NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2013B-0377
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2013B-0377 |
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PI: Michael Gregg, University of California, Davis, gregg@igpp.ucllnl.org
Address: Physics Department, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616, USA
CoI: Michael West, Maria Mitchell Association
Title: Primordial Jeans Mass Dark Matter Halo Objects
Abstract:
Intergalactic compact stellar systems -- globular clusters and
ultracompact dwarfs -- are known to exist by the tens of thousands in
clusters of galaxies. Cold dark matter (CDM) theory predicts they also
exist in significant numbers in low density regions and even voids.
Primordial compact stellar systems in voids will have evolved in
isolation, fossil remnants of the earliest stages of structure formation
in the Universe; their characteristics potentially can reveal much about
initial conditions in the early Universe. This program will search for
these isolated compact stellar systems, both along galaxy filaments and
in lower density regions, especially large scale structure voids.
Combining the multiplexing advantage of the AAOmega multifiber
spectrograph with a powerful selection technique using GALEX/UV and
SDSS/optical data to identify candidate CSSs maximizes the probability
of detecting these objects. The search for CSSs in low density and
empty regions, whether positive or null, will have profound implications
for galaxy and large scale structure formation and evolution, testing
critical tenets of the CDM paradigm by directly probing the origin of
structure in the Universe on galactic and super-galactic scales.
National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2013B-0377 |
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