Resolving the interstellar carbon crisis with multilaser spectroscopy. This project aims to provide astronomers of the future with firm diagnostic tools to identify and understand exotic carbon species in the interstellar medium. Life on Earth began after delivery of carbon-based pre-biotic material to the young planet by comets and meteorites. This material came from outside the solar system, but we do not yet know the chemical make-up of the interstellar matter. This is because we do not under ....Resolving the interstellar carbon crisis with multilaser spectroscopy. This project aims to provide astronomers of the future with firm diagnostic tools to identify and understand exotic carbon species in the interstellar medium. Life on Earth began after delivery of carbon-based pre-biotic material to the young planet by comets and meteorites. This material came from outside the solar system, but we do not yet know the chemical make-up of the interstellar matter. This is because we do not understand precisely how the interstellar molecules and dust interact with starlight. This project will create and study models of interstellar matter in the laboratory, and will determine the chemical form of carbon in the interstellar medium. This will have lasting impact on astrophysical models, as well as theories of the origin of life.Read moreRead less
Galactic seismology: a new window on Milky Way's evolution. This project aims to investigate how the Milky Way responds to the passage of a small dwarf galaxy through its plane. This is motivated by the observational discovery of largescale waves crossing the Milky Way disc, and by new related supercomputer simulations. The project expects to generate new knowledge in this field, based on further supercomputer simulations and comparison of the predictions with new data from the Gaia space missio ....Galactic seismology: a new window on Milky Way's evolution. This project aims to investigate how the Milky Way responds to the passage of a small dwarf galaxy through its plane. This is motivated by the observational discovery of largescale waves crossing the Milky Way disc, and by new related supercomputer simulations. The project expects to generate new knowledge in this field, based on further supercomputer simulations and comparison of the predictions with new data from the Gaia space mission. Expected outcomes of the project include a demonstration of the diagnostic power of this new seismological approach to galaxy evolution. The project promises significant benefits in the form of establishing Australia as a leader in Galactic seismology, as it is in the field of Galactic archaeology.
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Magnetic fields and atomic gas flows in the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds. This project aims to understand how gas and magnetic fields interact to set the fate of galaxies. Magnetism, alongside gravity, is one of the most influential forces in determining the structure and evolution of the Universe, and yet one of the least understood. Using Australia's newest astronomy investment, the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder, this project hopes to reveal the linkage of magnetism and atomi ....Magnetic fields and atomic gas flows in the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds. This project aims to understand how gas and magnetic fields interact to set the fate of galaxies. Magnetism, alongside gravity, is one of the most influential forces in determining the structure and evolution of the Universe, and yet one of the least understood. Using Australia's newest astronomy investment, the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder, this project hopes to reveal the linkage of magnetism and atomic gas flows in our own Milky Way and between its galactic neighbours, the Magellanic Clouds. The expected outcomes of this project include the delivery of one of the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder key science projects, improved understanding of how galaxies evolve and training students in scientific skills.Read moreRead less
Probing dark matter through the small scale structure of the universe. This project aims to discover clues to the nature of dark matter buried in small-scale structures. Although observational probes reliably constrain these systems, theoretical progress is hampered by difficulties disentangling the complex baryonic physics from the micro-physics of the dark matter particle in shaping the structure of low-mass galaxies. The project will tackle this problem using sophisticated numerical simulatio ....Probing dark matter through the small scale structure of the universe. This project aims to discover clues to the nature of dark matter buried in small-scale structures. Although observational probes reliably constrain these systems, theoretical progress is hampered by difficulties disentangling the complex baryonic physics from the micro-physics of the dark matter particle in shaping the structure of low-mass galaxies. The project will tackle this problem using sophisticated numerical simulations which separate these effects, allowing them to be isolated. The results are expected to show how low-mass galaxy formed, and to have important implications for modelling dark matter annihilation and for interpreting data from forthcoming surveys.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100461
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$353,379.00
Summary
The mysterious thick disk: Unifying Galactic and extragalactic dynamics. The origin of the Milky Way’s ancient thick disk currently defies any easy explanation. This project aims to resolve this problem and will directly challenge existing models of disk formation. The new innovative approach to answering this question will be to simultaneously measure both the chemical and dynamical properties of nearby Milky Way analogues. By unifying the perspectives of Galactic and extragalactic dynamics the ....The mysterious thick disk: Unifying Galactic and extragalactic dynamics. The origin of the Milky Way’s ancient thick disk currently defies any easy explanation. This project aims to resolve this problem and will directly challenge existing models of disk formation. The new innovative approach to answering this question will be to simultaneously measure both the chemical and dynamical properties of nearby Milky Way analogues. By unifying the perspectives of Galactic and extragalactic dynamics the project seeks to deliver new understandings about thick disk formation. Expected outcomes include, robust new evidence about disk galaxy formation, discovery of a large number of dynamical Milky Way analogues, and establishing the most plausible Milky Way formation pathway from cosmological simulations.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL210100039
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,221,778.00
Summary
Illuminating Magnetic Fields as the Scaffold of Gas in Galaxies. This program aims to reveal how gas and magnetic fields interact to set the fate of galaxies. The question of how galaxies evolve is one of the most fundamental in all of astronomy. Magnetism, alongside gravity, is one of the most influential forces in determining the evolution of galaxies, and yet one of the least understood. Using the Fellow's expertise and Australia's newest radio telescope, the Australian Square Kilometre Arra ....Illuminating Magnetic Fields as the Scaffold of Gas in Galaxies. This program aims to reveal how gas and magnetic fields interact to set the fate of galaxies. The question of how galaxies evolve is one of the most fundamental in all of astronomy. Magnetism, alongside gravity, is one of the most influential forces in determining the evolution of galaxies, and yet one of the least understood. Using the Fellow's expertise and Australia's newest radio telescope, the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder, this program will explore the inner workings of our own Milky Way and its galactic neighbours, the Magellanic Clouds. Using new observations and a new international research network, this program expects to position Australia at the centre of international efforts to understand how galaxies work.Read moreRead less
eXtending the GLEAM view of the Universe. This project will explore the entire radio sky visible to the future Square Kilometre Array ten times more deeply than before, fully characterising the life cycles of active galactic nuclei and finding previously-undetected supernova remnants in the Galactic Plane. The resulting survey will be used for a plethora of science, such as studies of galaxy clusters, cosmic ray tomography of the Milky Way, and measuring the magnetic fields of radio galaxy lobes ....eXtending the GLEAM view of the Universe. This project will explore the entire radio sky visible to the future Square Kilometre Array ten times more deeply than before, fully characterising the life cycles of active galactic nuclei and finding previously-undetected supernova remnants in the Galactic Plane. The resulting survey will be used for a plethora of science, such as studies of galaxy clusters, cosmic ray tomography of the Milky Way, and measuring the magnetic fields of radio galaxy lobes. It is a critical step toward the Square Kilometre Array.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE220100225
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$419,845.00
Summary
Unmasking dark matter: from the laboratory to the Milky Way. The unknown nature of the dark matter that fills our galaxy is one of the biggest problems in physics today. This project aims to connect the particle and astrophysics of dark matter so as to accelerate us towards its first detection in the lab. The expected outcomes are 1) new experimental concepts to test the widening landscape of viable theories and 2) robust predictions for signals in those experiments backed up by the latest surve ....Unmasking dark matter: from the laboratory to the Milky Way. The unknown nature of the dark matter that fills our galaxy is one of the biggest problems in physics today. This project aims to connect the particle and astrophysics of dark matter so as to accelerate us towards its first detection in the lab. The expected outcomes are 1) new experimental concepts to test the widening landscape of viable theories and 2) robust predictions for signals in those experiments backed up by the latest surveys of our Milky Way. These outcomes should benefit experiments across the world on the quest to fill a major gap in our understanding of the Universe. The grand scope of this research aims to place Australia in the vanguard of one of the most active pursuits of new physics in the modern era.Read moreRead less
The next wave of asteroseismic discovery using NASA’s TESS mission. This project aims to make advances in astrophysics by capitalising on NASA’s upcoming Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission and recent breakthroughs in artificial intelligence. Through an innovative approach to analyse big datasets, the project expects to generate new knowledge in the key areas of planet formation, stellar structure, and the Galaxy’s evolution. Outcomes include strong international links to leadin ....The next wave of asteroseismic discovery using NASA’s TESS mission. This project aims to make advances in astrophysics by capitalising on NASA’s upcoming Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission and recent breakthroughs in artificial intelligence. Through an innovative approach to analyse big datasets, the project expects to generate new knowledge in the key areas of planet formation, stellar structure, and the Galaxy’s evolution. Outcomes include strong international links to leading institutions and enhanced capacity for Australia to be part of cutting-edge space exploration. The methods and skills developed by the project should provide significant benefits to other data-driven sciences and help build smarter business models and improved decision making in industry and government in our increasingly data-dependent economy.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190100813
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$366,425.00
Summary
Cosmic alchemy: revealing the origin of elements in the universe. This project aims to address the long-standing question in astrophysics of how elements are produced by stars and recycled through galaxies. While it is established that stars are key producers of many of the elements in the universe, the processes that govern their elemental production remains unclear. This project will use an innovative interplay of pioneering observations of dying stars in our galaxy and its neighbours, with st ....Cosmic alchemy: revealing the origin of elements in the universe. This project aims to address the long-standing question in astrophysics of how elements are produced by stars and recycled through galaxies. While it is established that stars are key producers of many of the elements in the universe, the processes that govern their elemental production remains unclear. This project will use an innovative interplay of pioneering observations of dying stars in our galaxy and its neighbours, with state-of-the-art stellar models. The expected outcomes should provide a framework for understanding the chemical make-up of galaxies and the evolution of the Universe. This project will further elevate Australia's global standing in the field of astronomy and maximise returns on Australia's national investment in astronomy infrastructure.Read moreRead less