Astronomy and Astrophysics at Edinburgh
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Sch of Physics and Astronomy
Abstract
An astonishing feature of modern astrophysical research is that we have in principle a chain of explanation that stretches from processes on cosmological scales of billions of light years, down to the creation of stars, planets around the stars and life on the planets. In a sense, this process is almost a closed loop: the early Universe was once of sub-nuclear scale, so that quantum mechanical uncertainty is bound to seed fluctuations in density, which eventually collapse under gravity to make astronomical structures. This is the same physics of the very small that governs the formation of the atoms out of which we are all made.
But unanswered questions abound at all stages of this process. Our theories of the early Universe and explanations of its current expansion rest on the concept that empty space can have weight: the so-called "dark energy". We need to study its properties and understand its origin. In so doing, we often assume that Einstein's relativity describes gravity correctly on all scales, but can we test this? If the standard theory is correct, dark matter is required, and we are driven to follow the processes by which it clumps, and by which the gas within these clumps evolves and eventually collapses to form stars and massive black holes. New large telescopes on the ground, together with observing platforms in space such as the Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes, allow us to see this process in action and compare the observations with detailed computer simulations. Nearer to home, we can dissect galaxies such as our own Milky Way into individual stars, for the most detail view of how they were assembled. And finally we can study how planets arise around these stars, both from new instruments that can detect the presence of "exo-planets" and by computer simulations of how they may be created within the discs of gas and dust left over from star formation. Ultimately, one can refine the search to planets potentially capable of supporting life, and ask how life might arise within these early planetary systems.
Research in astronomy at Edinburgh attacks all of these connected questions. Progress is rapid, driven by technological breakthroughs in observational facilities and computing power, and our understanding is evolving rapidly. Major progress, even if not final answers, can be expected within a few years. This is an exciting time for our understanding of the full history and structure of our Universe and our place within it.
But unanswered questions abound at all stages of this process. Our theories of the early Universe and explanations of its current expansion rest on the concept that empty space can have weight: the so-called "dark energy". We need to study its properties and understand its origin. In so doing, we often assume that Einstein's relativity describes gravity correctly on all scales, but can we test this? If the standard theory is correct, dark matter is required, and we are driven to follow the processes by which it clumps, and by which the gas within these clumps evolves and eventually collapses to form stars and massive black holes. New large telescopes on the ground, together with observing platforms in space such as the Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes, allow us to see this process in action and compare the observations with detailed computer simulations. Nearer to home, we can dissect galaxies such as our own Milky Way into individual stars, for the most detail view of how they were assembled. And finally we can study how planets arise around these stars, both from new instruments that can detect the presence of "exo-planets" and by computer simulations of how they may be created within the discs of gas and dust left over from star formation. Ultimately, one can refine the search to planets potentially capable of supporting life, and ask how life might arise within these early planetary systems.
Research in astronomy at Edinburgh attacks all of these connected questions. Progress is rapid, driven by technological breakthroughs in observational facilities and computing power, and our understanding is evolving rapidly. Major progress, even if not final answers, can be expected within a few years. This is an exciting time for our understanding of the full history and structure of our Universe and our place within it.
Planned Impact
Details of our Pathways to Impact are provided in the separate 2-page attachment. In brief, we carry out an extensive programme of public engagement and knowledge transfer, implemented in collaboration with the UK ATC, and our own Wide Field Astronomy Unit. Much stems directly from the research activities that are the subject of this application.
Our work in knowledge transfer and exploitation is exemplified by the case study of MOPED and the resulting spin-out company Blackford Analysis. MOPED (Massively Optimised Parameter Estimation and Data compression) is a unique process that employs a massive data compression step, enabling very rapid analysis without compromising accuracy. The MOPED algorithm was designed at the IfA by Prof. Alan Heavens and Dr Benjamin Panter to solve problems in cosmology, but has since been successfully applied to a number of medical applications, the most obvious being the ability of MOPED to speed up 3-D MRI image reconstruction to the point where it would no longer be necessary to immobilize children with a general anaesthetic for MRI scans. A spin-out company, Blackford Analysis Ltd, started trading in August 2010, has received significant investment, and now employs 9 people in the UK (sited at ROE, allowing continued academic interaction), developing very rapid image alignment tools for the medical imaging market. There has been direct user-engagement in the medical imaging field, through researchers, clinicians and industry luminaries, as well as MRI scanner manufacturers and PACS vendors. Recently Blackford Analysis has expanded its work into applications in other areas, securing a two-year consultancy contract with Rolls Royce worth £65,000, and identifying further commercial applications of MOPED in security imaging and in the oil and gas industries.
The case of Blackford Analysis exemplifies how novel techniques developed for astronomical research can be effectively applied to have a major impact in wider society. We plan to replicate this success through the University of Edinburgh's involvement in the new Higgs Centre for Innovation (to be completed at ROE by spring 2016). The Higgs Centre aims to ensure that further technologies, algorithms, and techniques from any of ATC instrumentation, IfA research, or WFAU data handling are effectively transferred to industry through close interactions between our academics/PDRAs and the public and private sectors (with the potential to create of further spinout companies from the STFC incubator). We are also taking the Big Data initiative, and interaction with the commercial sector, very seriously. (i) We have a long tradition of designing and developing new data centre facilities in active collaboration with local companies, who then use their experience with other commercial customers. (ii) As part of leading a proposal for UK participation in LSST, we are working with STFC to identify BIS infrastructure funding to work with industry. (iii) We are currently advertising for a new position specialising in novel data handling techniques.
We are also involved in a particularly vigorous programme of Public Outreach, Engagement & Education, under the auspices of the ROE Visitor Centre (www.roe.ac.uk/vc; jointly funded by the University and STFC) that draws directly on the cutting-edge research supported by our STFC Consolidated grant. Within the UK university sector, this programme is unusual in its breadth and scope, extending well beyond the normal expectation of public talks, press releases and media interviews. This is in part because university staff, PDRAs and students have the opportunity to work collaboratively with Visitor Centre Staff, but is also due to the unique advantages afforded by the ROE site, with its unusual combination of front-line astronomical research, world-leadiing instrument development, and astronomical history/heritage. Further details of activities and impact are provided in the Pathways to Impact attachment.
Our work in knowledge transfer and exploitation is exemplified by the case study of MOPED and the resulting spin-out company Blackford Analysis. MOPED (Massively Optimised Parameter Estimation and Data compression) is a unique process that employs a massive data compression step, enabling very rapid analysis without compromising accuracy. The MOPED algorithm was designed at the IfA by Prof. Alan Heavens and Dr Benjamin Panter to solve problems in cosmology, but has since been successfully applied to a number of medical applications, the most obvious being the ability of MOPED to speed up 3-D MRI image reconstruction to the point where it would no longer be necessary to immobilize children with a general anaesthetic for MRI scans. A spin-out company, Blackford Analysis Ltd, started trading in August 2010, has received significant investment, and now employs 9 people in the UK (sited at ROE, allowing continued academic interaction), developing very rapid image alignment tools for the medical imaging market. There has been direct user-engagement in the medical imaging field, through researchers, clinicians and industry luminaries, as well as MRI scanner manufacturers and PACS vendors. Recently Blackford Analysis has expanded its work into applications in other areas, securing a two-year consultancy contract with Rolls Royce worth £65,000, and identifying further commercial applications of MOPED in security imaging and in the oil and gas industries.
The case of Blackford Analysis exemplifies how novel techniques developed for astronomical research can be effectively applied to have a major impact in wider society. We plan to replicate this success through the University of Edinburgh's involvement in the new Higgs Centre for Innovation (to be completed at ROE by spring 2016). The Higgs Centre aims to ensure that further technologies, algorithms, and techniques from any of ATC instrumentation, IfA research, or WFAU data handling are effectively transferred to industry through close interactions between our academics/PDRAs and the public and private sectors (with the potential to create of further spinout companies from the STFC incubator). We are also taking the Big Data initiative, and interaction with the commercial sector, very seriously. (i) We have a long tradition of designing and developing new data centre facilities in active collaboration with local companies, who then use their experience with other commercial customers. (ii) As part of leading a proposal for UK participation in LSST, we are working with STFC to identify BIS infrastructure funding to work with industry. (iii) We are currently advertising for a new position specialising in novel data handling techniques.
We are also involved in a particularly vigorous programme of Public Outreach, Engagement & Education, under the auspices of the ROE Visitor Centre (www.roe.ac.uk/vc; jointly funded by the University and STFC) that draws directly on the cutting-edge research supported by our STFC Consolidated grant. Within the UK university sector, this programme is unusual in its breadth and scope, extending well beyond the normal expectation of public talks, press releases and media interviews. This is in part because university staff, PDRAs and students have the opportunity to work collaboratively with Visitor Centre Staff, but is also due to the unique advantages afforded by the ROE site, with its unusual combination of front-line astronomical research, world-leadiing instrument development, and astronomical history/heritage. Further details of activities and impact are provided in the Pathways to Impact attachment.
Organisations
Publications
Pezzotta A.
(2016)
The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS): The growth of structures at $0.5
in ArXiv e-prints
Peñarrubia J
(2015)
A probability theory for non-equilibrium gravitational systems
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Peñarrubia J
(2020)
Creation/destruction of ultra-wide binaries in tidal streams
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Peñarrubia J
(2020)
Reflex motion in the Milky Way stellar halo resulting from the Large Magellanic Cloud infall
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Peñarrubia J
(2019)
Stochastic tidal heating by random interactions with extended substructures
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Peñarrubia J
(2017)
Stellar envelopes of globular clusters embedded in dark mini-haloes
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Peñarrubia J
(2016)
The formation of the smooth halo component
in Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union
Peñarrubia J
(2018)
Fluctuations of the gravitational field generated by a random population of extended substructures
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Peñarrubia J
(2016)
Wide binaries in ultrafaint galaxies: a window on to dark matter on the smallest scales
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Peñarrubia J
(2017)
What galaxy masses perturb the local cosmic expansion?
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Peñarrubia J
(2015)
A timing constraint on the (total) mass of the Large Magellanic Cloud
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Phipps F
(2020)
The First Billion Years project: Finding infant globular clusters at z = 6
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Pichon C
(2020)
And yet it flips: connecting galactic spin and the cosmic web
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Pohl A
(2017)
New constraints on the disk characteristics and companion candidates around T Chamaeleontis with VLT/SPHERE
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Pota V
(2015)
The SLUGGS survey: multipopulation dynamical modelling of the elliptical galaxy NGC 1407 from stars and globular clusters
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Power C
(2019)
nIFTy galaxy cluster simulations VI: the dynamical imprint of substructure on gaseous cluster outskirts.
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Primas F.
(2015)
Shaping ESO2020+ Together: Feedback from the Community Poll
in The Messenger
Puchwein E
(2023)
The Sherwood-Relics simulations: overview and impact of patchy reionization and pressure smoothing on the intergalactic medium
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Quénard D
(2018)
The Fate of Formamide in a Fragmenting Protoplanetary Disk
in The Astrophysical Journal
Rawle T
(2016)
A complete census of Herschel -detected infrared sources within the HST Frontier Fields
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rawle T. D.
(2015)
A complete census of Herschel-detected infrared sources within the HST Frontier Fields
in ArXiv e-prints
Read J
(2021)
Breaking beta: a comparison of mass modelling methods for spherical systems
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Read S
(2018)
The Far-Infrared Radio Correlation at low radio frequency with LOFAR/H-ATLAS
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Reggiani M
(2016)
The VLT/NaCo large program to probe the occurrence of exoplanets and brown dwarfs at wide orbits III. The frequency of brown dwarfs and giant planets as companions to solar-type stars
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Rhodes J
(2017)
Scientific Synergy between LSST and Euclid
in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
Ribeiro B
(2016)
Size evolution of star-forming galaxies with 2 < z < 4.5 in the VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Ribeiro B.
(2016)
Size evolution of star-forming galaxies with $2
in ArXiv e-prints
Rice K
(2015)
Can Kozai-Lidov cycles explain Kepler-78b?
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rice K
(2015)
Disc fragmentation rarely forms planetary-mass objects
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rice K
(2016)
Detecting structure in a protostellar disk.
in Science (New York, N.Y.)
Rice K
(2016)
The Evolution of Self-Gravitating Accretion Discs
in Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia
Rice K
(2018)
On fragmentation of turbulent self-gravitating discs in the long cooling time regime
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rice K
(2019)
Masses and radii for the three super-Earths orbiting GJ 9827, and implications for the composition of small exoplanets
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Riechers D
(2017)
Rise of the Titans: A Dusty, Hyper-luminous "870 µm Riser" Galaxy at z ~ 6
in The Astrophysical Journal
Rigby E
(2015)
Cosmic downsizing of powerful radio galaxies to low radio luminosities
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Robertson B
(2015)
COSMIC REIONIZATION AND EARLY STAR-FORMING GALAXIES: A JOINT ANALYSIS OF NEW CONSTRAINTS FROM PLANCK AND THE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE
in The Astrophysical Journal
Robson D
(2020)
X-ray emission from hot gas in galaxy groups and clusters in simba
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rodet L
(2018)
Dynamical masses of M-dwarf binaries in young moving groups I. The case of TWA 22 and GJ 2060
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Romano D
(2017)
The evolution of CNO isotopes: a new window on cosmic star formation history and the stellar IMF in the age of ALMA
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rost A
(2021)
the threehundred : the structure and properties of cosmic filaments in the outskirts of galaxy clusters
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rota S
(2017)
The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS) The matter density and baryon fraction from the galaxy power spectrum at redshift 0.6 < z < 1.1?
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Rujopakarn W
(2016)
VLA AND ALMA IMAGING OF INTENSE GALAXY-WIDE STAR FORMATION IN z ~ 2 GALAXIES
in The Astrophysical Journal
Rykoff E
(2016)
THE REDMAPPER GALAXY CLUSTER CATALOG FROM DES SCIENCE VERIFICATION DATA
in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
Sabater J
(2017)
Calibration of LOFAR data on the cloud
Sabater J
(2021)
The LOFAR Two-meter Sky Survey: Deep Fields Data Release 1 II. The ELAIS-N1 LOFAR deep field
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Sabater J
(2019)
The LoTSS view of radio AGN in the local Universe The most massive galaxies are always switched on
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Sabater J
(2015)
Triggering optical AGN: the need for cold gas, and the indirect roles of galaxy environment and interactions
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society