Research in Theoretical Astrophysics: Accretion, Structure and Evolution in Gravitating Systems
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Leicester
Department Name: Physics and Astronomy
Abstract
We propose to undertake a broad programme of research in theoretical astrophysics. This research will be centered around accretion, structure and evolution in many astrophysical systems. Accretion is the process whereby a gravitating body accumulates mass from its surroundings. As the mass falls towards the body it can give up energy in the form of heat and light. Accretion onto a black hole is the most efficient way of extracting energy from normal matter. Astrophysical systems powered by accretion are among the luminous in the universe. Gravity not only powers these systems but determines their large scaled structure and long term evolution. The systems we aim to study cover many length scales, from compact binary star systems which would happily fit inside the Sun to colliding galaxies which consist of many billions of Sun-like stars.
Publications
Actis M
(2011)
Design concepts for the Cherenkov Telescope Array CTA: an advanced facility for ground-based high-energy gamma-ray astronomy
in Experimental Astronomy
Adén D
(2010)
An abundance study of red-giant-branch stars in the Hercules dwarf spheroidal galaxy
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Assmann P
(2013)
A possible formation scenario for dwarf spheroidal galaxies - II. A parameter study
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Assmann P
(2013)
A possible formation scenario for dwarf spheroidal galaxies - I. Fiducial model
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Assmann P
(2011)
Star cluster collisions - a formation scenario for the extended globular cluster Scl-dE1 GC1 Formation scenario for Scl-dE1 GC1
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Assmann P
(2013)
A possible formation scenario for dwarf spheroidal galaxies - I. Fiducial model
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bartko H
(2009)
EVIDENCE FOR WARPED DISKS OF YOUNG STARS IN THE GALACTIC CENTER
in The Astrophysical Journal
Bartko H
(2010)
AN EXTREMELY TOP-HEAVY INITIAL MASS FUNCTION IN THE GALACTIC CENTER STELLAR DISKS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Belokurov V
(2014)
Precession of the Sagittarius stream
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bonnivard V
(2015)
Dark matter annihilation and decay in dwarf spheroidal galaxies: the classical and ultrafaint dSphs
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bourne M
(2015)
The resolution bias: low-resolution feedback simulations are better at destroying galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bourne M
(2013)
Inverse Compton X-ray signature of AGN feedback
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Brassington N
(2009)
DEEP CHANDRA MONITORING OBSERVATIONS OF NGC 4278: CATALOG OF SOURCE PROPERTIES
in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
Brassington N. J.
(2008)
DEEP CHANDRA MONITORING OBSERVATIONS OF NGC 3379: CATALOG OF SOURCE PROPERTIES
in ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL SUPPLEMENT SERIES
Bridges J
(2012)
Chondrule fragments from Comet Wild2: Evidence for high temperature processing in the outer Solar System
in Earth and Planetary Science Letters
Byckling K
(2009)
Swift observations of GW Lib: a unique insight into a rare outburst
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Cha S
(2011)
A numerical simulation of a 'Super-Earth' core delivery from ~100 to ~8 au Super-Earth delivery from 100 au
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Charbonnier A
(2011)
Dark matter profiles and annihilation in dwarf spheroidal galaxies: prospectives for present and future ?-ray observatories - I. The classical dwarf spheroidal galaxies ?-ray from dark matter annihilation in dSphs
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Cioni M
(2011)
The VMC survey I. Strategy and first data
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Cole D
(2012)
The mass distribution of the Fornax dSph: constraints from its globular cluster distribution The mass distribution of the Fornax dSph
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Cole D
(2011)
Weakening dark matter cusps by clumpy baryonic infall Weakening dark matter cusps by baryonic infall
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Cropper M
(2018)
Gaia Data Release 2 Gaia Radial Velocity Spectrometer
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Cropper M.
(2018)
Gaia Radial Velocity Spectrometer
in arXiv e-prints
Cuadra J
(2008)
Variable accretion and emission from the stellar winds in the Galactic Centre
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Deegan P
(2009)
The outburst duration and duty cycle of GRSâ??1915+105
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Deegan P
(2007)
Constraining the number of compact remnants near Sgr A*
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Dehnen W
(2009)
Tailoring triaxial N -body models via a novel made-to-measure method
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Dehnen W
(2014)
A fast multipole method for stellar dynamics
in Computational Astrophysics and Cosmology
Dhanoa H
(2014)
Pressure-driven fragmentation of multiphase clouds at high redshift
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Dunhill A
(2015)
Precession and accretion in circumbinary discs: the case of HD 104237
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Dunhill A
(2014)
Misaligned accretion on to supermassive black hole binaries
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Evans P
(2009)
The unusual 2006 dwarf nova outburst of GK Persei
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Fletcher M
(2016)
Planets, debris and their host metallicity correlations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Fragos T
(2009)
TRANSIENT LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARY POPULATIONS IN ELLIPTICAL GALAXIES NGC 3379 AND NGC 4278
in The Astrophysical Journal
Fragos T.
(2008)
Models for low-mass X-ray binaries in the elliptical galaxies NGC 3379 and NGC 4278: Comparison with observations
in ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL
Frank M
(2015)
Strömgren uvby photometry of the peculiar globular cluster NGC 2419
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Gingell P
(2015)
The impact of a hot sodium ion population on the growth of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in Mercury's magnetotail
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics
Gingell P
(2015)
THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL EVOLUTION OF ION-SCALE CURRENT SHEETS: TEARING AND DRIFT-KINK INSTABILITIES IN THE PRESENCE OF PROTON TEMPERATURE ANISOTROPY
in The Astrophysical Journal
Gompertz B
(2014)
Magnetar powered GRBs: explaining the extended emission and X-ray plateau of short GRB light curves
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Grand R
(2015)
Impact of radial migration on stellar and gas radial metallicity distribution
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Gration Amery
(2018)
Dynamical modelling of dwarf-spheroidal galaxies using Gaussian-process emulation
in arXiv e-prints
Hague P
(2015)
THE DEGENERACY OF M33 MASS MODELING AND ITS PHYSICAL IMPLICATIONS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hague P
(2013)
Dark matter in disc galaxies - I. A Markov Chain Monte Carlo method and application to DDO 154
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hague P
(2014)
Dark matter in disc galaxies - II. Density profiles as constraints on feedback scenarios
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Ham Byoung S.
(2011)
Inversion-free, noiseless Raman echoes
in arXiv e-prints
Hands T
(2014)
Understanding the assembly of Kepler's compact planetary systems
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Helled R
(2014)
Protostars and Planets VI
Hobbs A
(2009)
Simulations of the formation of stellar discs in the Galactic Centre via cloud-cloud collisions
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Humphries Jack
(2018)
Changes in the metallicity of gas giant planets due to pebble accretion
in arXiv e-prints
Ibarra A
(2009)
Pre-nova X-ray observations of V2491 Cygni (Nova Cyg 2008b)
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
| Description | DiRAC2: Recurrent Costs for 100 Tflop/s HPC cluster |
| Amount | £391,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | ST/K003259/1 |
| Organisation | Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 05/2012 |
| End | 01/2016 |
| Description | DiRAC |
| Organisation | Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) |
| Department | Distributed Research Utilising Advanced Computing |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I am the PI for two research grants for the procurement and running of the Complexity@DiRAC High Performance Computing cluster at the University of Leicester. This cluster is now in active operation as a national HPC facility. |
| Collaborator Contribution | DiRAC is the facility which provides HPC resources for the theoretical astrophysics and particle physics communities within STFC. |
| Impact | The establishment and running of a new HPC cluster at the University of Leicester as part of the DiRAC national facility. |
| Start Year | 2011 |
| Description | Astronomy Ireland |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | Keynote/Invited Speaker |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I spoke to about 100 people at the Astronomy Ireland meeting in November 2013 in Trinity College Dublin. My talk was very well received and I have been invited to give another talk to this audience at a later date. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.astronomy.ie/lecture201311.php |
| Description | BBC Stargazing Live |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | Keynote/Invited Speaker |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentations as part of the BBC Stargazing Live at the National Space Centre and at the University of Leicester, attended by approximately 50 people (2011), 50 people (2012), 300 people (2013), 100 people (2014). The presentation generated lots of questions and discussion from the audience. Local schools had an opportunity to visit the University which is good for inclusivity. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011,2012,2013,2014 |
| Description | Cafe Scientifique |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | Keynote/Invited Speaker |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I spoke to the Nottingham Cafe Scientifique about various aspects of the research that myself and others are doing with DiRAC. About 40 people attended. I gave a 25 minute presentation which was followed by more than an hour of questions and discussion. One audience member wrote a blog piece about my talk. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| URL | http://nottinghamscience.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/talk-building-galaxies-in-office.html |
| Description | Royal Society Summer Exhibition |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Over the course of the four day, more than 600 people attended my talks. The Friday evening presentation was followed by more than an hour of audience questions. Several audience members contacted me to ask additional questions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| Description | School Visit (Dublin) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | Keynote/Invited Speaker |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Approximately 90 primary school students (3 classes) aged 8-12 years old attended my talks in Rathfarnham Parish National School. Following my visit, a number of students expressed interest in pursuing a career in science. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Secular Society |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | Keynote/Invited Speaker |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Spoke to about 50 members of the Leicester Secular Society. My talk generated considerable discussion among the members of the LSS. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
| URL | http://www.leicestersecularsociety.org.uk/calendar/view_entry.php?id=1145&date=20121209 |