Astronomy Observation and Theory Consolidated Grant 2016-2019

这项建议是为支持剑桥天文研究所(IOA)在理论和观测天文学及天体物理学方面的大部分研究而提供的单一综合赠款。理论研究概况包括了解宇宙本身起源的工作。IOA的成员在欧洲航天局的普朗克任务中发挥着主导作用，他们将领导对参数的最终确定，这些参数既定义了宇宙的几何形状，也量化了年龄、大小、暗物质、暗能量和重子含量。这项研究与天体物理学的关键目标之一有关：限制暗物质的性质和宇宙的暗能量含量。今天的宇宙充满了星系，我们银河系就是一个很典型的例子。要全面了解星系的形成和演化，需要多条攻击线。对银河系及其本地群伴星中已分解的恒星群的观测提供了详细的化石记录，记录了星系的动力学组装、恒星的形成以及在广泛的质量尺度和初始条件下重元素的积累。在尺度的另一端，对遥远星系的观测跨越了高达12 Gyr的回望时间，提供了对星系群的演化以及恒星和金属随宇宙时间的积累的直接测量。最后，对附近星系的大尺度恒星形成和丰度性质的测量，通过使我们能够描述哈勃序列的演化性质以及调节星系中气体吸积和恒星形成的复杂“胃物理”过程，在附近分解的恒星群的研究和遥远的高红移研究之间形成了一个重要的天体物理桥梁。现在人们认识到，星系的演化和位于银河系和其他星系中心的超大质量黑洞的起源和性质之间存在密切的联系。接近黑洞的区域允许在极端情况下探索物理。超大质量黑洞的形成和性质及其与其所在星系的关系是一个研究主题，涉及理论、X射线天体物理和赠款中的观测计划。在星系内，这笔拨款的重点是恒星的形成，从孕育恒星的巨大分子云到更详细的研究，这些过程导致恒星和星团在这些分子云中形成。研究将把最先进的数值模拟与分析理论结合起来。探索研究恒星周围的行星系统及其形成是另一个关键目标。赠款中的研究活动包括理论工作，集中在系外行星大气层、碎片盘、小行星盘、彗星物体和恒星周围的尘埃的性质上。

This proposal is for a single Consolidated Grant to support the majority of research in Theoretical and Observational Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Institute of Astronomy (IoA) in Cambridge. The theoretical research profile includes work to understand the origin of the Universe itself. Members of the IoA play a leading role in the European Space Agency Planck mission, and will lead a definitive determination of the parameters that both define the geometry of the Universe and quantify the age, size, dark matter, dark energy and baryonic content. The research links to one of the key goals in astrophysics: constraining the properties of the dark matter and dark energy content of the Universe.The Universe today is filled with galaxies, of which our own Milky Way is a not atypical example. A full understanding of galaxy formation and evolution requires multiple lines of attack. Observations of the resolved stellar populations in the Milky Way and its Local Group companions provide a detailed fossil record of the dynamical assemblies of the galaxies, the formation of stars, and the buildup of heavy elements over a wide range of mass scales and initial conditions. At the other end of the scale, observations of distant galaxies spanning lookback times of up to 12 Gyr provide direct measurements of the evolution of galaxy populations and the buildup of stars and metals with cosmic time. Finally, measurements of the large-scale star formation and abundance properties of nearby galaxies form a vital astrophysical bridge between the studies of nearby resolved stellar populations and the distant high-redshift investigations, by allowing us to characterise the evolutionary properties of the Hubble sequence and the complex "gastrophysical" processes that regulate the accretion of gas and the formation of stars in galaxies.It is now recognised that there is an intimate link between the evolution of galaxies and the origin and properties of super-massive black holes, which reside at the centre of the Milky Way and other galaxies. The regions close to black holes allow the exploration of physics at the extremes. The formation and properties of super-massive black holes and their relation to the galaxies in which they reside is a research theme that involves theory, X-ray astrophysics and observational programmes in the grant. Within galaxies, the grant focuses on star formation, from the giant molecular clouds which give birth to stars, down to the more detailed investigations of the processes that lead to the formation of stars and star clusters within these molecular clouds. The investigations will combine state-of-the-art numerical simulations with analytical theories. The quest to study planetary systems around stars and their formation is another key goal. Research activity in the grant covers theoretical work that concentrates on the properties of exoplanets atmospheres, debris discs, discs of asteroids, cometary objects, and dust surrounding stars.