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 massive, 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-scale 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. We will investigate the nature of the non-luminous, dark matter which constitutes about 90 per cent of the mass of our Galaxy, the Milky Way. Our work will also improve our understanding of how the Milky Way was formed and how it has slowly changed over the past 10 billion years.
Publications
Nayakshin Sergei
(2016)
A desert of gas giant planets beyond tens of au
in arXiv e-prints
Dehnen W
(2014)
A fast multipole method for stellar dynamics
in Computational Astrophysics and Cosmology
Levan A
(2013)
A NEW POPULATION OF ULTRA-LONG DURATION GAMMA-RAY BURSTS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Diakogiannis F
(2017)
A novel JEAnS analysis of the Fornax dwarf using evolutionary algorithms: mass follows light with signs of an off-centre merger
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
(2013)
A possible formation scenario for dwarf spheroidal galaxies - II. A parameter study
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bloom JS
(2011)
A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star.
in Science (New York, N.Y.)
Koch A
(2013)
A SPECTROSCOPIC BINARY IN THE HERCULES DWARF SPHEROIDAL GALAXY
in The Astrophysical Journal
Roberts T
(2012)
A VARIABLE ULTRALUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCE IN A GLOBULAR CLUSTER IN NGC 4649
in The Astrophysical Journal
King A
(2013)
Accretion disc viscosity: what do warped discs tell us?
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Koposov S
(2011)
ACCURATE STELLAR KINEMATICS AT FAINT MAGNITUDES: APPLICATION TO THE BOÖTES I DWARF SPHEROIDAL GALAXY
in The Astrophysical Journal
King A
(2015)
AGN flickering and chaotic accretion
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
King A
(2010)
AGN have underweight black holes and reach Eddington
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Zubovas K
(2013)
AGN outflows trigger starbursts in gas-rich galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Adén D
(2010)
An abundance study of red-giant-branch stars in the Hercules dwarf spheroidal galaxy
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Ural U
(2015)
An inefficient dwarf: chemical abundances and the evolution of the Ursa Minor dwarf spheroidal galaxy
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Nayakshin S
(2012)
Are supermassive black holes shrouded by 'super-Oort' clouds of comets and asteroids? SMBHs and super-Oort clouds
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Zubovas K
(2013)
BAL QSOs AND EXTREME UFOs: THE EDDINGTON CONNECTION
in The Astrophysical Journal
Dehnen W
(2013)
BLACK HOLE FORAGING: FEEDBACK DRIVES FEEDING
in The Astrophysical Journal
Knevitt G
(2014)
Black holes in short period X-ray binaries and the transition to radiatively inefficient accretion
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Nixon C
(2012)
Broken discs: warp propagation in accretion discs Broken discs
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Gompertz B
(2013)
Can magnetar spin-down power extended emission in some short GRBs?
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Woudt P
(2012)
CC Sculptoris: a superhumping intermediate polar CC Sculptoris: a superhumping intermediate polar
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
Norris J
(2010)
CHEMICAL ENRICHMENT IN THE FAINTEST GALAXIES: THE CARBON AND IRON ABUNDANCE SPREADS IN THE BOÖTES I DWARF SPHEROIDAL GALAXY AND THE SEGUE 1 SYSTEM
in The Astrophysical Journal
Zubovas K
(2012)
CLEARING OUT A GALAXY
in The Astrophysical Journal
Nayakshin S
(2014)
Core-assisted gas capture instability: a new mode of giant planet formation by gravitationally unstable discs
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
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
Walker M
(2011)
DARK MATTER IN THE CLASSICAL DWARF SPHEROIDAL GALAXIES: A ROBUST CONSTRAINT ON THE ASTROPHYSICAL FACTOR FOR ?-RAY FLUX CALCULATIONS
in The Astrophysical Journal
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
Nayakshin S
(2017)
Dawes Review 7: The Tidal Downsizing Hypothesis of Planet Formation
in Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia
Luo B
(2013)
DEEP CHANDRA MONITORING OBSERVATIONS OF NGC 4649. I. CATALOG OF SOURCE PROPERTIES
in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
Strader J
(2012)
DEEP CHANDRA MONITORING OBSERVATIONS OF NGC 4649. II. WIDE-FIELD HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE IMAGING OF THE GLOBULAR CLUSTERS
in The Astrophysical Journal
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
Nayakshin S
(2014)
Differentiation of silicates and iron during formation of Mercury and high-density exoplanets
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Wilkinson M
(2013)
DiRAC Day 2013
in Astronomy & Geophysics
Alexander R
(2011)
Disc instability in RS Ophiuchi: a path to Type Ia supernovae RS Oph and Type Ia SNe
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Nixon C
(2013)
DO JETS PRECESS OR EVEN MOVE AT ALL?
in The Astrophysical Journal
Salucci P
(2012)
Dwarf spheroidal galaxy kinematics and spiral galaxy scaling laws DSph galaxy kinematics and spiral galaxy scaling laws
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
Power C
(2013)
FEEDBACK FROM HIGH-MASS X-RAY BINARIES ON THE HIGH-REDSHIFT INTERGALACTIC MEDIUM: MODEL SPECTRA
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hobbs A
(2011)
Feeding supermassive black holes through supersonic turbulence and ballistic accretion Feeding SMBHs through supersonic turbulence
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Zubovas K
(2012)
Fermi bubbles in the Milky Way: the closest AGN feedback laboratory courtesy of Sgr A*? Fermi bubbles: Sgr A* AGN feedback?
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Fabbiano G
(2010)
FIELD AND GLOBULAR CLUSTER LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARIES IN NGC 4278
in The Astrophysical Journal
Nayakshin S
(2010)
Formation of planets by tidal downsizing of giant planet embryos
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
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
Alexander R
(2012)
Galactic Centre star formation: the case of the missing gas disc The missing gas disc at the Galactic Centre
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
| 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 |