The High-Redshift Frontier of Galaxy Formation Theory

JWST observations have revealed many surprises at early cosmic times. The unexpectedly high abundance of bright galaxies, massive black holes, and dense star clusters, along with the existence of enigmatic Little Red Dots and detection of heavy elements in the most distant systems observed to date, has pushed astrophysicists to reconsider our models of how galaxies form and perhaps even cosmology in the infant cosmos. I will discuss attempts to understand surprisingly fast high-redshift galaxy formation using complex simulations and simple models.

Speaker: Mike Boyland-Kolchin, University of Texas, Austin