| 18th of March 2015 |
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| ATNF Colloquium |
| Witnessing the Formation of Massive, Distant Galaxies
in the (Sub)Millimeter Regime |
| by Helmut Dannerbauer (University of Vienna, Austria) |
| Abstract. In order to understand galaxy
formation it is crucial to obtain sensitive observations of the emission of
dust and molecular gas both of which constrain the on-going star formation or
AGN activity and the future potential of the galaxy to grow. Constraining the
growth of ensemble of galaxies in the distant universe and not simply the most
active ones, is one of the primary goals of current and planned (sub)mm
facilities such as ALMA or SPICA. I will discuss two major questions in galaxy
formation and assembly: 1) are dusty galaxies vigorously forming stars embedded
within large scale structures at z > 1.5; and 2) do dusty starbursts exist at
the highest redshift. To shed light on these obscure topics, I will present
our on-going observations of dust and molecular gas with a number of different
(sub)mm facilities such as Herschel, APEX, IRAM or ALMA of one important star
forming galaxy population in the distant universe: submillimeter selected
galaxies (SMGs). My presentation will be complemented by our recently initiated
census of the molecular gas reservoirs of nearby galaxies with optical IFU
coverage. The local analogs serve as a reference sample for current and
future studies of high-z galaxy populations. Image details: Artist's impression of a protocluster forming in the early Universe. - Credit: ESO / M. Kornmesser |