The Formation of the First Galaxies and their Connection to the Present Day

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AST-1211626WiseDwarf galaxies provided the majority of the ionizing photon budget during cosmic reionization, and in fact recent observations have begun to reveal such galaxies. To understand these and planned future observations, it is necessary, and timely, to construct realistic models of high-redshift galaxies. This project will carry out cosmological adaptive mesh refinement radiation hydrodynamics simulations that focus on the formation of the first galaxies and their evolution to the present-day in varying large-scale environments. These simulations include radiative and supernova feedback, a self-consistent transition to Population II star formation, and self-regulation of star formation through radiation pressure. They will resolve molecular clouds and stellar associations, and compute radiation transport accurately using adaptive coupled ray tracing. Current observations of high-redshift galaxies and nearby dwarf galaxies will help to constrain the physical model. To make a direct connection to nearby dwarf galaxies, simulations will be embedded in a larger volume to follow dwarf galaxy evolution to the present-day and make predictions about their origin and connection to the early universe.Involved junior researchers will gain expertise in a wide range of problems in cosmology and astrophysics, numerical algorithms, high performance computing, and software engineering. There will also be opportunities to tackle the challenging problem of visualizing results from large multi-dimensional computer simulations. The lead researcher will continue to integrate research activities into teaching in K-12 schools and other public venues, as well as through online learning environments.