Outdoor Music of the Spheres - The Birth of Cosmic Behemoths: Insights into the Earliest Stages of Galaxy Cluster Assembly

Galaxy clusters - the largest gravitationally bound structures in the universe - are the most extreme outcomes of hierarchical structure formation in an expanding universe. In the nearby cosmos, mature galaxy clusters have been studied in great detail, providing important insights into the nature and distribution of dark matter, as well as the astrophysics that drives galaxy evolution in dense environments. However, the protocluster stage of galaxy cluster assembly remains an open frontier in our understanding of galaxy evolution in the early universe. In this lecture, I will share our current theoretical and observational understanding of the earliest stages of galaxy cluster assembly and discuss the next-generation observatories poised to significantly advance this area of research.

Performer: Jimbo Scott

Speaker: Devontae Baxter, UC San Diego

Tickets go on sale April 16, 2025 at Noon PDT.  Limit 4 per customer.