Testing the Lambda Cold Dark Matter Model with Dwarf Galaxies around the Milky Way and beyond

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Burcin Mutlu is awarded an NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship to conduct a program of research and education at the University of Chicago. She will use new and existing observations to study faint small galaxies known as "dwarf galaxies" orbiting the Milky Way and nearby galaxies. Because the faintest dwarf galaxies contain the largest fraction of dark matter by mass, they are excellent laboratories in which to study the influence of dark matter on the formation and growth of galaxies. Results from this project will allow astronomers to understand how galaxies form and grow from the smallest structures. Along with this research, Mutlu will conduct a mentoring program to increase the retention of underrepresented students in science.This project will advance our understanding of how galaxies form at the lowest mass scales. By detecting nearly two dozen new dwarf galaxies, it will extend the census of the faintest dwarf satellite population of the Milky Way, as well as similar nearby galaxies, allowing an investigation of the properties of dwarf galaxies as a function of the environment and primary halo mass. Observational trends from this study would allow astronomers to assess whether the Lambda Cold Dark Matter model holds at the lowest mass scales, and whether a more detailed treatment of baryonic physics is required in the model.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.