, asymmetries and spiral arms, and the enormous jump in sensitivity has provided the tools for both large, statistically relevant surveys and deep, sensitive molecular line studies. These observations have revolutionized our view of planet formation, disk formation and disk evolution, bringing model simulations and observations closer to the same level of detail, with many contributions from Canadian researchers on theoretical, observational and technological sides. The new results have inevitably led to a range of new questions, which require next generation instruments such as the Next Generation Very Large Array (ngVLA) and large scale optical infrared facilities. In this white paper we will discuss the current transformation in our understanding of planet formation and the next steps and challenges in connecting theory with exoplanet demographics and protoplanetary disk observations for Canadian research.