Cosmic Dawn: When Galaxies Were Young

At the Museum | Farrand Auditorium

The James Webb Space Telescope detects galaxies so far away that we see them as they were over 13 billion years ago. This opportunity to study galaxies in their youth complements the archaelogical picture of galaxy evolution constructed from the
properties of galaxies today. In this talk, UC Santa Barbara Professor of Physics Crystal Martin, Ph.D., will illustrate what JWST observations are teaching us about star formation in young galaxies and the subsequent ionization of the universe. This history turns out to depend on environment, suggesting that the evolutionary paths of galaxies in massive clusters diverged from those in our local group very early.

Professor Martin earned her Ph.D. at the University of Arizona. She won a prestigious Hubble Fellowship which she took to the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore. After holding a Sherman Fairchild Fellowship at Caltech for a few years, she then joined the faculty at UCSB. Her group at UCSB focuses on how hot, massive stars interact with their surroundings, a process often called galactic feedback. They thank NASA, the NSF, the Packard Foundation, and the Sloan Foundation for their support.

No tickets or reservations required.

This event is part of a monthly series of free astronomy talks presented by Santa Barbara’s astronomy club, the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit (SBAU). Look for more talks and free Star Parties with the SBAU on the Museum’s astronomy calendar.

Questions? Contact Astronomy Programs Manager Ila Jade Komasa at ijadekomasa@sbnature2.org or 805-682-4711 ext. 164.

Top photo courtesy of W.M. Keck Observatory