Project acronym ArcheoDyn
Project Globular clusters as living fossils of the past of galaxies
Researcher (PI) Petrus VAN DE VEN
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITAT WIEN
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE9, ERC-2016-COG
Summary Globular clusters (GCs) are enigmatic objects that hide a wealth of information. They are the living fossils of the history of their native galaxies and the record keepers of the violent events that made them change their domicile. This proposal aims to mine GCs as living fossils of galaxy evolution to address fundamental questions in astrophysics: (1) Do satellite galaxies merge as predicted by the hierarchical build-up of galaxies? (2) Which are the seeds of supermassive black holes in the centres of galaxies? (3) How did star formation originate in the earliest phases of galaxy formation? To answer these questions, novel population-dependent dynamical modelling techniques are required, whose development the PI has led over the past years. This uniquely positions him to take full advantage of the emerging wealth of chemical and kinematical data on GCs.
Following the tidal disruption of satellite galaxies, their dense GCs, and maybe even their nuclei, are left as the most visible remnants in the main galaxy. The hierarchical build-up of their new host galaxy can thus be unearthed by recovering the GCs’ orbits. However, currently it is unclear which of the GCs are accretion survivors. Actually, the existence of a central intermediate mass black hole (IMBH) or of multiple stellar populations in GCs might tell which ones are accreted. At the same time, detection of IMBHs is important as they are predicted seeds for supermassive black holes in galaxies; while the multiple stellar populations in GCs are vital witnesses to the extreme modes of star formation in the early Universe. However, for every putative dynamical IMBH detection so far there is a corresponding non-detection; also the origin of multiple stellar populations in GCs still lacks any uncontrived explanation. The synergy of novel techniques and exquisite data proposed here promises a breakthrough in this emerging field of dynamical archeology with GCs as living fossils of the past of galaxies.
Summary
Globular clusters (GCs) are enigmatic objects that hide a wealth of information. They are the living fossils of the history of their native galaxies and the record keepers of the violent events that made them change their domicile. This proposal aims to mine GCs as living fossils of galaxy evolution to address fundamental questions in astrophysics: (1) Do satellite galaxies merge as predicted by the hierarchical build-up of galaxies? (2) Which are the seeds of supermassive black holes in the centres of galaxies? (3) How did star formation originate in the earliest phases of galaxy formation? To answer these questions, novel population-dependent dynamical modelling techniques are required, whose development the PI has led over the past years. This uniquely positions him to take full advantage of the emerging wealth of chemical and kinematical data on GCs.
Following the tidal disruption of satellite galaxies, their dense GCs, and maybe even their nuclei, are left as the most visible remnants in the main galaxy. The hierarchical build-up of their new host galaxy can thus be unearthed by recovering the GCs’ orbits. However, currently it is unclear which of the GCs are accretion survivors. Actually, the existence of a central intermediate mass black hole (IMBH) or of multiple stellar populations in GCs might tell which ones are accreted. At the same time, detection of IMBHs is important as they are predicted seeds for supermassive black holes in galaxies; while the multiple stellar populations in GCs are vital witnesses to the extreme modes of star formation in the early Universe. However, for every putative dynamical IMBH detection so far there is a corresponding non-detection; also the origin of multiple stellar populations in GCs still lacks any uncontrived explanation. The synergy of novel techniques and exquisite data proposed here promises a breakthrough in this emerging field of dynamical archeology with GCs as living fossils of the past of galaxies.
Max ERC Funding
1 999 250 €
Duration
Start date: 2017-09-01, End date: 2022-08-31
Project acronym BOSS-WAVES
Project Back-reaction Of Solar plaSma to WAVES
Researcher (PI) Tom VAN DOORSSELAERE
Host Institution (HI) KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE9, ERC-2016-COG
Summary "The solar coronal heating problem is a long-standing astrophysical problem. The slow DC (reconnection) heating models are well developed in detailed 3D numerical simulations. The fast AC (wave) heating mechanisms have traditionally been neglected since there were no wave observations.
Since 2007, we know that the solar atmosphere is filled with transverse waves, but still we have no adequate models (except for my own 1D analytical models) for their dissipation and plasma heating by these waves. We urgently need to know the contribution of these waves to the coronal heating problem.
In BOSS-WAVES, I will innovate the AC wave heating models by utilising novel 3D numerical simulations of propagating transverse waves. From previous results in my team, I know that the inclusion of the back-reaction of the solar plasma is crucial in understanding the energy dissipation: the wave heating leads to chromospheric evaporation and plasma mixing (by the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability).
BOSS-WAVES will bring the AC heating models to the same level of state-of-the-art DC heating models.
The high-risk, high-gain goals are (1) to create a coronal loop heated by waves, starting from an "empty" corona, by evaporating chromospheric material, and (2) to pioneer models for whole active regions heated by transverse waves."
Summary
"The solar coronal heating problem is a long-standing astrophysical problem. The slow DC (reconnection) heating models are well developed in detailed 3D numerical simulations. The fast AC (wave) heating mechanisms have traditionally been neglected since there were no wave observations.
Since 2007, we know that the solar atmosphere is filled with transverse waves, but still we have no adequate models (except for my own 1D analytical models) for their dissipation and plasma heating by these waves. We urgently need to know the contribution of these waves to the coronal heating problem.
In BOSS-WAVES, I will innovate the AC wave heating models by utilising novel 3D numerical simulations of propagating transverse waves. From previous results in my team, I know that the inclusion of the back-reaction of the solar plasma is crucial in understanding the energy dissipation: the wave heating leads to chromospheric evaporation and plasma mixing (by the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability).
BOSS-WAVES will bring the AC heating models to the same level of state-of-the-art DC heating models.
The high-risk, high-gain goals are (1) to create a coronal loop heated by waves, starting from an "empty" corona, by evaporating chromospheric material, and (2) to pioneer models for whole active regions heated by transverse waves."
Max ERC Funding
1 991 960 €
Duration
Start date: 2017-10-01, End date: 2022-09-30
Project acronym LEGA-C
Project The Physics of Galaxies 7 Gyr Ago
Researcher (PI) Arjen Van der wel
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITEIT GENT
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE9, ERC-2015-CoG
Summary Over the past decade, redshift
surveys and multi-wavelength imaging campaigns have drawn up an
empirical picture of how many stars had formed in which types of
galaxies over the history of the universe. However, we have yet to
unravel the individual pathways along which galaxies evolve, and the
physical processes that drive them. Continuing with the previous
approach -- larger and deeper photometric samples -- is not adequate
to achieve this goal. A change of focus is required.
In this ERC project I will embark on a new way to address the question
of galaxy evolution. I will do so as Principle Investigator of the
recently approved LEGA-C observing program that has been allocated 128
nights of observation time over the next 4 years with ESO's flagship
facility the Very Large Telescope. This new survey will produce for
2500 distant (at z~1) galaxies with, for the first time,
sufficient resolution and S/N to measure ages and chemical
compositions of their stellar populations as well as internal velocity
dispersions and dynamical masses. This will provide an entirely new
physical description of the galaxy population 7 Gyr ago, with which I
will finally be able solve long-standing questions in galaxy formation
that were out of reach before: what is the star-formation history of
individual galaxies, why and how is star-formation ``quenched'' in
many galaxies, and to what extent do galaxies grow subsequently
through merging afterward?
LEGA-C is worldwide the largest spectroscopic survey of distant
galaxies to date, and ERC funding will be absolutely critical in
harvesting this unparallelled database. I am seeking to extend my
research group to realize the scientific potential of this substantial
investment (6.5M Eur) of observational resources by the European
astronomy community. Timing of the execution of the VLT program is
perfectly matched with the timeline of this ERC program.
Summary
Over the past decade, redshift
surveys and multi-wavelength imaging campaigns have drawn up an
empirical picture of how many stars had formed in which types of
galaxies over the history of the universe. However, we have yet to
unravel the individual pathways along which galaxies evolve, and the
physical processes that drive them. Continuing with the previous
approach -- larger and deeper photometric samples -- is not adequate
to achieve this goal. A change of focus is required.
In this ERC project I will embark on a new way to address the question
of galaxy evolution. I will do so as Principle Investigator of the
recently approved LEGA-C observing program that has been allocated 128
nights of observation time over the next 4 years with ESO's flagship
facility the Very Large Telescope. This new survey will produce for
2500 distant (at z~1) galaxies with, for the first time,
sufficient resolution and S/N to measure ages and chemical
compositions of their stellar populations as well as internal velocity
dispersions and dynamical masses. This will provide an entirely new
physical description of the galaxy population 7 Gyr ago, with which I
will finally be able solve long-standing questions in galaxy formation
that were out of reach before: what is the star-formation history of
individual galaxies, why and how is star-formation ``quenched'' in
many galaxies, and to what extent do galaxies grow subsequently
through merging afterward?
LEGA-C is worldwide the largest spectroscopic survey of distant
galaxies to date, and ERC funding will be absolutely critical in
harvesting this unparallelled database. I am seeking to extend my
research group to realize the scientific potential of this substantial
investment (6.5M Eur) of observational resources by the European
astronomy community. Timing of the execution of the VLT program is
perfectly matched with the timeline of this ERC program.
Max ERC Funding
1 884 875 €
Duration
Start date: 2016-04-01, End date: 2021-03-31
Project acronym STYDS
Project Seeing things you don't see: Unifying the philosophy, psychology and neuroscience of multimodal mental imagery
Researcher (PI) Bence Gyorgy NANAY
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITEIT ANTWERPEN
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), SH4, ERC-2016-COG
Summary When I am looking at my coffee machine that makes funny noises, this is an instance of multisensory perception – I perceive this event by means of both vision and audition. But very often we only receive sensory stimulation from a multisensory event by means of one sense modality. If I hear the noisy coffee machine in the next room (without seeing it), then how do I represent the visual aspects of this multisensory event?
The aim of this research project is to bring together empirical findings about multimodal perception and empirical findings about (visual, auditory, tactile) mental imagery and argue that on occasions like the one described in the last paragraph, we have multimodal mental imagery: perceptual processing in one sense modality (here: vision) that is triggered by sensory stimulation in another sense modality (here: audition).
Multimodal mental imagery is rife. The vast majority of what we perceive are multisensory events: events that can be perceived in more than one sense modality – like the noisy coffee machine. And most of the time we are only acquainted with these multisensory events via a subset of the sense modalities involved – all the other aspects of these events are represented by means of multisensory mental imagery. This means that multisensory mental imagery is a crucial element of almost all instances of everyday perception, which has wider implications to philosophy of perception and beyond, to epistemological questions about whether we can trust our senses.
Focusing on multimodal mental imagery can help us to understand a number of puzzling perceptual phenomena, like sensory substitution and synaesthesia. Further, manipulating mental imagery has recently become an important clinical procedure in various branches of psychiatry as well as in counteracting implicit bias – using multimodal mental imagery rather than voluntarily and consciously conjured up mental imagery can lead to real progress in these experimental paradigms.
Summary
When I am looking at my coffee machine that makes funny noises, this is an instance of multisensory perception – I perceive this event by means of both vision and audition. But very often we only receive sensory stimulation from a multisensory event by means of one sense modality. If I hear the noisy coffee machine in the next room (without seeing it), then how do I represent the visual aspects of this multisensory event?
The aim of this research project is to bring together empirical findings about multimodal perception and empirical findings about (visual, auditory, tactile) mental imagery and argue that on occasions like the one described in the last paragraph, we have multimodal mental imagery: perceptual processing in one sense modality (here: vision) that is triggered by sensory stimulation in another sense modality (here: audition).
Multimodal mental imagery is rife. The vast majority of what we perceive are multisensory events: events that can be perceived in more than one sense modality – like the noisy coffee machine. And most of the time we are only acquainted with these multisensory events via a subset of the sense modalities involved – all the other aspects of these events are represented by means of multisensory mental imagery. This means that multisensory mental imagery is a crucial element of almost all instances of everyday perception, which has wider implications to philosophy of perception and beyond, to epistemological questions about whether we can trust our senses.
Focusing on multimodal mental imagery can help us to understand a number of puzzling perceptual phenomena, like sensory substitution and synaesthesia. Further, manipulating mental imagery has recently become an important clinical procedure in various branches of psychiatry as well as in counteracting implicit bias – using multimodal mental imagery rather than voluntarily and consciously conjured up mental imagery can lead to real progress in these experimental paradigms.
Max ERC Funding
1 966 530 €
Duration
Start date: 2017-09-01, End date: 2022-08-31
