Simulating the Evolving Milky Way: Gaia Predictions From Disk to Halo"

Speaker: 
Sarah Loebman
Institution: 
UC Davis
Date: 
Tuesday, February 27, 2018
Time: 
4:00 pm
Location: 
NS2 1201
Abstract:
The Milky Way is the most observationally accessible galaxy in our Universe.  In many ways it is also a "typical galaxy," making it an important benchmark for studying galaxy formation and testing LCDM. For this reason, uncovering the formation history of the Milky Way is the key goal of major ongoing surveys such as APOGEE and Gaia. However, observations of the Milky Way span a complex multi-dimensional space which necessitates sophisticated modeling to interpret. In this talk, I will highlight some recent achievements utilizing state-of-the-art simulations to aid in our exploration of the Milky Way's formation and evolution.  I will also discuss the highly anticipated Gaia Data Release 2, and present predictions of what we could find and why this is exciting.
Host: 
Mike Cooper