Research
The characterisation of the cosmic web elements and the interplay between the galaxies and the underlying cosmic web environment is the key part of our research interests. Our research program is tightly connected with ongoing and future large galaxy redshift surveys. We develop new algorithms and methods to extract and characterise the cosmic web group and filament environment. Objective cosmic web characterisation is a key to deepening our understanding of the assembly of galaxies in the Universe.
Large galaxy surveys that map the Universe reveal that the distribution of galaxies is far from random – it forms the large-scale structure of the Universe, also called the cosmic web. The building blocks of the cosmic web are galaxy groups and clusters connected with galaxy filaments. The cosmic web network is hierarchical, where at one end are thin filaments, also called tendrils, while at the other end are large superclusters extending hundreds of megaparsecs.
In order of abundance, the cosmic web is composed of dark matter, gas, and galaxies. Observationally, galaxies are the light sources of the cosmic web that map the underlying dark matter and gas distribution. Throughout their lifetime, galaxies continuously interact with the gas in the cosmic web: gas from the web falls into galaxies to make stars, and gas within galaxies is ejected into the cosmic web by the winds from supernovae and active supermassive black holes. These interactions hold the key to understanding the evolution of galaxies. One of the open questions is how and where galaxy evolution is balanced between nature and nurture processes – i.e. in what conditions the evolution of galaxies is determined mainly by their birth conditions or is affected by the physical and environmental processes that occur during the lifetime of galaxies. For example, current observations indicate that the environment plays an important role in star formation quenching in galaxies, it is influencing galaxy growth, but it also drives the orientations of galaxies in the cosmic web.
List of papers published by the team members: link to ADS.
