The 2014-15 Frontiers of Astronomy Lecture Series will continue with a talk by Volker Bromm, professor in the Department of Astronomy at The University of Texas at Austin, today (Thursday, March 5) at 8 p.m. in the Murch Auditorium at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
Bromm will present “Stars and Galaxies at the Dawn of Time,” the story of how the first stars and galaxies formed, a few hundred million years after the Big Bang. These first sources of light fundamentally transformed the early universe from an initially very simple state to one of ever increasing complexity. Until now, knowledge of this period of cosmic dawn relies on supercomputer simulations. But over the next decade, a number of new-generation observational facilities, such as the James Webb Space Telescope and the Giant Magellan Telescope, will test the understanding. Completing a century-old quest, researchers will be able to open up a direct window into the very beginning of cosmic star and galaxy formation.
The lecture, presented by the Case Western Reserve University Department of Astronomy through the support of the Arthur S. Holden Sr. Endowment, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Cleveland Astronomical Society, is free and open to the public. There is a $6 parking fee. Light refreshments will be served.
Earlier in the day, Bromm will give a special astronomy colloquium, titled: “The First Stars and Galaxies: The Run-up to the JWST,” at 3 p.m. in Sears Building, Room 552. How and when did the cosmic dark ages end? Bromm will discuss the physics of how the first stars and galaxies formed, within the context of cosmological structure formation, address their feedback on the pristine intergalactic medium and describe ways to probe their signature with next generation facilities. Bromm will identify the key processes and outline the major remaining uncertainties in his talk.
For more information on the lecture series, visit the Department of Astronomy’s website.