Galaxy formation and evolution
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Institute of Astronomy
Abstract
This programmatic five-year rolling grant application addresses one of the most important problems in extragalactic astronomy, the formation and evolution of galaxies, one of the ``big questions'' in the current PPARC Road Map, and is a defining objective of virtually every national decadal survey of astronomy. A full understanding of galaxy formation and evolution requires multiple lines of attack. Observations of the resolved stellar populations in the Milky Way and its Local Group companions provide a detailed fossil record of the dynamical assemblies of the galaxies, the formation of stars, and the buildup of heavy elements over a wide range of mass scales and initial conditions. At the other end of the scale, observations of distant galaxies spanning lookback times of up to 12 Gyr provide direct measurements of the evolution of galaxy populations and the buildup of stars and metals with cosmic time. Finally, measurements of the large-scale star formation and abundance properties of nearby galaxies form a vital astrophysical bridge between the studies of nearby resolved stellar populations and the distant high-redshift investigations, by allowing us to characterise the evolutionary properties of the Hubble sequence and the complex ``gastrophysical'' processes that regulate the accretion of gas and the formation of stars in galaxies. In this rolling grant application we propose a series of investigations that will advance our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution on all three fronts.
Organisations
Publications
Quinn D
(2009)
A strip search for new very wide halo binaries A strip search for new very wide halo binaries
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Quider A
(2010)
A study of interstellar gas and stars in the gravitationally lensed galaxy 'the Cosmic Eye' from rest-frame ultraviolet spectroscopy
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Quider A
(2009)
The ultraviolet spectrum of the gravitationally lensed galaxy 'the Cosmic Horseshoe': a close-up of a star-forming galaxy at z ~ 2
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pontzen A
(2009)
Dust biasing of damped Lyman alpha systems: a Bayesian analysis
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pontzen A
(2010)
The nature of H i absorbers in gamma-ray burst afterglows: clues from hydrodynamic simulations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pontzen A
(2008)
Damped Lyman a systems in galaxy formation simulations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pontzen A
(2007)
Direct observational test rules out small Mg ii absorbers
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Pinfield D
(2008)
Fifteen new T dwarfs discovered in the UKIDSS Large Area Survey
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
PeƱarrubia J
(2009)
THE SIGNATURE OF GALACTIC TIDES IN LOCAL GROUP DWARF SPHEROIDALS
in The Astrophysical Journal
PeƱarrubia J
(2009)
Tidal disruption of globular clusters in dwarf galaxies with triaxial dark matter haloes
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society