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, December 15, 2023
The Northwestern Astronomy PhD is designed to provide students with a broad training in astronomy while enabling them to get started quickly with their graduate research. The Astronomy PhD is a flexible program that allows students to complement their astronomy training with a selection of physics courses or courses from other quantitative disciplines such as
Deadline: 11:59pm, December 15, 2023
The Department of Physics and Astronomy offers two different PhD degrees designed to best train students in their chosen discipline. For most branches of physics, students should enroll in the Physics PhD. Students interested in astronomy or astrophysics may apply for either the Physics PhD or the Astronomy PhD. GRE score submission is optional for the
Deadline: 11:59pm, March 22, 2024
Funded by an educational grant awarded by NASA to Northwestern University through the Illinois Space Grant Consortium, Northwestern offers a College Summer Research Program for outstanding undergraduates. The program provides an opportunity for college students to work with a professor in one of several areas of space sciences and astrophysics. It is open to students
News
Gallery
‘Teenage galaxies’ are unusually hot, glowing with unexpected elements
‘Teenage galaxies’ are unusually hot, glowing with unexpected elements
Light from 23 distant galaxies, identified with red rectangles in the Hubble Space Telescope image at the top, were combined to capture incredibly faint emission from eight different elements, which are labelled in the JWST spectrum at the bottom. Although scientists regularly find these elements on Earth, astronomers rarely, if ever, observe many of them
Aaron M. Geller, Northwestern, CIERA + IT-RCDS
- Science
Bursts of star formation explain mysterious brightness at cosmic dawn
Bursts of star formation explain mysterious brightness at cosmic dawn
Artist conception of early starbursting galaxies. Stars and galaxies are shown in the bright white points of light, while the more diffuse dark matter and gas are shown in purples and reds. When scientists viewed the James Webb Space Telescope’s (JWST) first images of the universe’s earliest galaxies, they were shocked. The young galaxies appeared
Aaron M. Geller, Northwestern, CIERA + IT-RCDS
- Science
Supernova SN2023ixf visible in pinwheel galaxy
Supernova SN2023ixf visible in pinwheel galaxy
Graduate student Imran Sultan’s photo of the recently visible supernova (SN2023ixf) in the pinwheel galaxy M101. The image was taken overnight, May 20-21, 2023 about 70 miles outside of Chicago. Imran used an 80mm refractor and a DSLR on a star tracker.
Imran Sultan
- Outreach
Supernova SN2023ixf visible in pinwheel galaxy (labeled)
Supernova SN2023ixf visible in pinwheel galaxy (labeled)
Graduate student Imran Sultan’s photo of the recently visible supernova (SN2023ixf) in the pinwheel galaxy M101. The image was taken overnight, May 20-21, 2023 about 70 miles outside of Chicago. Imran used an 80mm refractor and a DSLR on a star tracker.
Imran Sultan
- Outreach
Mysterious dashes revealed in Milky Way’s center
Mysterious dashes revealed in Milky Way’s center
Two populations of filaments, perpendicular and parallel to the galactic plane, which runs horizontally. Professor Farhad Yusef-Zadeh discovered the vertical filaments in the 1980s. He discovered the horizontal filaments recently and the news was published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters on June 2, 2023. Continue to the full CIERA news story.
Farhad Yusef-Zadeh/Northwestern University/CIERA
- Science
Aaron Geller and Alex Gurvich showcase Firefly on AAS Journal Author Series
Aaron Geller and Alex Gurvich showcase Firefly on AAS Journal Author Series
On May 27, 2023, CIERA Research Assistant Professor Aaron Geller and former NSF Graduate Fellow Alex Gurvich were featured on the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Journal Author Series to showcase Firefly, their new browser-based interactive tool for visualizing 3D particle data sets. Geller and Gurvich were interviewed by the AAS’s Frank Timmes. Read the full news story
- Event
People
Core Faculty
Kari Frank
Director of Operations of CIERA, Research Assistant Professor
Associate Faculty
External Faculty
Sarah Wellons
Visiting Scholar, Tenure-Track Faculty at Wesleyan
Postdocs
Graduate Students
