Astrophysics at the University of Bath 2023-2026

巴斯天体物理学家利用复杂的理论模型和世界上最强大的望远镜进行的开创性观测，研究了我们“动态宇宙”的内部运作。他们的探索有助于揭示支撑天体物理源丰富现象学的物理学，这些天体物理源在天空中实时变化，从极端的相对论瞬变到锚宇宙学距离阶梯的变星。他们的研究同样涵盖了数十亿年来的进化路径和周期，导致星系的生长，其气体库的化学富集，以及超大质量黑洞在其中心的出现。这笔合并拨款将使早期职业研究人员能够与巴斯大学的天体物理学工作人员共同推进这些领域的研究，与全球天文学界分享科学发现和（重新）生产它们的资源，并通过直接植根于拟议前沿研究的公众参与活动激励下一代科学家。拟议项目是及时的，受新一代观测设施的推动并利用这些设施，将改变天文学的许多方面。多信使天体物理学的第一次成功，包括巴斯的贡献，仍然非常新鲜，但我们的理论家已经在展望未来，开发模型和工具，以改进对与引力波信号相关的新电磁对应物的解释，并为即将到来的SKA观测做好准备。在研究的现象是耀斑起源于合并的中子星的破碎地壳，相对论射流传播通过周围的物质，并与宇宙中最明亮的爆炸周围的星周物质相互作用。这一理论的发展将为大自然中的致密天体和最具能量的事件提供线索。巴斯的天体物理学家也将成为新发射的詹姆斯韦伯太空望远镜的首批观察者之一。JWST将提供星系早期化学富集发射的敏感视图，与先前通过伽马射线爆发余辉穿透遥远星系气体储层的明亮背景光所看到的金属吸收特征的印记所收集的内容互补。最后，巴斯天体物理学家将通过使用即将投入使用的高度多路复用光谱仪（例如，4 MOST，MOONS）和成像器（例如，Rubin-LSST）收集前所未有的样本规模和探测星系环境的前所未有的准确性。这些设施将引入数据驱动科学的革命，通过这些设施，巴斯的团队将描述星系演化的发光面所对应的暗物质晕，揭示星系生长如何受到原位物理与环境因素的不同影响。他们将利用这些资源来研究超大质量黑洞与其宿主星系之间的相互作用，解决星系-黑洞共同进化如何在不同的遮蔽水平下以不同的方式运作。最后，将不同类型的造父变星作为标准烛光进行整体校准，不仅要考虑周期和光度，还要考虑颜色和金属丰度，这将消除宇宙学距离阶梯中的偏见，并将解决其中最大的问题之一：我们的标准宇宙学是完整的故事吗？通过收获这一系列新的天文台和仪器新启用的科学，拟议的计划将立即产生英国对这些国际设施的重大投资的回报。

Using sophisticated theoretical modelling and groundbreaking observations from the world's most powerful telescopes, Bath astrophysicists examine the inner workings of our 'dynamic Universe'. Their explorations serve to reveal the physics underpinning the rich phenomenology of astrophysical sources that vary real-time on the sky, from extreme relativistic transients to variable stars that anchor the cosmological distance ladder. Their studies equally encompass the evolutionary paths and cycles that play out over billions of years, giving rise to the growth of galaxies, the chemical enrichment of their gas reservoirs, and the emergence of supermassive black holes at their centres.This consolidated grant will enable early career researchers to work jointly with the astrophysics staff at the University of Bath to advance these areas of research, to share the scientific findings and the resources to (re)produce them with the global astronomical community, and to inspire the next generation of scientists via public engagement activities directly rooted in the proposed cutting edge research.The proposed projects are timely, motivated by and making use of a new generation of observational facilities that will transform many facets of astronomy. The first successes in multi-messenger astrophysics, including contributions from Bath, are still very fresh, but already our theorists are looking ahead and developing the models and tools that will enable an improved interpretation of new electromagnetic counterparts associated with gravitational wave signals, and that will prepare the community for upcoming SKA observations. Among phenomena studied are flares originating from the shattering crusts of merging neutron stars, and relativistic jets propagating through and interacting with the circumstellar material surrounding the most luminous explosions in the Universe. The theory developed will shed light on Nature's densest objects and most energetic events.Bath astrophysicists will also be among the first observers with the newly launched James Webb Space Telescope. JWST will provide a sensitive view in emission of the early chemical enrichment in galaxies, complementary to what was gathered previously by the imprint of metal absorption features seen against the bright background light of gamma-ray burst afterglows piercing through the gas reservoir of distant galaxies. This uniquely enables a long due calibration of metallicity diagnostics, and will inform subgrid recipes in galaxy simulations.Finally, Bath astrophysicists will push the frontiers of wide-area astronomy by using soon-to-be commissioned highly multiplexed spectrographs (e.g., 4MOST, MOONS) and imagers (e.g., Rubin-LSST) to collect samples of unprecedented size and probes of galaxy environments of unprecedented accuracy. These facilities will introduce a revolution in data-driven science, through which the team at Bath will characterize the group dark matter halos against which the luminous side of galaxy evolution unfolds, shedding light on how galaxy growth is affected differently by in-situ physics vs environmental factors. They will leverage these resources to study the interplay between supermassive black holes and their host galaxies, addressing how galaxy - black hole coevolution operates differently at distinct levels of obscuration. Finally, a holistic calibration of different types of Cepheid variable stars as standard candles, folding in constraints on not just period and luminosity, but also colour and metallicity, will remove biases in the cosmological distance ladder, and will address one of the biggest questions of them all: is our standard cosmology the full story?By harvesting the science newly enabled by this array of new observatories and instruments, the proposed programme will yield an immediate return on significant UK investments into these international facilities.