The interaction of gas rich galaxies via mergers or close encounters can give rise to sudden, violent star formation (SF), often accompanied by the presence of an active galactic nucleus AGN. The merger gives rise to a system whose energy is mostly emitted in the IR with a luminosity above 10E11 L_sun. These dusty environments are the scenery of supernova explosions at a high rate as well as of super-massive black hole (SMBH) growth, thus representing excellent laboratories to study the evolution of galaxies. However, such activity in the innermost nuclear regions (<500pc) remains hidden at most wavelengths, including optical, due to the high concentration of dust and gas, and a direct view is only possible using high resolution observations not strongly affected by extinction, such as near-IR and radio. In this talk I will present exciting observations of a “baby” AGN and a tidal disruption event revealed with very long baseline interferometry.

Cosmology enjoyed a remarkable development over the last century. Astronomical observations revealed that galaxies like our own are not distributed at random throughout space, but rather delineate a quite remarkable structure, reminiscent of the skeletal framework of a sponge. How could that be? We now have developed a compelling picture of how these galaxies and their distribution developed over time, under the influence of gravity. We trace their origin to the earliest moment of the Universe. Most effective in achieving the current understanding has been the study of the sky background light called the Cosmic Microwave Background. This light, which is invisible to the naked eye but easily measurable with modern sensors, travelled uninterrupted for 13.8 billion years throughout the Universe. It last interacted with the material content of the Universe when the universe was very much hotter, denser, and homogeneous than it is now. It thus bears witness to the prevailing physical conditions back then and shades light on the process which generated the primordial seeds out of which structures grew. As a result, recent observations bring amazing confirmation of ideas put forward in the 80's and open a window on physics in a range of scales, time and energies which was hitherto inaccessible. I will describe how we came to the arresting conclusion that we are the children of quantum fluctuations of the vacuum!

Studying the star forming activity around type 1 Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) has proven difficult due to the bright nucleus of AGNs outshines the classical starburst indicators, especially at optical and near-infrared spectral range. The mid-infrared IRS/Spitzer spectrum of several Palomar Green Quasi Stellar Objects (QSOs) have revealed the presence of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) features in the nuclear spectrum, suggesting that starburst are present in most QSOs at kpc scales (~3 -21 kpc) from the nucleus.  We use the high angular resolution spectrum at N-band (~7.5-12 um) obtained with 10.4m Gran Telescopio CANARIAS to study the inner (< 1 kpc) star formation activity in a sample of local (z < 0.1) and MIR-bright (f_N > 0.02 Jy) QSOs. We measure the PAH at 11.3 um and calculate the inner star formation rate (SFR) at scales of few hundred pc (~300-1000 pc). The PAH is clearly detected in the 38 per cent of the sample, while an upper limit is reported for the rest. Using the same PAH and technique we measure the SFR at scales of few kpc using the IRS/Spitzer spectrum of objects in our sample. Comparing the inner and larger (Spitzer) aperture SFRs we conclude that star formation activity in QSOs is mostly concentrated within ~1 kpc. Finally, we find that our estimation of the SFR at scale of ~1kpc correlate with the black hole accretion rate as predicted by merger galaxy simulations at similar scales. 

Understanding the temporal and spectral variations in X-ray binaries is extremely important in order to explore the various processes in accretion disk i.e. production of soft X-ray and hard X-rays, Comptonizing region, reflection component, origin of jet, ejection mechanisms etc.. These sources show astounding variability on a time scale of microsecond to days in a broad spectral domain of 0.1 - 200 keV and any profound knowledge of these phenomenon can potentially be invoked to understand the spectro-temporal activity in AGNs. I will discuss various statistical methods and procedures often used to study X-ray binaries in order to probe the X-ray emitting region/regions in accretion disk, considered to be occurring close to the compact object. I will discuss, how the magnitude of cross correlation function, autocorrelation function, power density spectrum and Fourier time lags between soft and hard X-ray shall constrain the Comptonization region in X-ray binaries, whose geometry is still a matter of debate. I will briefly elaborate on few primary results unveiled by Astrosat and RXTE connected to the X-ray binaries. I will show a ongoing study using RXTE and Nustar data of a neutron star source GX 17+2 emitting close to the Eddington luminosity and constrain the X-ray production mechanism.

While there have been frequent discoveries of supernovae, our knowledge of their progenitor stars is still limited. A number of candidate progenitor stars have been directly detected in pre-explosion archival images, but such cases are rare and further confirmations on the disappearance of the candidate stars are needed. Alternatively, studying the local environments of supernovae may provide independent clues on their progenitors. As the progenitor must have been born within a stellar population, the properties of the parent stellar population, such as age and metallicity, can be used to constrain the progenitors of supernovae of different types. Such statistical study of supernova environments have been carried out to derive physical properties of the progenitors and disentangle different paths leading to the distinct supernova types. With the recent advent of integral field spectroscopy, which enables the collection of both spectral and spatial information of the supernova site simultaneously, supernova environment study is advancing in an unprecedented way. In this presentation I will also introduce an ongoing survey of nearby supernova host galaxies using the MUSE integral field spectrograph at the VLT.

The cosmic web is the large-scale metric in which galaxies form and evolve. Evidences of the role of the cosmic web in driving some galaxy properties have been measured from simulations and at low redshift from spectroscopic surveys.  They support a picture in which  the geometry of the large-scale environment drives anisotropic tides which impact the dynamics and, at a second order, the assembly history of galaxies. But extracting the cosmic web from observed datasets is still a challenge, in particular at high redshift where large and complete spectroscopic surveys are extremely costly. At these redshifts, though, we expect a stronger dependency of galaxy properties on the geometry of the accretion, which makes this extraction pivotal to understand galaxy evolution. 

  I will give an overview of the current status of cosmic web analysis from high redshift observations, either photometric data or lyman-alpha forest surveys. While relying on a pilot study in COSMOS and forecasts from the simulated horizon-AGN lightcone, I will present results about the evolution of galaxies within both cosmic web filaments and nodes, and I will show how this study can be extended with future probes including LSST, Euclid, PFS and MOSAIC on the ELT.

Ultra Metal-Poor (UMP) stars, with heavy metal abundances less than 1/10,000th that of the Sun, are formed from gas clouds polluted by the very first (Population III) stars to be born after the Big-Bang. These Pop. III stars are thought to be massive and short-lived, ending their lives in explosive events such as supernova type II. By studying the detailed chemical abundance patterns of UMP stars, it is possible to infer the main characteristics of their Pop. III progenitors, such as frequency, mass distribution, and explosion energies. In this talk, I will present a Monte Carlo approach to finding suitable stellar progenitors for UMP stars, based on the discovery of a new UMP star in the Galactic Halo. Results suggest that at least two types of progenitors are needed at the lowest metallicities, to account for the observed chemical abundances of UMP stars in the Milky Way. These results place important constraints on the initial mass function at early times, as well as models of the chemical evolution of the Galaxy and the Universe. I will also discuss the importance of a new observing effort, called J-PLUS (Javalambre Photometric Local Universe Survey), in selecting low-metallicity and carbon-enhanced stars, using narrow-band photometry and machine learning techniques.

The standard model of cosmology, while observationally well supported, remains fundamentally mysterious. In this talk I will discuss some proposed alternative models for dark matter and dark energy, as well as previous and on-going work to investigate the process of structure formation in these models.

Galaxy evolution is driven by a complex combination of internal (nature) and external (nurture) processes. Gas stripping due to ram pressure arises as a galaxy falls into the dense intracluster medium of a galaxy cluster, and is among the most violent environmental experiences a galaxy can have. The most spectacular examples of ram-pressure stripping in action are the so-called "jellyfish galaxies", which display extended tails of optically bright stripped material. I will review several theoretical and observational studies that aim to characterize the effect of gas stripping in galaxy evolution, including the latest results of the large MUSE program GASP, dedicated to studying jellyfish galaxies. Finally, I will, present the recent discovery of a previously unknown connection between ram-pressure stripping and nuclear black hole activity.

Over the last decade, deep studies of nearby galaxies have led to the discovery of vast stellar envelopes that are often rich in substructure. These components are naturally predicted in models of hierarchical galaxy assembly, and their observed properties place important constraints on the amount, nature, and history of satellite accretion. One of the most effective ways of mapping the peripheral regions of galaxies is through resolved star studies. Using wide-field cameras equipped to 8 m class telescopes, it has recently become possible to extend these studies to systems beyond the Local Group. Located at a distance of 3.6 Mpc, M81 is a prime target for wide-field mapping of its resolved stellar content.

In this talk, we present the detailed results from our deep wide-field imaging survey of the M81 group with the Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC), on the Subaru Telescope. We report on the analysis of the structures, stellar populations, and metallicities of old dwarf galaxies NGC3077, IKN, KDG061, KDG064, BK5N, d0955+70, d1015+69, d1014+68, and d1005+68 as well as young stellar systems around M81, such as Arp’s Loop, Holmberg IX, BK3N, NW-stream, Garland, M82-arc, SE-blob, and S-blob. Several candidates for yet- undiscovered faint dwarf galaxies in the M81 group will also be introduced. The peculiar galaxies NGC3077 has been classified as the irregular galaxy. Okamoto et al. (2015, ApJ 809, L1) discovered an extended halo structure with S-shape elongated tails, obvious feature of tidal interaction. With a help of numerical simulation by Penarrubia et al. (2009, ApJ 698, 222), we will demonstrate that this tidal feature was formed during the latest close encounters between M81, M82, and NGC 3077 which induced star formation in tidally stripped gas far from the main bodies of galaxies. It is not clear whether the latest tidal interaction was the first close encounters of M81, M82 and NGC3077. If NGC3077 is still surrounded by the dark matter halo, it implies that the tidal interaction occurred for the first time in the M81 group. Kinematic studies of inter galactic globular clusters and planetary nebulae would tell us the past history of tidal interaction in this group of galaxies.

The properties of unseen first galaxies in our Universe are encoded in the 3D structure of the cosmic 21-cm signal. Here I introduce a flexible parametrization for high-z galaxies’ properties, including their star formation rates, ionizing escape fraction and their evolution with the mass of the host dark matter halos. With this parametrization, I self-consistently calculate the corresponding 21-cm signal during reionization and the cosmic dawn. Using a Monte Carlo Markov Chain sampler of 3D simulations, 21CMMC, I demonstrate how combining high-z luminosity functions with a mock 21-cm signal improve the parameter recovery. In our model, the turn-over magnitude on high-z luminosity functions can be constrained using the 21-cm signal.

Mount Kent Observatory at the University of Southern Queensland is host to Australia's newest astronomical research facilities. MINERVA-Australis is the only Southern hemisphere precise radial velocity facility wholly dedicated to follow-up of thousands of planets to be identified by NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey satellite (TESS). Mass measurements of these planets are critically necessary to maximise the scientific impact of the TESS mission, to understand the composition of exoplanets and the transition between rocky and gaseous worlds. MINERVA-Australis is now operational. I present first-light results and give an update on the status of the project, which will ultimately host six 0.7m telescopes feeding a stabilised spectrograph.

The Stellar Observations Network Group (SONG) is establishing a node at Mount Kent. SONG-Australia will complete the global longitude coverage, delivering breakthroughs in fundamental understanding of the interiors of stars for decades to come. SONG-Australia is designed on a "MINERVA" model, whereby fibres from multiple small telescopes feed a single high-resolution spectrograph. This approach provides expandability and reduces cost by using factory-built components that have been well-tested by the MINERVA teams. As a result of these innovations, SONG-Australia is expected to be fully operational by late 2019.

During the first part of my talk, I will briefly present the first Data Release (DR1) of the SkyMapper Southern Survey. The DR1 covers approximately 20,000 square degrees from the Shallow Survey component, complete to roughly 18 mag in all six SkyMapper filters (uvgriz). This database contains over 2.1 billion photometric measurements for about 285 million unique astrophysical objects, which will serve as the calibration source for upcoming Main Survey component (Data Release 2). The second part of my talk will focus on the SkyMapper follow-up program to search for optical counterparts of gravitational wave (GW) events and fast radio bursts (FRB) found by advanced LIGO/Virgo and Australian-based radio facilities, respectively. The identification of electromagnetic counterpart is essential for improving our current observational interpretation of their astrophysical nature. I will discuss lessons from recent case studies but also introduce our strategy for preparing efficient multi-messenger observations in our next observing run.

One of the biggest challenges in modern cosmology is to understand the first generation of stars and galaxies that formed during the cosmic Dark Ages. Since they reside in the observationally unexplored territory, we need to predict the properties of the first galaxies by pushing numerical simulations to new levels of physical realism and detail.  In this talk, I will present the results of our highly-resolved cosmological ab-initio simulations to understand the assembly process of first galaxies under the feedback from the first generation of stars, the so-called Population III. Also, I will illustrate how first galaxies can be connected with their local descendants in terms of chemical abundances in the local ultra-faint dwarf galaxies.

The recent discoveries of gravitational waves from the advanced LIGO have already been critical cosmological resources. Here, I will present cosmological implications of gravitational wave detection, and show how current and future gravitational observatories can advance our knowledge on the nature of dark matter and dark energy.

The first detection of gravitational waves from a binary neutron star merger GW170817 by the LIGO-Virgo Collaboration has provided fundamental new insights into the astrophysical site for the r-process nucleosynthesis and on the nature of dense neutron-star matter. The detected gravitational wave signal depends upon the tidal distortion of the neutron stars as they approach merger. We examine how the detected “chirp” depends on the adopted equation of state. This places new constraints on the properties of nuclear matter. The detected evidence of heavy-element nucleosynthesis also provides insight into the nature of the r-process and the fission properties of the heaviest nuclei. Parametrically, one can divide models for the r-process into three scenarios roughly characterized by the number of neutron captures per seed nucleus (n/s). In addition to neutron-star mergers, these include magneto-hydrodynamic jets from supernovae and the neutrino heated wind above the proto-neutron star in core-collapse supernovae. Insight from GW170817 allows one to better quantify the relative contributions of each astrophysical site.

Solar eruptive phenomena occur at different spatial, temporal and energy scales. A flare is the most violent form of solar activity which essentially represents sudden release of excess energy stored in the magnetic fields of solar corona. The contemporary multi-wavelength observations have immensely improved our understanding of the various physical processes occurring in different atmospheric layers of the Sun during a solar flare. The standard flare model has been successful in broadly recognizing these physical processes as the consequence of large-scale magnetic reconnection in the corona. Jets and coronal mass ejections are among important phenomena associated with solar flares.

The objective of the present talk is to summarize the multi-wavelength observations of solar flares and associated phenomena taken mainly from the space borne instruments over the last decade. I will highlight some recent works on magnetic field modelling of the active region corona that shed light upon the triggering and energy release mechanisms. I will also briefly discuss contemporary observations on flare-flux rope-CME associations in the lower corona and their space weather consequences.

I have attempted to utilize network science tools for investigating topological structures of the Universe. In this talk, I provide an overview of network science and present the results of my three pilot studies applied to the data from COSMOS, Illustris, and NDWFS. Then, I briefly demonstrate and discuss about how we can apply the modern Big Data platform, Apache Spark, to astronomical data-driven problems. 

It has now been proven that the Universe is mostly filled with what we cannot see; dark energy and dark matter. The presence of dark matter had profound consequences on the evolution of the Universe. The Standard Model does not accommodate a suitable dark matter candidate. Therefore the existence of dark matter is a crucial phenomenological evidence for physics Beyond the Standard Model. The pressing goal of current and future dark matter experiments is to answer the question of whether dark matter interacts with normal matter other than gravity; i.e. if dark matter is detectable. Among the plethora of dark matter candidate particles, the Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) and the Axions are the most outstanding contender. In this talk, I will discuss about the dark matter axion search projects at KAIST/IBS. 

Thanks to modern technology - wide-field camera, high computing power, massive data storage, and robotic observation - it is possible to obtain thousands of asteroid light curves within a short period of time. Therefore, several important applications can be conducted on asteroids in a more comprehensive way. For instance, the interior structure can be studied through the spin-barrier, the mechanisms changing asteroid spin status can be learned through the spin-rate distribution, and the discoveries of binary asteroid, etc. Moreover, the super-fast rotating asteroids, a kind of odd objects against the current rubble-pile structure, can refresh our understanding of asteroid. I will talk about our asteroid time-series survey using wide-field facility, such as the PTF/ZTF, the PS1, the Xuyi observatory and the KMTNet, and what we have learned so far.

  Over the last three decades, our knowledge about planetary systems has increased dramatically, from one example with eight planets (our own Solar system) to over 2600 planetary systems hosting more than 3500 planets. While occurrence rate studies show that exoplanets are the rule rather than an exception our understating of how these planets form, in different environments and around different stars, is still limited. However, we are now on the verge of the next revolution in exoplanet science. TESS, PLATO, JWST, WFIRST, and LSST will complete the demographic census of planets across a wide range of environments, and will allow detailed characterization of their atmospheres and structure.

   In this talk I will discuss the important role of microlensing in the forefront of exoplanetary studies. Gravitational microlensing is unique in its ability to probe several relatively untapped reservoirs of exoplanet parameter space, including planets near the "snowline," planets throughout the Galaxy, and the population of free-floating planets. A wealth of new and upcoming microlensing campaigns, both from ground and space, will allow the full exploration of the exoplanet demographics unique to microlensing. Specifically, I will present the key results from the first space microlensing campaigns, with Spitzer, which enable the first estimate of the Galactic distribution of planets, and preliminary results from the first NIR microlensing survey, with UKIRT, mapping the microlensing event rate and event timescale distribution near the Galactic center, which are inaccessible to optical surveys due to the high extinction. These are crucial for the microlensing survey planned with NASA flagship mission WFIRST, which is scheduled to launch in mid-2020, and will discover thousands of snowline exoplanets via their microlensing light curves, enabling a Kepler-like statistical analysis of planets at 1-10 AU from their parent stars and potentially revolutionizing our understanding of planet formation.

The MESSIER satellite has been designed to explore the extremely low surface brightness universe at UV and optical wavelengths. The two driving science cases target the mildly- and highly non-linear regimes of structure formation to test two key predictions of the LCDM scenario: (1) the detection of the putative large number of galaxy satellites, and (2) the identification of the filaments of the cosmic web. The science requirements imply challenging instrumentation issues which have only recently been solved. The satellite will drift scan the entire sky in 6 bands covering the 200-1000 nm wavelength range to reach the unprecedented surface brightness levels of 34 mag/arcsec^2 in the optical and 37 mag/arcsec^2 in the UV. As usual when uncovering new volumes in parameter space, many important secondary science cases will also result as free by-products and will be discussed in some detail: the actual luminosity function of galaxies, the contribution and role of intracluster light, the fluctuations of the cosmological background radiation at UV and optical wavelengths, the warm molecular hydrogen content of galaxies at z=0.25, time-domain studies of supernovae and tidal disruption events, the chemical enrichment of the interstellar medium through mass loss of red giant stars and the accurate measure of the BAO scale at z=0.7 with over 30 million galaxies detected in Lyman-alpha at this redshift. It will provide the first space-based reference UV-optical photometric catalogue of the entire sky. Synergies with GAIA, EUCLID and WFIRST will also be discussed, along with some of the statistical challenges involved in the data analysis.

Catastrophic collisions have shaped the destiny of the Solar System, and perhaps even humankind.  In 1994, a series of massive explosions occurred on Jupiter after the remnants of a fractured comet plunged into that planet's atmosphere. Dr. Hammel led the Hubble Space Telescope team that tracked these explosions.  When a fresh Jupiter impact site was discovered just 15 years later, Dr. Hammel and her colleagues used Hubble and the Gemini Observatory to determine that this was the result of an errant asteroid. Dr. Hammel will explain what happened on Jupiter during these cosmic collisions.  More importantly, she will explain the implications of such cosmic collisions for us here on Earth.  She will conclude with how AURA’s facilities (Hubble, Gemini, the Blanco telecope’s DECam, and the soon-to-be-completed LSST) will help us predict and prevent catastrophic impacts on Earth.

NASA is discussing "what they want to know next 30 years [science]” and “what it takes to make that happens [technology]” in order to answer the fundamental questions “Are we alone?” and “What is the origin and history of our solar system and extrasolar systems?” under the frame of (i) Discovery and (ii) Exploration of other worlds and cosmos and (iii) Development of necessary technologies. Searching for life and habitable environments outside Earth will be a driving force for many NASA projects. Next 30 years will be the decades of “sample returns” from asteroids and Mars. With the accumulation of scientific knowledge and technology through various missions including the exploration to Mars, NASA is paving a way for human exploration and noticeably shifting its focus to the water world Europa. When James Webb Telescope is put into the orbit in year 2018, it will detect and analyze water, oxygen, methane, ozone, temperature, surface pressure and many more on planets, especially seven exoplanets of TRAPPIST 1 solar system. The close comparative study of exoplanets and water and icy worlds in our solar system is expected as an effort to understand “life and its origin”. NASA will continue to examine the possibility to transform Mars into a habitable environment. This talk is intended to show the big picture under the overarching themes of NASA missions so that audience have a good foundation from which they can nurture their abilities to forecast what NASA and thus the international space exploration community try to achieve and where they will be next 10 years, 20 years, and 30 years.

Tai Chi, a Chinese martial art developed based on the laws of nature, emphasises how 'to conquer the unyielding with the yielding'. The recent observation of star formation shows that gravity, turbulence and magnetic fields may all play a role in star formation. Their detailed interaction, however, is always a topic of controversy due to the difficulties in both observations and simulations, especially when magnetic fields are involved. Is cloud turbulence super- or sub-Alfvenic? Are molecular cloud mass super- or sub-critical? I will review our recent quest of the answers of these central questions in star formation. And how Tai Chi may give us some inspiration.

Low temperature superconducting gravity gradiometer is the most sensitive equipment of measuring gravity. With mechanically levitated test masses and commercial SQUIDs, differential acceleration sensitivity of 10-12 m s-2 Hz-1/2 was demonstrated thirty years ago and is still the highest sensitivity in the world. We are developing an superconducting earthquake early detector using magnetic levitated test masses, differential frequency of which is 0.1Hz and the expected differential acceleration sensitivity is 3×10-14 m s-2 Hz-1/2. Besides detecting earthquake, we are designing an experiment to measure the gravity constant G as precise as 10ppm using the detector. In the future, we will try to demonstrate the key technologies of the new gravitational wave detector, SOGRO, such as low frequency and high quality factor magnetic levitation and so on.

Presently, the number of asteroids is known to be more than 740,000. Asteroids are thought to be the remnants of planetesimals formed in the early solar system, and allow us to study the formation and evolution of the solar system, as well as the origin of life. We performed two kinds of asteroid surveys with the Japanese infrared satellite AKARI. The first one is the mid-infrared survey to construct the size and albedo catalog of 5120 asteroids. Thanks to the 16-month continuous survey, the Asteroid catalog using AKARI, or AcuA, provides a 100% complete data set of all asteroids larger than 20 km, corresponding to more than 98% of the total mass of all asteroids in the main belt region. The second one is the near-infrared spectroscopic survey to search for water on asteroids. In order to explore the existence of water in the present solar system, it is important to investigate the presence of hydrated minerals and/or water ice on asteroids. These water-related materials show absorption features in the 3-micron band, which can only be observed by space-borne telescope without disturbance of atmospheric absorption. We carried out a spectroscopic survey of 66 asteroids with AKARI in the 2.5-5 micron wavelength range. From these observations, it is found that most C-type asteroids have clear absorption features related to hydrated minerals. In this talk, I will present the detail of these AKARI asteroid surveys.