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
McDonald I
(2020)
Circumstellar CO J = 3?2 detected around the evolving metal-poor ([Fe/H] ˜ -1.15 dex) AGB star RU Vulpeculae
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McDonald I
(2017)
Fundamental parameters and infrared excesses of Tycho-Gaia stars
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McDonald I
(2021)
Kepler K2 Campaign 9 - I. Candidate short-duration events from the first space-based survey for planetary microlensing
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McDonald I
(2018)
Pre-discovery transits of the exoplanets WASP-18b and WASP-33b from Hipparcos
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
McClintock T
(2019)
Dark Energy Survey Year 1 results: weak lensing mass calibration of redMaPPer galaxy clusters
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McCallum N
(2021)
Spin-based removal of instrumental systematics in 21 cm intensity mapping surveys
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McCallum N
(2021)
Spin characterization of systematics in CMB surveys - a comprehensive formalism
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McCallum N
(2021)
Spin-based removal of instrumental systematics in 21 cm intensity mapping surveys
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
McCallum N
(2022)
Fast map-based simulations of systematics in CMB surveys including effects of the scanning strategy
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Maud L
(2018)
Chasing discs around O-type (proto)stars ALMA evidence for an SiO disc and disc wind from G17.64+0.16
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Mattila S
(2018)
A dust-enshrouded tidal disruption event with a resolved radio jet in a galaxy merger.
in Science (New York, N.Y.)
Mao M
(2018)
The first VLBI detection of a spiral DRAGN core
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Mann G
(2018)
Tracking of an electron beam through the solar corona with LOFAR
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Mancini L
(2019)
Physical properties and transmission spectrum of the WASP-74 planetary system from multiband photometry
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
Lyon R
(2019)
A processing pipeline for high volume pulsar candidate data streams
in Astronomy and Computing
Lyne A
(2017)
The Lovell Telescope and its role in pulsar astronomy
in Nature Astronomy
Lykou F
(2018)
The curious case of II Lup: a complex morphology revealed with SAM/NACO and ALMA
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Lundqvist P
(2020)
The Deepest Radio Observations of Nearby SNe Ia: Constraining Progenitor Types and Optimizing Future Surveys
in The Astrophysical Journal
Lucas L
(2019)
Efficient source finding for radio interferometric images
in Astronomy and Computing
Lovell M
(2019)
The signal of decaying dark matter with hydrodynamical simulations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Loureiro A
(2019)
Cosmological measurements from angular power spectra analysis of BOSS DR12 tomography
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Liu X
(2018)
High-precision pulsar timing and spin frequency second derivatives
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Liu X
(2019)
Correlated timing noise and high-precision pulsar timing: measuring frequency second derivatives as an example
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Liu T
(2018)
The TOP-SCOPE Survey of Planck Galactic Cold Clumps: Survey Overview and Results of an Exemplar Source, PGCC G26.53+0.17
in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
Liu T
(2018)
A Holistic Perspective on the Dynamics of G035.39-00.33: The Interplay between Gas and Magnetic Fields
in The Astrophysical Journal
Liu J
(2019)
The JCMT BISTRO Survey: The Magnetic Field in the Starless Core ? Ophiuchus C
in The Astrophysical Journal
Littlefield C
(2019)
Fast-cadence TESS Photometry and Doppler Tomography of the Asynchronous Polar CD Ind: A Revised Accretion Geometry from Newly Proposed Spin and Orbital Periods
in The Astrophysical Journal
Lindroos L
(2018)
Measuring size evolution of distant, faint galaxies in the radio regime
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
LIGO Scientific Collaboration And The Virgo Collaboration
(2017)
A gravitational-wave standard siren measurement of the Hubble constant.
in Nature
Li H
(2018)
SDSS-IV MaNGA: global stellar population and gradients for about 2000 early-type and spiral galaxies on the mass-size plane
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Li H
(2017)
SDSS-IV MaNGA: Variation of the Stellar Initial Mass Function in Spiral and Early-type Galaxies
in The Astrophysical Journal
Levin L
(2019)
Spin frequency evolution and pulse profile variations of the recently re-activated radio magnetar XTE J1810-197
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Lentati L
(2018)
cobra: a Bayesian approach to pulsar searching
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Law C
(2017)
A Multi-telescope Campaign on FRB 121102: Implications for the FRB Population
in The Astrophysical Journal
Lang P
(2019)
Revealing the Stellar Mass and Dust Distributions of Submillimeter Galaxies at Redshift 2
in The Astrophysical Journal
Lamb J
(2021)
COMAP Early Science: II. Pathfinder Instrument
Lamb J
(2022)
COMAP Early Science. II. Pathfinder Instrument
in The Astrophysical Journal
Lagos C
(2018)
The connection between mass, environment, and slow rotation in simulated galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
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
Kwon J
(2018)
A First Look at BISTRO Observations of the ? Oph-A core
in The Astrophysical Journal
Kraemer K
(2019)
Stellar Pulsation and the Production of Dust and Molecules in Galactic Carbon Stars
in The Astrophysical Journal
Kovács A
(2019)
More out of less: an excess integrated Sachs-Wolfe signal from supervoids mapped out by the Dark Energy Survey
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Koshimoto N
(2017)
MOA-2016-BLG-227Lb: A Massive Planet Characterized by Combining Light-curve Analysis and Keck AO Imaging
in The Astronomical Journal
Kontar E
(2019)
Anisotropic Radio-wave Scattering and the Interpretation of Solar Radio Emission Observations
in The Astrophysical Journal
Kong S
(2018)
The CARMA-NRO Orion Survey
in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
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 |