The nature and consequences of clumping in hot, massive star winds

Abstract

This review describes the evidence for small-scale structure, `clumping', in the radiation line-driven winds of hot, massive stars. In particular, we focus on examining to what extent simulations of the strong instability inherent to line-driving can explain the multitude of observational evidence for wind clumping, as well as on how to properly account for extensive structures in density and velocity when interpreting the various wind diagnostics used to derive mass-loss rates.