Galaxy formation and evolution 2010 - 2015
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Institute of Astronomy
Abstract
TThis programmatic five-year rolling grant application addresses one of the most important problems in extragalactic astronomy, the formation and evolution of galaxies. The task is one of the key goals in the current STFC Road Map and is a defining objective of virtually every national decadal survey world-wide. 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
Kirkpatrick A
(2014)
UNTANGLING THE NATURE OF SPATIAL VARIATIONS OF COLD DUST PROPERTIES IN STAR FORMING GALAXIES
in The Astrophysical Journal
Abadie J
(2012)
Upper limits on a stochastic gravitational-wave background using LIGO and Virgo interferometers at 600-1000 Hz
in Physical Review D
Alaghband-Zadeh S
(2013)
Using [C i] to probe the interstellar medium in z ~ 2.5 sub-millimeter galaxies?
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bouwens R
(2012)
UV-CONTINUUM SLOPES AT z ~ 4-7 FROM THE HUDF09+ERS+CANDELS OBSERVATIONS: DISCOVERY OF A WELL-DEFINED UV COLOR-MAGNITUDE RELATIONSHIP FOR z ? 4 STAR-FORMING GALAXIES
in The Astrophysical Journal
Lentati L
(2013)
Variations in the fundamental constants in the QSO host J1148+5251 at z = 6.4 and the BR1202-0725 system at z = 4.7
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Sanders J
(2013)
Velocity width measurements of the coolest X-ray emitting material in the cores of clusters, groups and elliptical galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rodriguez C
(2012)
Verifying the no-hair property of massive compact objects with intermediate-mass-ratio inspirals in advanced gravitational-wave detectors
in Physical Review D
Agnello A
(2012)
Virial sequences for thick discs and haloes: flattening and global anisotropy Thick discs and haloes
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Minniti D
(2010)
VISTA Variables in the Via Lactea (VVV): The public ESO near-IR variability survey of the Milky Way
in New Astronomy
Lemasle B
(2012)
VLT/FLAMES spectroscopy of red giant branch stars in the Carina dwarf spheroidal galaxy
in Astronomy & Astrophysics