Galaxy Formation, Intergalactic Medium, Active Galactic Nuclei, Galaxy-Black Hole Coevolution, Galaxy Clusters, Early Universe, Dark Matter
Image Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/MSSL/R.Soria et al, Optical: AURA/Gemini OBs
The most obvious large structures in the Universe are the galaxies, which over the span of cosmic time have been the nexus for both the evolution of stars and large-scale structure in the Universe. CIERA researchers are engaged in understanding both the evolution of the galaxies and the environments they are embedded in, as well as the stellar populations they are comprised of and the supermassive black holes they host.
Research at CIERA
CIERA researchers work on understanding the origins of structure in the Universe. Professor Faucher-Giguère’s group develops sophisticated cosmological hydrodynamic simulations of galaxy formation. The simulations are used to answer a wide variety of science questions, including how star formation is regulated in galaxies, how galaxies interact with the circum-galactic medium and the intergalactic medium, and how galaxies and their black holes co-evolve.
Opportunities
Deadline: 11:59pm, March 3, 2025
REACH (Research Experiences in Astronomy at CIERA for High School Students) is a highly interactive, in-person 3-week program (with an optional 3-week extension) that provides high school students experience with astronomy research in an atmosphere of team-style learning, hands-on training, and mentorship from professional scientists. Students enrolled in the program engage in astronomy research projects with
Deadline: 11:59pm, December 31, 2025
CIERA supports a wide range of interdisciplinary projects focused on research, education, and public outreach in Astrophysics. Our faculty and postdocs work on projects that couple astronomy and astrophysics analysis with many other disciplines: computer science, applied math, planetary sciences, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, data science, science education, and more. Many have hired/mentored undergraduate researchers
News
Gallery
Andromeda Galaxy Mosaic 2025
Andromeda Galaxy Mosaic 2025
This is the largest photomosaic ever assembled from Hubble Space Telescope observations. It is a panoramic view of the neighboring Andromeda galaxy, located 2.5 million light-years away. It took over 10 years to make this vast and colorful portrait of the galaxy, requiring over 600 Hubble overlapping snapshots that were challenging to stitch together. The
NASA, ESA, Benjamin F. Williams (UWashington), Zhuo Chen (UWashington), L. Clifton Johnson (Northwestern)
- Science
2024 CIERA public lecture – “The Jazz of Physics” with Stephon Alexander
2024 CIERA public lecture – “The Jazz of Physics” with Stephon Alexander
On November 14, over 300 people packed Northwestern University’s Lutkin Hall to join Professor Stephon Alexander in a celebration of The Jazz of Physics for CIERA’s 15th anniversary public lecture. Over 100 others joined the livestream for an evening that began with a live jazz performance from the Star Eyes Initiative, followed by Prof. Alexander’s public lecture, and concluded with a
- Interdisciplinary,
- Outreach,
- Event
Dense, swirling winds help supermassive black holes grow
Dense, swirling winds help supermassive black holes grow
By studying nearby galaxy ESO320-G030, a team of international astronomers led by CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow Mark Gorski has discovered extremely dense and powerful rotating, magnetic winds help the galaxy’s central supermassive black hole grow. This image, created by CIERA Professor Aaron Geller, depicts this phenomenon. The process is strikingly similar to the birth of new
M. D. Gorski/Aaron M. Geller
- Science
Andromeda in 5 minutes
Andromeda in 5 minutes
This is a single photo of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) taken by CIERA graduate student Imran Sultan from the darkest skies in America. Astrophotographers typically “stack” hundreds of photos together to reveal faint detail in images, but the sky here was so dark that just one five minute exposure was enough. Sultan shot the photo
Imran Sultan/Northwestern/CIERA
- Science
M81 and M82
M81 and M82
In our sky, close to the handle of the Big Dipper are the two galaxies M81 (Bode’s Galaxy, right) and M82 (Cigar Galaxy, left). These are two of the closest galaxies to our own Milky Way and two of the brightest galaxies in our sky that can be observed with amateur telescopes. Photographer and CIERA
Imran Sultan/Northwestern/CIERA
- Science
Dance of fireflies in the core of the Milky Way
Dance of fireflies in the core of the Milky Way
While visiting a dark sky park during mid June of 2023 to see the Milky Way core rise in the summer night sky, photographer and CIERA graduate student Imran Sultan got a rare treat: an incalculable number of fireflies had recently emerged in the central Illinois forest preserve. The dance of the terrestrial and celestial
Imran Sultan/Northwestern/CIERA
- Science
People
Core Faculty
Kari Frank
Director of Operations of CIERA, Research Assistant Professor
Shane L. Larson
Research Professor, Associate Director of CIERA
Associate Faculty
External Faculty
Sarah Wellons
Visiting Scholar, Assistant Professor of Astronomy at Wesleyan
Postdocs
Graduate Students
NU SkAI Personnel