Galaxy formation and evolution 2010 - 2015
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Institute of Astronomy
Abstract
TThis programmatic five-year rolling grant application addresses one of the most important problems in extragalactic astronomy, the formation and evolution of galaxies. The task is one of the key goals in the current STFC Road Map and is a defining objective of virtually every national decadal survey world-wide. A full understanding of galaxy formation and evolution requires multiple lines of attack. Observations of the resolved stellar populations in the Milky Way and its Local Group companions provide a detailed fossil record of the dynamical assemblies of the galaxies, the formation of stars, and the buildup of heavy elements over a wide range of mass scales and initial conditions. At the other end of the scale, observations of distant galaxies spanning lookback times of up to 12 Gyr provide direct measurements of the evolution of galaxy populations and the buildup of stars and metals with cosmic time. Finally, measurements of the large-scale star formation and abundance properties of nearby galaxies form a vital astrophysical bridge between the studies of nearby resolved stellar populations and the distant high-redshift investigations, by allowing us to characterise the evolutionary properties of the Hubble sequence and the complex ``gastrophysical'' processes that regulate the accretion of gas and the formation of stars in galaxies. In this rolling grant application we propose a series of investigations that will advance our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution on all three fronts.
Organisations
Publications
Sheehan C
(2010)
Forming the first planetary systems: debris around Galactic thick disc stars
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Gair J
(2010)
Exploring intermediate and massive black-hole binaries with the Einstein Telescope
in General Relativity and Gravitation
Erb D
(2010)
PHYSICAL CONDITIONS IN A YOUNG, UNREDDENED, LOW-METALLICITY GALAXY AT HIGH REDSHIFT
in The Astrophysical Journal
Greiner J
(2010)
The nature of "dark" gamma-ray bursts
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Hanson D
(2010)
Weak lensing of the CMB
in General Relativity and Gravitation
Rosales-Ortega F
(2010)
PINGS: the PPAK IFS Nearby Galaxies Survey
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Million E
(2010)
Feedback under the microscope - I. Thermodynamic structure and AGN-driven shocks in M87 AGN feedback in M87
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Russell H
(2010)
Chandra observation of two shock fronts in the merging galaxy cluster Abell 2146 The merging cluster Abell 2146
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bolton J
(2010)
A first direct measurement of the intergalactic medium temperature around a quasar at z= 6 The IGM temperature around a quasar at z=6
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Zoghbi A
(2010)
Broad iron L line and X-ray reverberation in 1H0707-495
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society