Astronomy 210: Origins of Planetary Systems
Graduate Course, Harvard University, Department of Astronomy, 2026
Most of the key properties of planetary systems are set during their formation epoch. This course covers the essential theoretical and observational topics associated with the formation and early evolution of planets, including aspects of star formation, protoplanetary disks and their evolution, meteoritics, the growth of planetary cores and accretion of atmospheres, and the dynamical evolution of planetary system architectures. The course will bridge complementary studies focused on the interstellar medium and exoplanets, and reinforce some of the foundational astrophysics techniques usually found from courses on radiative transfer and fluid mechanics in a new topical context.