Building the Giants: Cluster Formation and Galaxy Evolution over the Last 12 Billion years

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As we look out in space, we see back in time as well. This project will use survey data of distant galaxies to identify young galaxy clusters in the early universe. They will compare the properties of these early clusters with the properties of nearby galaxy clusters in the later universe. These to catalogs of clusters will be combined with theoretical modeling of the growth of galaxy clusters in order to link early clusters to their descendant across cosmic time and to chart cluster formation and its effect on galaxy evolution. This project will also support the mentoring of undergraduates in astronomy research.The project will use existing data from the VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey to identify protoclusters in overdensities of high-redshift (2 z 5) galaxies. Low redshift clusters (z ~ 1) will be identified using data from the Observations of Redshift Evolution Survey. In both surveys, clusters will be identified using a novel Monte Carlo approach to Voronoi Tessellation techniques. A magnitude-limited survey of five VUDS protoclusters using DIEMOS will increase the number of spectroscopically identified member galaxies. Theoretical modeling from the Millennium Run will connect the high-redshift protoclusters with the low-redshift clusters of the ORELSE survey.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.