Astrophysics and Cosmology Research within the JBCA 2017-2020
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Physics and Astronomy
Abstract
This grant supports the research of the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics at the University of Manchester. Our research is a divided into 3 groups. There are too many specific proposals to describe in detail, do below we have given a brief layman's explanation of the work being carried out by the three groups.
Cosmology: This is the study of the Universe as a whole. The main aim is to understand the processes by which the large scale feature of the Universe formed and to constrain the various different kinds of matter that existed within it. These include dark matter and dark energy which are thought to constitute more than 95% of the total. We do this by comparison to observations of weak and strong gravitational lensing which is the distortion of light predicted to be caused by massive objects in Einstein' Theory of General Relativity, the cosmic microwave background which is the faint emission of radiation created at the time when protons and electrons come together to form hydrogen and the emission given off by neutral hydrogen atoms in galaxies. The research we propose here involves both theory and observation as well as the development of the technology necessary to make the observations possible.
Sun, Stars and Galaxies: The researchers in this group study a wide range of astrophysical processes that are reasonable for the formation and evolution of the objects in the name of the group. Specific key areas that the group is interested in are the formation of stars much larger than the Sun and the subsequent evolution, the properties of the so-called interstellar medium (ISM) which comprises molecules not bound to stars and the magnetic fields that permeate space.
Pulsars and Time Domain Astrophysics: The focus of this group is astrophysical signatures that are change with time: things which come on and off, often with some kind of regularity. These include Pulsars which are non-standard star time, known as a neutron star, which is a dead star supported by the quantum pressure of neutrons. The radio emission from these objects pulses on an off with extraordinary regularity allowing them to acts cosmic clocks. The constantly measuring these clocks as the neutron stars spin and move through space, often impacted on by a companion star, allows the most precise constraints on the nature of gravity outside the solar system. Other phenomena studied by this group include Nova explosions, other variable stars, and variability induced by the lensing effects of one star passing in front of another, called microlensing.
Cosmology: This is the study of the Universe as a whole. The main aim is to understand the processes by which the large scale feature of the Universe formed and to constrain the various different kinds of matter that existed within it. These include dark matter and dark energy which are thought to constitute more than 95% of the total. We do this by comparison to observations of weak and strong gravitational lensing which is the distortion of light predicted to be caused by massive objects in Einstein' Theory of General Relativity, the cosmic microwave background which is the faint emission of radiation created at the time when protons and electrons come together to form hydrogen and the emission given off by neutral hydrogen atoms in galaxies. The research we propose here involves both theory and observation as well as the development of the technology necessary to make the observations possible.
Sun, Stars and Galaxies: The researchers in this group study a wide range of astrophysical processes that are reasonable for the formation and evolution of the objects in the name of the group. Specific key areas that the group is interested in are the formation of stars much larger than the Sun and the subsequent evolution, the properties of the so-called interstellar medium (ISM) which comprises molecules not bound to stars and the magnetic fields that permeate space.
Pulsars and Time Domain Astrophysics: The focus of this group is astrophysical signatures that are change with time: things which come on and off, often with some kind of regularity. These include Pulsars which are non-standard star time, known as a neutron star, which is a dead star supported by the quantum pressure of neutrons. The radio emission from these objects pulses on an off with extraordinary regularity allowing them to acts cosmic clocks. The constantly measuring these clocks as the neutron stars spin and move through space, often impacted on by a companion star, allows the most precise constraints on the nature of gravity outside the solar system. Other phenomena studied by this group include Nova explosions, other variable stars, and variability induced by the lensing effects of one star passing in front of another, called microlensing.
Planned Impact
The range of research we undertake and the world-class facilities within and in close association with JBCA (the Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre, e-MERLIN, the Lovell Telescope, the ALMA ARC and the SKA HQ) will provide key pathways to increasing our already strong impact on UK and global industry, the next generation of scientists and engineers, and the general public. The University's investment in the Jodrell Bank site combined with significant external funding (e.g. from Heritage Lottery Fund) will enable us to expand its use as an iconic venue for public and industrial engagement. The programme described here formed a key part of the School's submission for REF2014, helping it to be ranked highest in the REF for physics impact with 83% at 4* and 17% at 3*. Our outreach \& public engagement programme is extremely strong and continues to grow, particularly through its work with the University's award-winning Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre and the BBC. With the recent decision on SKA HQ location and our strong research work in this area, there is also growing impact in both outreach and industrial engagement in this area.
Our "Pathways to Impact" statement in the case for support outlines things that we have done in recent times under the headings of "Outreach and Public Engagement" and "Industrial and economic impact". We list some highlights below.
- Jodcast: Podcast run by students with 7000 regular listeners.
- 230000 Twitter followers
- Stargazing live
- JB Discovery centre with 150000 visitors per year
- Award winning "Live from Jodrell Bank" rock concerts
- Industry contracts for SKA work including CISCO, AASL, NPL, GEANT
- Newton programme for Radio Astronomy in Africa.
Our "Pathways to Impact" statement in the case for support outlines things that we have done in recent times under the headings of "Outreach and Public Engagement" and "Industrial and economic impact". We list some highlights below.
- Jodcast: Podcast run by students with 7000 regular listeners.
- 230000 Twitter followers
- Stargazing live
- JB Discovery centre with 150000 visitors per year
- Award winning "Live from Jodrell Bank" rock concerts
- Industry contracts for SKA work including CISCO, AASL, NPL, GEANT
- Newton programme for Radio Astronomy in Africa.
Organisations
Publications
Kalcheva I
(2018)
The coordinated radio and infrared survey for high-mass star formation III. A catalogue of northern ultra-compact H II regions
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Graham M
(2018)
SDSS-IV MaNGA: stellar angular momentum of about 2300 galaxies: unveiling the bimodality of massive galaxy properties
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Petroff E
(2018)
A fast radio burst with a low dispersion measure
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Michilli D
(2018)
Low-frequency pulse profile variation in PSR B2217+47: evidence for echoes from the interstellar medium
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Tan C
(2018)
Ensemble candidate classification for the LOTAAS pulsar survey
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Chyzy K
(2018)
LOFAR MSSS: Flattening low-frequency radio continuum spectra of nearby galaxies
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Eyres S
(2018)
ALMA reveals the aftermath of a white dwarf-brown dwarf merger in CK Vulpeculae
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Zucca P
(2018)
Shock location and CME 3D reconstruction of a solar type II radio burst with LOFAR
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Jones O
(2018)
Near-infrared Stellar Populations in the Metal-poor, Dwarf Irregular Galaxies Sextans A and Leo A
in The Astrophysical Journal
Prat J
(2018)
Galaxy bias from galaxy-galaxy lensing in the DES science verification data
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Desvignes G
(2018)
Large Magneto-ionic Variations toward the Galactic Center Magnetar, PSR J1745-2900
in The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Wilber A
(2018)
LOFAR discovery of an ultra-steep radio halo and giant head-tail radio galaxy in Abell 1132
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Greene J
(2018)
SDSS-IV MaNGA: Uncovering the Angular Momentum Content of Central and Satellite Early-type Galaxies
in The Astrophysical Journal
Robertson A
(2018)
The diverse density profiles of galaxy clusters with self-interacting dark matter plus baryons
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Jones M
(2018)
The C-Band All-Sky Survey (C-BASS): design and capabilities
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Vigeland S
(2018)
Reconciling Optical and Radio Observations of the Binary Millisecond Pulsar PSR J1640+2224
in The Astrophysical Journal
Evans D
(2018)
High-resolution Imaging of Transiting Extrasolar Planetary systems (HITEP) II. Lucky Imaging results from 2015 and 2016
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Moscadelli L
(2018)
The feedback of an HC HII region on its parental molecular core The case of core A1 in the star-forming region G24.78+0.08
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Shaw B
(2018)
Resolving discrete pulsar spin-down states with current and future instrumentation
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Chen T
(2018)
Impact of SZ cluster residuals in CMB maps and CMB-LSS cross-correlations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Watts A
(2018)
Dense matter with eXTP
in Science China Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy
Natoli P
(2018)
Exploring cosmic origins with CORE: Mitigation of systematic effects
in Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
Keane E
(2018)
The SUrvey for Pulsars and Extragalactic Radio Bursts - I. Survey description and overview
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Samuroff S
(2018)
Dark Energy Survey Year 1 results: the impact of galaxy neighbours on weak lensing cosmology with im3shape
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Dullo B
(2018)
The nuclear activity and central structure of the elliptical galaxy NGC 5322
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Dickinson C
(2018)
The State-of-Play of Anomalous Microwave Emission (AME) Research
Henkel C
(2018)
Molecular line emission in NGC 4945, imaged with ALMA
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Del Popolo A
(2018)
Energy transfer from baryons to dark matter as a unified solution to small-scale structure issues of the ? CDM model
in Physical Review D
Dai S
(2018)
Peculiar spin frequency and radio profile evolution of PSR J1119-6127 following magnetar-like X-ray bursts
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Varenius E
(2018)
Subarcsecond international LOFAR radio images of Arp 220 at 150 MHz A kpc-scale star forming disk surrounding nuclei with shocked outflows ( Corrigendum )
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Henze M
(2018)
Breaking the Habit: The Peculiar 2016 Eruption of the Unique Recurrent Nova M31N 2008-12a
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hickish J
(2018)
A digital correlator upgrade for the Arcminute MicroKelvin Imager
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Goldstraw E
(2018)
Comparison of methods for modelling coronal magnetic fields
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Perrott Y
(2018)
AMI-CL J0300+2613: a Galactic anomalous-microwave-emission ring masquerading as a galaxy cluster
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Shaw B
(2018)
The largest glitch observed in the Crab pulsar
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McKee J
(2018)
Temporal variations in scattering and dispersion measure in the Crab Pulsar and their effect on timing precision
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Polzin E
(2018)
The low-frequency radio eclipses of the black widow pulsar J1810+1744
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Heesen V
(2018)
Exploring the making of a galactic wind in the starbursting dwarf irregular galaxy IC 10 with LOFAR
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Johnson M
(2018)
The Scattering and Intrinsic Structure of Sagittarius A* at Radio Wavelengths
in The Astrophysical Journal
König S
(2018)
Major impact from a minor merger The extraordinary hot molecular gas flow in the Eye of the NGC 4194 Medusa galaxy
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Spitler L
(2018)
Detection of Bursts from FRB 121102 with the Effelsberg 100 m Radio Telescope at 5 GHz and the Role of Scintillation
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hermsen W
(2018)
Discovery of synchronous X-ray and radio moding of PSR B0823+26
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Burigana C
(2018)
Exploring cosmic origins with CORE: Effects of observer peculiar motion
in Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
Hoyle B
(2018)
Dark Energy Survey Year 1 Results: redshift distributions of the weak-lensing source galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Broderick J
(2018)
LOFAR 150-MHz observations of SS 433 and W 50
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Yan ? Z
(2018)
Simultaneous 13 cm/3 cm Single-pulse Observations of PSR B0329+54
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hart L
(2018)
New constraints on time-dependent variations of fundamental constants using Planck data
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
MacCrann N
(2018)
DES Y1 Results: validating cosmological parameter estimation using simulated Dark Energy Surveys
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Skipper C
(2018)
Spatially offset AGN candidates in the CLASS survey
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Description | The consolidated grant supported a wide range of activities in astrophysics and cosmology at the JBCA. This was based around three areas: cosmology - the study of the Universe as a single entity, pulsars - spinning neutron stars which emit pulse of radio waves at regular intervals, astrophysical processes - the study of galaxy and star formation in the universe. Progress was made in all these areas. |
Exploitation Route | The wide range of work produce by the grant has been published in journals. These papers have received significant citations indicating that all the areas have had an impact within the academic research community. |
Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Other |
Description | The research has been used extensively in the outreach program of the Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre, which attracts 160,000 visitors per annum and focusses on hard-to-reach audiences. |
First Year Of Impact | 2020 |
Sector | Education |
Impact Types | Cultural,Societal |