Astronomy & Astrophysics at Nottingham

我们在诺丁汉研究的主要重点是了解星系的形成和演化。星系构成了可观测宇宙的基石，典型的星系，如银河系，可能包含超过1000亿颗恒星。天体物理学的一个主要挑战是了解星系是如何以及何时形成的，以及它们是如何从最早的系统进化到产生我们今天看到的各种现象的。我们用许多方法来解决这些重要问题。一种方法是研究本地星系，我们可以对其进行细致入微的研究。另一种技术是在各种各样的环境中研究更遥远的星系，包括被称为星系团的宇宙中非常密集的区域。第二种方法的一个关键目标是理解“自然”与“培育”在影响星系演化方面的相对作用。另一种方法是在大型望远镜上获得非常长的曝光，以研究最遥远的星系，观察它们的形成过程。当我们观察遥远的星系时，我们也在回顾过去，值得注意的是，我们现在可以观察到130亿年前的星系。为了补充我们的各种观测策略，我们还使用理论模型和计算机模拟。有了最新的超级计算机，我们可以模拟从大爆炸到现在的结构形成和增长，通过将我们的模型和模拟与真实的宇宙进行比较，我们可以确定我们的理论是否准确地反映了现实，或者我们是否错过了一些关键的物理过程。最后，我们正在与诺丁汉颗粒动力学小组的同事开发一个新的跨学科项目。其目的是了解太阳系中尘埃和碎石的特性，将我们在实验室中研究的颗粒系统的不寻常物理应用于天体物理环境。总之，我们正在处理天文学和天体物理学中的各种各样的问题。总的动机是了解我们生活的宇宙，并在尽可能大的尺度上了解我们自己的起源。

The primary focus of our research in Nottingham is to understand the formation and evolution of galaxies. Galaxies form the building blocks of the observable Universe, and typical galaxies, like the Milky Way, may contain over 100 billion stars. A major challenge in astrophysics is to understand how and when galaxies were formed, and how they evolved from the earliest systems to produce the variety of phenomena we see today.We tackle these important problems in a number of ways. One approach is to study local galaxies, which we can study in exquisite, beautiful detail. Another technique is to study more distant galaxies in a wide variety of environments, including very dense regions of the Universe known as galaxy clusters. A key aim in this second approach is to understand the relative roles of 'nature' versus 'nurture' in influencing galaxy evolution. Yet another approach is to obtain very long exposures on large telescopes to study the most distant galaxies of all, to observe them in the act of formation. When we observe distant galaxies we are also looking back in time, and remarkably we can now observe galaxies as they were up to 13 billion years ago.Complementing our various observational strategies, we also use theoretical models and computer simulations. With the latest supercomputers we can model the formation and growth of structure from the Big Bang to the present day, and by comparing our models and simulations with the real Universe we can determine if our theories accurately reflect reality, or if we are missing some key physical processes.Finally we are developing a new interdisciplinary project with colleagues on the Nottingham Granular Dynamics group. The aim is to understand the properties of dust and rubble in the solar system, applying the unusual physics of granular systems that we have studied in the laboratory to astrophysical environments.In summary, we are tackling a wide variety of problems in astronomy and astrophysics. The overall motivation is to understand the Universe we live in, and to understand our own origins on the grandest possible scales.