Lancaster University Observational Astrophysics 2021-2024
Lead Research Organisation:
Lancaster University
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
The work proposed here tackles some of the most important open questions in astrophysics, broadly centred on understanding the formation and evolution of galaxies and the properties of the Universe itself. It is closely linked with the STFC Science Roadmap challenges pertaining to the roles and nature of dark matter and dark energy, the formation of the first stars and galaxies in the Universe and the still unsolved key question of how galaxies evolve. In order to address such fundamental questions, we use complementary approaches. We will use new telescopes that are now coming on line to find and study Type Ia supernovae. These will be used as distance indicators across time to study the evolution of the universe itself and to better understand what is causing the expansion of the universe to accelerate. New telescope data will also be used to discover twinkling supermassive black holes hidden in the centres of thousands of galaxies. We will compare these black holes with data from their much more luminous siblings - quasars - which have grown rapidly in galaxies similar to our own. By studying the full population we will advance our understanding of how these black holes grow and influence the galaxies which host them. We will unveil the physical mechanisms behind the production and escape of high energy photons through galactic labyrinths, near and far, and unveil which sources caused the last major phase transition in the Universe. With artificial intelligence techniques, we will discover thousands of new clusters of galaxies, which will be used to understand how galaxies evolve in dense environments and the nature of dark matter itself. We will find new types of galaxies and use them to understand what controls the growth of galaxies in the distant Universe.
Our research involves making state-of-the-art observations using the world's most powerful and advanced telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope and facilities run by the European Southern Observatory including ALMA (the Atacama Large Millimeter Array) and the VLT (Very Large Telescope). We will also begin to use new facilities including the 4-m Multi-Object Spectroscopic Telescope (4MOST), the Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), and in space the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the European Space Agency's Euclid mission.
We will bring our state-of-the art research to a wide audience by creating inspiring new shows for our portable inflatable planetarium, the LUniverse. These new shows will explain our group's current research projects to a general audience and will be shown at outreach events and in schools around the North-West.
Our research involves making state-of-the-art observations using the world's most powerful and advanced telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope and facilities run by the European Southern Observatory including ALMA (the Atacama Large Millimeter Array) and the VLT (Very Large Telescope). We will also begin to use new facilities including the 4-m Multi-Object Spectroscopic Telescope (4MOST), the Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), and in space the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the European Space Agency's Euclid mission.
We will bring our state-of-the art research to a wide audience by creating inspiring new shows for our portable inflatable planetarium, the LUniverse. These new shows will explain our group's current research projects to a general audience and will be shown at outreach events and in schools around the North-West.
Planned Impact
The beneficiaries of this research are primarily academics interested in the important areas of STFC Science Challenges as described in the STFC Science Roadmap, particularly understanding how galaxies like our own Milky Way formed and evolved, improving the precision of SN Ia measurements to better understand the roles of dark matter and dark energy, understanding the distribution of dark matter, understanding the role of supermassive black holes in galaxy evolution, and illuminating physical processes in the early universe. The impact of this research will be disseminated in the form of open-access publications in peer-reviewed journals, and talks at national and international conferences. The methods and techniques developed are also expected to generate significant wider interest in disciplines such as particle physics, medical imaging and earth observation, and there is potential for commercial impact for the computer vision and time-series analysis techniques described in the projects.
The research also has important economic and societal impacts. Research in astronomy addresses some of the most fundamental questions about our origins and the Universe around us. The excitement it generates inspires young people to enter science and research. All members of the Astrophysics group give regular public lectures and also engage the public in a variety of ways, including media interviews with wide reach and activities with more direct 2-way engagement such as citizen science projects and participatory events at music festivals where underserved audiences are located. During the grant period these activities will directly incorporate the research results of this project. Engagement with authentic cutting-edge research, including citizen science, is effective at inspiring the public and can lead to independent science learning.
The group is also involved in the Physics department's schools outreach program, working with the department's Schools outreach Officer. The Department of Physics offers day-long "Cosmology and Astrophysics Masterclasses" and residential work experience and courses throughout the year. The new Observational Astrophysics group at Lancaster is augmenting the provision of such Masterclasses and is also contributing significantly to the department's outreach work via its planetarium programme, LUniverse. The planetarium is expected to reach tens of thousands of members of the public via direct, immersive, participatory engagement during the grant period. Its audience includes members of the public of all ages, with a particular focus on schools engagement and engagement with underserved audiences. This grant will enable LUniverse to incorporate the proposed projects' research directly into planetarium shows, significantly increasing the direct public impact of the research in this proposal.
The research also has important economic and societal impacts. Research in astronomy addresses some of the most fundamental questions about our origins and the Universe around us. The excitement it generates inspires young people to enter science and research. All members of the Astrophysics group give regular public lectures and also engage the public in a variety of ways, including media interviews with wide reach and activities with more direct 2-way engagement such as citizen science projects and participatory events at music festivals where underserved audiences are located. During the grant period these activities will directly incorporate the research results of this project. Engagement with authentic cutting-edge research, including citizen science, is effective at inspiring the public and can lead to independent science learning.
The group is also involved in the Physics department's schools outreach program, working with the department's Schools outreach Officer. The Department of Physics offers day-long "Cosmology and Astrophysics Masterclasses" and residential work experience and courses throughout the year. The new Observational Astrophysics group at Lancaster is augmenting the provision of such Masterclasses and is also contributing significantly to the department's outreach work via its planetarium programme, LUniverse. The planetarium is expected to reach tens of thousands of members of the public via direct, immersive, participatory engagement during the grant period. Its audience includes members of the public of all ages, with a particular focus on schools engagement and engagement with underserved audiences. This grant will enable LUniverse to incorporate the proposed projects' research directly into planetarium shows, significantly increasing the direct public impact of the research in this proposal.
Organisations
- Lancaster University (Lead Research Organisation)
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (Collaboration)
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (Collaboration)
- University College London (Collaboration)
- University of Chicago (Collaboration)
- University of Portsmouth (Collaboration)
- University of Clermont Auvergne (Collaboration)
- Paris Institute of Astrophysics (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH (Collaboration)
- The Open University (Collaboration)
- DURHAM UNIVERSITY (Collaboration)
- Leibniz Association (Collaboration)
- University of Toronto (Collaboration)
- Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) (Collaboration)
Publications
Bailey A
(2023)
Type Ia supernova observations combining data from the Euclid mission and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Carrick J
(2021)
Optimizing a magnitude-limited spectroscopic training sample for photometric classification of supernovae
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Collaboration E
(2023)
Euclid preparation. XXXII. Evaluating the weak lensing cluster mass biases using the Three Hundred Project hydrodynamical simulations
in arXiv e-prints
Collaboration E
(2022)
Euclid preparation. XXIV. Calibration of the halo mass function in $\Lambda(\nu)$CDM cosmologies
in arXiv e-prints
Collaboration E
(2022)
Euclid preparation: XXII. Selection of Quiescent Galaxies from Mock Photometry using Machine Learning
in arXiv e-prints
Collaboration E
(2022)
Euclid preparation: XXIII. Derivation of galaxy physical properties with deep machine learning using mock fluxes and H-band images
in arXiv e-prints
Collaboration E
(2022)
Euclid preparation. XXVII. Covariance model validation for the 2-point correlation function of galaxy clusters
in arXiv e-prints
Collaboration E
(2022)
Euclid preparation. XXV. The Euclid Morphology Challenge -- Towards model-fitting photometry for billions of galaxies
in arXiv e-prints
Collaboration E
(2022)
Euclid preparation XXVI. The Euclid Morphology Challenge. Towards structural parameters for billions of galaxies
in arXiv e-prints
Description | 4MOST Consortium |
Organisation | Leibniz Association |
Department | Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam |
Country | Germany |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | The consortium consists of 17 full members and 9 minor participants, some contributing to the hardware development, others to the software development, and almost all to the science case development. My collaboration (TiDES) has contributed financially towards the construction of the 4MOST instrument. We also contribute scientific planning effort. |
Collaborator Contribution | Other institutions contribute financially as well as technically in the design and construction of the instrument. Other institutions also contribute to the scientific planning. |
Impact | publications listed in appropriate grant report. |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | Euclid Consortium |
Organisation | Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) |
Country | Spain |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Euclid is a planned ESA mission that will be launched in 2022 and will survey the sky with the main goals of measuring the cosmological parameters of the universe. From the ESA web site: "Nearly 1000 scientists from 100 institutes form the Euclid Consortium building the instruments and participating in the scientific harvest of the mission. The Euclid Consortium comprises scientists from 13 European countries: Austria, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, Portugal, Romania and the UK. It also includes a US NASA team of scientists." Prof. Hook and Prof. Miller are members of the Euclid consortium. Prof Hook is one of two UK representatives on the Euclid Consortium Board. She work on aspects of the survey design connected to discovery and study of astrophysical transients. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partners are involved in design of the mission and the survey, and planning the science program that it will carry out after launch. Some partners are involved in construction of instruments that will fly on the mission. |
Impact | There have been many publications from the Euclid consortium as a whole. There are also outreach activities connected to the mission. |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Euclid Consortium |
Organisation | National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) |
Department | Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
Country | United States |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Euclid is a planned ESA mission that will be launched in 2022 and will survey the sky with the main goals of measuring the cosmological parameters of the universe. From the ESA web site: "Nearly 1000 scientists from 100 institutes form the Euclid Consortium building the instruments and participating in the scientific harvest of the mission. The Euclid Consortium comprises scientists from 13 European countries: Austria, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, Portugal, Romania and the UK. It also includes a US NASA team of scientists." Prof. Hook and Prof. Miller are members of the Euclid consortium. Prof Hook is one of two UK representatives on the Euclid Consortium Board. She work on aspects of the survey design connected to discovery and study of astrophysical transients. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partners are involved in design of the mission and the survey, and planning the science program that it will carry out after launch. Some partners are involved in construction of instruments that will fly on the mission. |
Impact | There have been many publications from the Euclid consortium as a whole. There are also outreach activities connected to the mission. |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Euclid Consortium |
Organisation | Paris Institute of Astrophysics |
Country | France |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Euclid is a planned ESA mission that will be launched in 2022 and will survey the sky with the main goals of measuring the cosmological parameters of the universe. From the ESA web site: "Nearly 1000 scientists from 100 institutes form the Euclid Consortium building the instruments and participating in the scientific harvest of the mission. The Euclid Consortium comprises scientists from 13 European countries: Austria, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, Portugal, Romania and the UK. It also includes a US NASA team of scientists." Prof. Hook and Prof. Miller are members of the Euclid consortium. Prof Hook is one of two UK representatives on the Euclid Consortium Board. She work on aspects of the survey design connected to discovery and study of astrophysical transients. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partners are involved in design of the mission and the survey, and planning the science program that it will carry out after launch. Some partners are involved in construction of instruments that will fly on the mission. |
Impact | There have been many publications from the Euclid consortium as a whole. There are also outreach activities connected to the mission. |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Euclid UK |
Organisation | Durham University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for "Time Domain" studies and (in the implementation phase) Weak Lensing within the Euclid Ground Segment |
Collaborator Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for other aspects of the Euclid ground segment including weak lensing, galaxy clustering and galaxy photometric redshifts |
Impact | Internal reports |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Euclid UK |
Organisation | Open University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for "Time Domain" studies and (in the implementation phase) Weak Lensing within the Euclid Ground Segment |
Collaborator Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for other aspects of the Euclid ground segment including weak lensing, galaxy clustering and galaxy photometric redshifts |
Impact | Internal reports |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Euclid UK |
Organisation | University College London |
Department | Department of Space and Climate Physics (MSSL) |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for "Time Domain" studies and (in the implementation phase) Weak Lensing within the Euclid Ground Segment |
Collaborator Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for other aspects of the Euclid ground segment including weak lensing, galaxy clustering and galaxy photometric redshifts |
Impact | Internal reports |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Euclid UK |
Organisation | University of Edinburgh |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for "Time Domain" studies and (in the implementation phase) Weak Lensing within the Euclid Ground Segment |
Collaborator Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for other aspects of the Euclid ground segment including weak lensing, galaxy clustering and galaxy photometric redshifts |
Impact | Internal reports |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Euclid UK |
Organisation | University of Portsmouth |
Department | Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation (ICG) |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for "Time Domain" studies and (in the implementation phase) Weak Lensing within the Euclid Ground Segment |
Collaborator Contribution | Planning and developing algorithms for other aspects of the Euclid ground segment including weak lensing, galaxy clustering and galaxy photometric redshifts |
Impact | Internal reports |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration |
Organisation | University of Chicago |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning survey strategies for the future Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) surveys via simulations and calculations. Also developing follow-up strategies for LSST transients, for the purposes of Dark Energy science in particular. Testing transient classification software under various assumptions for training samples. |
Collaborator Contribution | Simulations of the LSST data, planning of survey strategies, software for classification of transients. Partners have also help review papers prior to submission to journals. |
Impact | Papers (non-refereed) that have resulted include: Enhancing LSST Science with Euclid Synergy (2019), a white paper by the Tri-Agency Working Group (TAG), P. Capak et al. The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration (DESC) Science Requirements Document (2018), The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration; Mandelbaum, R. et al. Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Wide-Fast-Deep Survey (2018) Lochner M. et al Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Deep Drilling Fields and other Special Programs (2018), Scolnic, D. et al |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration |
Organisation | University of Clermont Auvergne |
Country | France |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning survey strategies for the future Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) surveys via simulations and calculations. Also developing follow-up strategies for LSST transients, for the purposes of Dark Energy science in particular. Testing transient classification software under various assumptions for training samples. |
Collaborator Contribution | Simulations of the LSST data, planning of survey strategies, software for classification of transients. Partners have also help review papers prior to submission to journals. |
Impact | Papers (non-refereed) that have resulted include: Enhancing LSST Science with Euclid Synergy (2019), a white paper by the Tri-Agency Working Group (TAG), P. Capak et al. The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration (DESC) Science Requirements Document (2018), The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration; Mandelbaum, R. et al. Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Wide-Fast-Deep Survey (2018) Lochner M. et al Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Deep Drilling Fields and other Special Programs (2018), Scolnic, D. et al |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration |
Organisation | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning survey strategies for the future Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) surveys via simulations and calculations. Also developing follow-up strategies for LSST transients, for the purposes of Dark Energy science in particular. Testing transient classification software under various assumptions for training samples. |
Collaborator Contribution | Simulations of the LSST data, planning of survey strategies, software for classification of transients. Partners have also help review papers prior to submission to journals. |
Impact | Papers (non-refereed) that have resulted include: Enhancing LSST Science with Euclid Synergy (2019), a white paper by the Tri-Agency Working Group (TAG), P. Capak et al. The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration (DESC) Science Requirements Document (2018), The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration; Mandelbaum, R. et al. Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Wide-Fast-Deep Survey (2018) Lochner M. et al Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Deep Drilling Fields and other Special Programs (2018), Scolnic, D. et al |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration |
Organisation | University of Toronto |
Country | Canada |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Planning survey strategies for the future Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) surveys via simulations and calculations. Also developing follow-up strategies for LSST transients, for the purposes of Dark Energy science in particular. Testing transient classification software under various assumptions for training samples. |
Collaborator Contribution | Simulations of the LSST data, planning of survey strategies, software for classification of transients. Partners have also help review papers prior to submission to journals. |
Impact | Papers (non-refereed) that have resulted include: Enhancing LSST Science with Euclid Synergy (2019), a white paper by the Tri-Agency Working Group (TAG), P. Capak et al. The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration (DESC) Science Requirements Document (2018), The LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration; Mandelbaum, R. et al. Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Wide-Fast-Deep Survey (2018) Lochner M. et al Optimizing the LSST Observing Strategy for Dark Energy Science: DESC Recommendations for the Deep Drilling Fields and other Special Programs (2018), Scolnic, D. et al |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | Manchester Lit and Phil Society |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | This was a talk to a joint audience of the Institute of Physics and the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society (with a history dating back to 1781). The event took place during the Covid-19 pandemic and has held online. The subject of the talk was the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe and the quest to understand the nature of Dark Energy. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |