Flickering black holes
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Nottingham
Department Name: Sch of Physics & Astronomy
Abstract
Quasars are the most luminous objects in the Universe, powered by accretion onto supermassive black holes. A key characteristic of quasars is their extreme variability, which provides a means of identifying these rare objects (given data of sufficient quality). The aim of this project is to identify quasars in a unique patch of sky (the Ultra Deep Survey), using very deep infrared imaging taken over an unprecedented baseline of 10 years. This would be the first study of its kind, which will provide a new and entirely independent census of quasar activity in the distant Universe. We expect to identify several thousand new quasars, allowing us to measure the growth of black holes at early times. By probing physical scales that are unresolvable by other means, the light curves will also provide new tests for models of quasar fuelling and accretion. As a bonus, we will also identify supernovae among the ~250,000 normal galaxies in the field, to provide a new statistical study of the prevalence of supernova activity in distant galaxies.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
Omar Almaini (Primary Supervisor) | |
Elizabeth Elmer (Student) |
Publications
Elmer E
(2020)
Long-term NIR Variability in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey: a new probe of AGN activity at high redshift.
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Studentship Projects
Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ST/R504981/1 | 01/10/2017 | 30/09/2021 | |||
1940749 | Studentship | ST/R504981/1 | 01/10/2017 | 23/06/2021 | Elizabeth Elmer |
Description | University Open and Offer Holder Days |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | On the main University open days (twice per year) I help show prospective students the Astronomy facilities at the University of Nottingham, and on the Offer Holder days (fortnightly from December to April) I give a short presentation on my experiences at the University. Both of these usually spark conversations about what research I do as part of this award. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017,2018,2019,2020 |