Friday 8 December at 2:30pm

"Observations over the last decade have shown that most young stars are born in binary or multiple systems. The binary mode of star formation seems to be the rule rather than the exception. This has important implications for our understanding of the Initial Mass Function, the star formation history, and the formation of planetary systems, some of which will be discussed in this talk. "After a brief historical introduction, we will review our current knowledge about the binary nature of young stars (frequency as a function of mass, distributions of mass ratios and separations, dependence on star formation environment, protobinary systems). Then we will demonstrate the astrophysical potential of young binaries (e.g. deriving dynamical masses, testing pre-Main Sequence tracks, constraining the fragmentation process). We will also raise the subject how to synthesize the galactic field star population mix using young vs. old binary statistics. Finally we will take look at the future of young binary star research, with a view to the forthcoming facilities (Keck, VLT, and LBT interferometers, as well as SMA & ALMA)."