Some problems illustrating the forms of nebulœ

Abstract

The possible forms of distribution of a mass of gaseous material under the influence of its own gravitation are of considerable interest in the nebular theory. The law of density which it appears most reasonable to assume is Boyle's Law, in which the pressure is proportional to the density, unless the pressure becomes so great that the material begins to resemble an incompressible substance. Althought it is unlikely that the temperature is uniform through out, still the solution under this restriction would be of value as a step in the direction of greater knowledge as regards possibilities in astronomical phenomena. The equations can be formed and lead to a differential equation for the surfaces of equal density. This equation is not linear, and in the three-dimensional case little progress to a general solution has been made. In the two-dimensional case, however, considerable progress can be made.