Galaxies and Interstellar Medium

This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows the peculiar galaxy pair called Arp 116. Credit: NASA, ESA (https://www.spacetelescope.org/images/heic1213a/)

Our group studies the physical properties of galaxies and their evolution, using both observations and theoretical models. Our research covers a wide range of topics, from the kinematics of local galaxies to the formation of the first massive systems in the early Universe.
On the theoretical side, we use numerical simulations and analytical methods (stellar dynamics, potential theory). The dynamics of galaxies is a major aspect of our research, which includes the study of stellar and gas kinematics, scaling relations of elliptical galaxies, collisions between galaxies, properties of dark matter halos and modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND). Another central aspect of our research is the study of the circulation of baryonic matter, and in particular the fluid dynamics of gas, accretion and outflows due to stellar feedback and from active galactic nuclei.
Our observational work covers the entire wavelength range, from X-ray observations of hot gas to the study of cold gas using the 21 cm line in radio waves. We use state-of-the-art observing facilities such as JWST, Euclid, VLT and ALMA to measure the physical properties of galaxies from the local Universe up to the epoch of reionization. By observing gas, dust and stars in high-redshift galaxies, we aim to understand crucial physical processes such as the accumulation of stellar mass, the quenching of star formation, the coevolution of galaxies and active galactic nuclei, and the physical connection between the interstellar medium and star formation.

Funding

• UniBO,
• PRIN-MIUR,
• PRIN-INAF. Rita Levi Montalcini-MIUR
• ERC StG "Red Cardinal" (P.I. S. Belli)

Collaborations

• Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics (GER)
• Center for Astrophysics, Harvard & Smithsonian (USA)
• University of Florida (USA) 
• University of California, Riverside (USA)
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA)
• Center for Astrophysics, High Energy Astrophysics Division (Cambridge, MA, USA)
• Department of Astrophysical Sciences (Princeton University, NJ, USA)
• Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics (Columbia University, NY, USA)
• Department of Physics and Astronomy (University of California Los Angeles, CA, USA)  
• INAF-OAS, Kapteyn Astronomical Institute (University of Groningen, NL)
• Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics (Oxford University, UK)