Recent Talks
List of all the talks in the archive, sorted by date.
Abstract
Primordial helium might seem to be just a tiny piece in our understanding of how the Universe was born; still, it is a piece that must fit in if we are to ensure that the whole Big Bang scenario is consistent. During the last decade, a significant effort has been aimed at achieving the necessary accuracy to achieve this goal. While we still do not have a firm handle on it, we have learned quite a few things on the way. The talk will provide a review of this quest, highlighting the uncertainties that still remain and the feedback that it has provided to our knowledge of how H II regions work.
Abstract
We are going to present a new code to derive the SFH of a complex stellar population system, like a galaxy. This code has been used to obtain the SFH of six dwarf galaxies from the Local Constrains form Isolated Dwarf (LCID) project for which we are presenting the first results. The project has been designed to obtain the SFH of isolated dwarf galaxies free from strong interactions with massive host galaxies, like the MW or M31. The results obtained could help us to understand the spatial structure of dwarf galaxies and how galaxies form and evolve.
Abstract
The amount of baryons seen in the local Universe falls short by a factor2-5 if compared to the amount of detected baryons at intermediate (z~2)or high (z~1,100) redshift. This is the so called "missing baryon" problem in Cosmology. Hydrodynamical simulations of the large scale structure predict that most of those missing baryons should be in the form of ionized gas present in slightly overdense regions, at a temperature ranging from 10^5 to 10^7 K, conforming the "Warm Hot Intergalactic Medium" (WHIM). This WHIM would not form stars, and would not emit or absorb either in the IR, optical or UV. However, it should interact with the photons of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) through two different channels: (i) Thompson scattering (where there is no energy exchange) and (ii) Compton scattering (where hot electrons transfer energy to the CMB photons, distorting their black body spectrum). I shall review the status of the search for missing baryons in the context of CMB observations and the currently most favored cosmological model. I shall also outline new methods and prospects for detecting this missing gas with upcoming CMB experiments and address the link between the cosmic baryon problem and the search for (so far undetected) bulk flows at scales of ~10 Mpc/h.
Abstract
In the Λ-CDM galaxy formation paradigm, the star formation history of a galaxy is coupled to the total mass of its dark matter halo through processes like galaxy-galaxy merging, satellite accretion, and gas retention. Globular cluster formation is known to coincide with strong star formation events in the early Universe. To develop an accurate model of galaxy formation, the relationship between such systems and their hosting dark matter halos must be understood. Employing weak gravitational lensing galaxy mass analysis, we have discovered that the number of globular clusters in a given galaxy is directly proportional to its total dark matter halo mass. This result holds in both dwarf and giant ellipticals, spirals and in all types of galaxy environments. I will present these observations and initiate a discussion on the implications for scenarios of globular cluster system formation and evolution.
Abstract
In our now-standard picture for the growth of structure, dark matter halos are the basic unit of nonlinear structure in the present Universe. I will report results from simulations of galaxy-scale dark halos with more than an order of magnitude better mass resolution than any previously published work. Tests demonstrate detailed convergence for (sub)structures well below a millionth the mass of the final system. Even with such resolution the fraction of halo mass in bound subhalos does not rise above a few percent within the half-mass radius. I will also present a new simulation technique which allows structure in the dark matter distribution to be studied on very much smaller scales. This is required for accurate forecasts of the expected signal both in earth-bound experiments designed to detect dark matter directly, and in indirect detection experiments like GLAST which attempt to image dark matter annihilation radiation at gamma-ray wavelengths.
Abstract
Las clases se impartirán en el aula los días 4, 5 y 6 de noviembre de 2008 en horario de 10:30 a 12:30 Programa del curso: 1.- Introduction 2.- Electromagnetic Interaction (QED) 3.- Strong Interaction (QCD) 4.- Electroweak Interaction 5.- Precision Tests 6.- CP Violation and B Physics 7.- Neutrino Masses 8.- Beyond the Standard Model 9.- Physics at LHC
Abstract
Radiation-driven mass loss largely determines the life expectancy of massive stars. I will present our most recent mass-loss predictions for massive stars, which are obtained from Monte-Carlo multi-line radiative transfer calculations. I will show how these predictions are expected to change as a function of metallicity (and redshift!) and confront the results against data from the VLT FLAMES large programme of massive stars. Finally, I discuss some of the more intricate aspects of the physics of radiation-driven outflows, emphasizing the relevance for the rotational evolution of massive stars into the Luminous Blue Variable phase. This is shown to lead to some rather unexpected results... in particular for the progenitors of supernovae and gamma-ray bursts -- calling for some major paradigm shifts of even our most basic framework of massive star evolution.
Abstract
Programa del curso: 1.- Introduction 2.- Electromagnetic Interaction (QED) 3.- Strong Interaction (QCD) 4.- Electroweak Interaction 5.- Precision Tests 6.- CP Violation and B Physics 7.- Neutrino Masses 8.- Beyond the Standard Model 9.- Physics at LHC
Abstract
Programa del curso: 1.- Introduction 2.- Electromagnetic Interaction (QED) 3.- Strong Interaction (QCD) 4.- Electroweak Interaction 5.- Precision Tests 6.- CP Violation and B Physics 7.- Neutrino Masses 8.- Beyond the Standard Model 9.- Physics at LHC
Abstract
Red Dwarf (dM) stars are the most numerous stars in our Galaxy. These faint, cool, long-lived, and low mass stars make up > 80% of all stars in the Universe. Determining the number of red dwarfs with planets and assessing planetary habitability (a planet’s potential to develop and sustain life) are critically important because such studies would indicate how common life is in the universe. Our program - "Living with a Red Dwarf" addresses these questions by investigating the long-term nuclear evolution and magnetic-dynamo coronal and chromospheric X-ray to Ultraviolet properties of red dwarf stars with widely different ages. The major focus of the program is to study the magnetic-dynamo generated X-ray-Ultraviolet emissions and flare properties of red dwarf stars from youth to old age. Emphasized are how the stellar X-UV emissions, flares & winds affect hosted planets and impact their habitability. We have developed age-rotation-activity relations and also are constructing irradiance tables (X-UV fluxes) that can be used to model the effects of X-UV radiation on planetary atmospheres and on possible life on nearby hosted planets. Despite the earlier pessimistic view that red dwarfs stars are not suitable for habitable planets - mainly because their low luminosities require a hosted planet to orbit quite close (r <0.3 AU) to be sufficiently warm to support life. Our initial results indicate that red dwarf stars (in particular the warmer dM stars) can indeed be suitable hosts for habitable planets capable of sustaining life for hundreds of billion years. Some examples of red dwarf stars currently known to host planets are discussed.Upcoming talks
- Properties and origin of thick disks in external galaxiesDr. Francesca PinnaThursday January 16, 2025 - 10:30 GMT (Aula)
- Seminar by Luigi TibaldoLuigi TibaldoTuesday January 21, 2025 - 12:30 GMT (Aula)
Recent Colloquia
Recent Talks
