Galactic Evolution

Galaxies and many of their properties evolve over cosmic history: Which processes determine their sizes, regulate their star formation rates, or shape their morphology? In fact, nobody really knows. However, compared with just 10 years ago, we are now much closer to answering those questions. This remarkable development is largely a result of two major advances. First, with the advent of large scale, digital galaxy surveys the quantitative analysis of millions of galaxies became possible -- a development that is still revolutionizing our understanding of galaxy evolution. Secondly, the continuous increase in computing power enables astrophysicists, like myself, to develop and evaluate increasingly sophisticated theoretical models. In my work, I often rely on state-of-the-art hydrodynamics and gravity solvers such as the SPH-code GASOLINE or the AMR-code ART to study how galaxies evolve in a cosmological setting. In my presentation, I will show through video simulations how well current physics is able to predict galaxy evolution, and what the shortcomings seem to be.

Speaker: Robert Feldman