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
Hobbs David
(2016)
GaiaNIR: Combining optical and Near-Infra-Red (NIR) capabilities with Time-Delay-Integration (TDI) sensors for a future Gaia-like mission
in arXiv e-prints
Hodge J
(2016)
KILOPARSEC-SCALE DUST DISKS IN HIGH-REDSHIFT LUMINOUS SUBMILLIMETER GALAXIES
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hojjati A
(2017)
Cross-correlating Planck tSZ with RCSLenS weak lensing: implications for cosmology and AGN feedback
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hojjati Alireza
(2016)
Cross-correlating Planck tSZ with RCSLenS weak lensing: Implications for cosmology and AGN feedback
in ArXiv e-prints
Holland W
(2017)
SONS: The JCMT legacy survey of debris discs in the submillimetre
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Homan D
(2023)
The long-term broad-line responsivity in MKN 110
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hood R
(2017)
Characterizing the optical properties of galaxy clusters with GMPhoRCC
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hood R. J.
(2016)
Characterising the optical properties of galaxy clusters with GMPhoRCC
in ArXiv e-prints
Huang H
(2021)
Dark energy survey year 1 results: Constraining baryonic physics in the Universe
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Huang S
(2020)
The impact of wind scalings on stellar growth and the baryon cycle in cosmological simulations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Huang S
(2020)
A new model for including galactic winds in simulations of galaxy formation - I. Introducing the Physically Evolved Winds (PhEW) model
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hudson M
(2015)
CFHTLenS: co-evolution of galaxies and their dark matter haloes
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hughes T
(2017)
VALES - III. The calibration between the dust continuum and interstellar gas content of star-forming galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Hughes T
(2017)
VALES II. The physical conditions of interstellar gas in normal star-forming galaxies up to z = 0.2 revealed by ALMA
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Hughes T. M.
(2016)
VALES: II. The physical conditions of interstellar gas in normal star-forming galaxies up to z=0.2 revealed by ALMA
in ArXiv e-prints
Humphries J
(2019)
Constraining the initial planetary population in the gravitational instability model
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Huynh M
(2017)
The AT-LESS CO(1-0) survey of submillimetre galaxies in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South: First results on cold molecular gas in galaxies at z ~ 2
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Huynh Minh T.
(2017)
The AT-LESS CO(1-0) survey of submillimetre galaxies in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South: First results on cold molecular gas in galaxies at z ~ 2
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hwang Y
(2021)
Revisiting the Color-Color Selection: Submillimeter and AGN Properties of NUV-r-J Selected Quiescent Galaxies
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hyde E
(2015)
SELECTING SAGITTARIUS: IDENTIFICATION AND CHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF THE SAGITTARIUS STREAM
in The Astrophysical Journal
Ibar E
(2015)
A multiwavelength exploration of the [C ii]/IR ratio in H-ATLAS/GAMA galaxies out to z = 0.2
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Ibar E.
(2015)
A multi-wavelength exploration of the [CII]/IR ratio in H-ATLAS/GAMA galaxies out to z=0.2
in ArXiv e-prints
Ikarashi S
(2015)
COMPACT STARBURSTS IN $z\sim 3$-6 SUBMILLIMETER GALAXIES REVEALED BY ALMA
in The Astrophysical Journal
Ikarashi S
(2017)
Very Compact Millimeter Sizes for Composite Star-forming/AGN Submillimeter Galaxies
in The Astrophysical Journal
Ikarashi S
(2017)
Extremely Red Submillimeter Galaxies: New z ? 4-6 Candidates Discovered Using ALMA and Jansky VLA
in The Astrophysical Journal
Ilee J
(2017)
The chemistry of protoplanetary fragments formed via gravitational instabilities
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Ivison R
(2016)
THE SPACE DENSITY OF LUMINOUS DUSTY STAR-FORMING GALAXIES AT z > 4: SCUBA-2 AND LABOCA IMAGING OF ULTRARED GALAXIES FROM HERSCHEL -ATLAS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Iyer K
(2020)
The diversity and variability of star formation histories in models of galaxy evolution
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
J. Bouwens R
(2016)
ALMA SPECTROSCOPIC SURVEY IN THE HUBBLE ULTRA DEEP FIELD: THE INFRARED EXCESS OF UV-SELECTED z = 2-10 GALAXIES AS A FUNCTION OF UV-CONTINUUM SLOPE AND STELLAR MASS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Jackson N
(2016)
LBCS: The LOFAR Long-Baseline Calibrator Survey
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Jackson R
(2015)
The Gaia -ESO Survey: Empirical determination of the precision of stellar radial velocities and projected rotation velocities
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Jackson R. J.
(2015)
VizieR Online Data Catalog: Velocity precision in the Gaia-ESO Survey (Jackson+, 2015)
in VizieR Online Data Catalog
Jarrett T
(2017)
Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA): Exploring the WISE Web in G12
in The Astrophysical Journal
Jarvis M
(2021)
Dark Energy Survey year 3 results: point spread function modelling
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Jarvis M
(2015)
The star-formation history of the Universe with the SKA
Jarvis Matt J.
(2017)
The MeerKAT International GHz Tiered Extragalactic Exploration (MIGHTEE) Survey
in ArXiv e-prints
Joachimi B
(2021)
KiDS-1000 methodology: Modelling and inference for joint weak gravitational lensing and spectroscopic galaxy clustering analysis
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Johnson A
(2017)
2dFLenS and KiDS: determining source redshift distributions with cross-correlations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Johnson H
(2018)
The KMOS Redshift One Spectroscopic Survey (KROSS): the origin of disc turbulence in z ˜ 1 star-forming galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Jones M
(2017)
The AMIGA sample of isolated galaxies XIII. The HI content of an almost "nurture free" sample
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Jose J
(2020)
A Novel Survey for Young Substellar Objects with the W -band Filter. II. The Coolest and Lowest Mass Members of the Serpens-South Star-forming Region
in The Astrophysical Journal
Joudaki S
(2017)
CFHTLenS revisited: assessing concordance with Planck including astrophysical systematics
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Joudaki S
(2017)
KiDS-450: testing extensions to the standard cosmological model
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Joudaki Shahab
(2016)
CFHTLenS revisited: assessing concordance with Planck including astrophysical systematics
in ArXiv e-prints
Joudaki Shahab
(2016)
KiDS-450: Testing extensions to the standard cosmological model
in ArXiv e-prints
Kacprzak T
(2020)
Monte Carlo control loops for cosmic shear cosmology with DES Year 1 data
in Physical Review D
Kaiser N
(2015)
On the bias of the distance-redshift relation from gravitational lensing
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society