Extragalactic Astronomy at Durham 2008-2013
Lead Research Organisation:
Durham University
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
Over recent years observational astronomers at Durham have been at the forefront of many major advances in the study of galaxies and cosmology. We have a publication and citation record which we believe speaks for itself (see proposal introduction). Durham astronomers currently lead major international projects that exploit many of the the world's foremost ground and space observatories. We will capitalize on our proven track record in AGN studies, precision spectrophotometric analysis of stellar populations in nearby galaxies, multiwavelength studies of galaxy populations at high redshift and panoramic QSO and galaxy surveys, to answer open questions which lie at the core of modern astrophysics. In this proposal we present the case for support of a coherent and comprehensive programme that builds on our strengths and seizes new opportunities. Our programme addresses key questions in the STFC Roadmap, such as ``What are the laws of physics in extreme conditions?'', ``How do galaxies, stars and planets form and evolve?'' and ``What is the Universe made of and how does it evolve?''. This proposal is constructed around the four core themes of our research: Theme A: AGN: outflows from black holes their growth and environment Theme B: Galaxy evolution and archaeology and closely related to this; Theme C: feedback and the formation of galaxies Theme D: Survey cosmology, using galaxies and clusters as probes of large scale structure and evolution There is a well established deep rooted synergy between our work and the research of the ICC group, and the instrumentation group (CfAI).
Publications
Casey C
(2009)
Constraining star formation and AGN in z ~ 2 massive galaxies using high-resolution MERLIN radio observations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Sobral D
(2009)
HiZELS: a high-redshift survey of Ha emitters - II. The nature of star-forming galaxies at z = 0.84
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Ebeling H
(2009)
A spectacular giant arc in the massive cluster lens MACS J1206.2-0847
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Smith G
(2009)
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE OBSERVATIONS OF A SPECTACULAR NEW STRONG-LENSING GALAXY CLUSTER: MACS J1149.5+2223 AT z = 0.544
in The Astrophysical Journal
Acero F
(2009)
Detection of gamma rays from a starburst galaxy.
in Science (New York, N.Y.)
Tian L
(2009)
ASYMMETRY OF HELICITY INJECTION FLUX IN EMERGING ACTIVE REGIONS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Stott J
(2009)
The evolution of the red sequence slope in massive galaxy clusters
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Aharonian F
(2009)
Simultaneous multiwavelength observations of the second exceptional ? -ray flare of PKS 2155-304 in July 2006
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Finoguenov A
(2009)
THE ROADMAP FOR UNIFICATION IN GALAXY GROUP SELECTION. I. A SEARCH FOR EXTENDED X-RAY EMISSION IN THE CNOC2 SURVEY
in The Astrophysical Journal
Mountrichas G
(2009)
2PIGG group masses via 2dF galaxy z -space distortion
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Weiß A
(2009)
THE LARGE APEX BOLOMETER CAMERA SURVEY OF THE EXTENDED CHANDRA DEEP FIELD SOUTH
in The Astrophysical Journal
Croom S
(2009)
The 2dF-SDSS LRG and QSO Survey: the spectroscopic QSO catalogue
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Guzzo L
(2009)
The REFLEX galaxy cluster survey VIII. Spectroscopic observations and optical atlas,
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Mountrichas G
(2009)
QSO-LRG two-point cross-correlation function and redshift-space distortions
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Jin C
(2009)
The Seyfert AGN RX J0136.9-3510 and the spectral state of super Eddington accretion flows
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Sandman A
(2009)
Comparison of STEREO/EUVI Loops with Potential Magnetic Field Models
in Solar Physics
Reeves J
(2009)
A COMPTON-THICK WIND IN THE HIGH-LUMINOSITY QUASAR, PDS 456
in The Astrophysical Journal
Rasmussen J
(2009)
HOT GAS HALOS AROUND DISK GALAXIES: CONFRONTING COSMOLOGICAL SIMULATIONS WITH OBSERVATIONS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Murray G
(2009)
Strategies for spectroscopy on Extremely Large Telescopes - II. Diverse-field spectroscopy
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Aharonian F
(2009)
DISCOVERY OF GAMMA-RAY EMISSION FROM THE SHELL-TYPE SUPERNOVA REMNANT RCW 86 WITH HESS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Davies G
(2009)
A spectroscopic measure of the star formation rate density in dwarf galaxies at z ~ 1
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Oemler A
(2009)
ABELL 851 AND THE ROLE OF STARBURSTS IN CLUSTER GALAXY EVOLUTION
in The Astrophysical Journal
Goulding A
(2009)
Towards a complete census of AGN in nearby Galaxies: a large population of optically unidentified AGN
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Aharonian F
(2009)
HESS upper limit on the very high energy ? -ray emission from the globular cluster 47 Tucanae
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Description | The programme funded by this grant produce a number of observational insights into fundamental features of galaxies, black holes and large-scale structure. To give just one example, using the newly-completed Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) we undertook the first survey of extreme starburst galaxies in the distant Universe, demonstrating that these galaxies are very likely to be the progenitors of the most massive galaxies seen today in the local Universe, but seen in an early and very active phase of formation. |
Exploitation Route | Further academic research or through the development of new facilities (e.g. ELT and SKA) or observational programmes. |
Sectors | Education |
URL | http://www.astro.dur.ac.uk/Cosmology |
Description | 6dFGS survey |
Organisation | Australian Astronomical Observatory |
Country | Australia |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Data analysis and construction of the FP catalogue, i.e. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014MNRAS.443.1231C |
Collaborator Contribution | Many other science contributions, e.g. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014MNRAS.444.3926J http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014MNRAS.445.2677S http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2016MNRAS.455..386S |
Impact | now focused on mostly exclusively on 6dF++, i.e. TAIPAN http://www.taipan-survey.org/ Map the southern cosmography with ~110 k redshifts. First detailed map of the southern hemisphere peculiar velocities. |
Description | 6dFGS survey |
Organisation | Australian National University (ANU) |
Country | Australia |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Data analysis and construction of the FP catalogue, i.e. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014MNRAS.443.1231C |
Collaborator Contribution | Many other science contributions, e.g. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014MNRAS.444.3926J http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014MNRAS.445.2677S http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2016MNRAS.455..386S |
Impact | now focused on mostly exclusively on 6dF++, i.e. TAIPAN http://www.taipan-survey.org/ Map the southern cosmography with ~110 k redshifts. First detailed map of the southern hemisphere peculiar velocities. |
Description | Wide field astronomical surveys |
Organisation | University of Hawaii |
Department | Institute for Astronomy |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Durham an offical partnet in the Pan-STARRS consortium, which operate a telescope in Hawaii. |
Collaborator Contribution | They provide the telscope and operations support. |
Impact | The principle output is research papers published in refereed journals. |
Start Year | 2007 |
Description | Seminars and invited talks |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Type Of Presentation | Paper Presentation |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | All of the co-applicants on this grants have given numberous seminars and invited talks at universities and international meetings and conferences. These activities help to enhance the wider knowledge of our research, and foster new collaborations. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008,2009,2010,2011,2012 |