Simulations are powerful tools to study the Universe. We prioritize coding and developing our models and simulations because it provides the opportunity to formulate our own questions and to explore our own hypothesis. Our group also works with simulations shared by other groups. Overall, our students get the chance to plan and perform their own models and simulations. Here, we highlight the most amazing one that we hope will spark your imagination.
These simulations are focused to study the Milky Way: how it formed and evolved. We will use data from Gaia and APOGEE to confront our results and make predictions for the early stages of evolution of our Galaxy. Forthcoming observations will also provide exquisite data of our neighbours, extending this natural laboratory to test our knowledge of galaxy formation and to learn about the nature of dark matter.
They are part of the CIELO Project.
The Local Group Analogues
These simulations have been designed to study the connection between galaxies and their environment across their history of formation. They are planned to include 20 high-resolution zoom-in galaxies selected from different environments. At the moment we have two of them which are being analysed for different projects.
This set includes isolated galaxies and pre-prepared mergers to further study regulation of star formation activity, the formation of molecular clouds and the link to the dust content. We are currently working on a new set of interacting galaxies.