NRAO/Socorro Colloquium Series

Rychard Bouwens

University of California


Galaxy Build-up and Evolution at z>=7: Early results from ultra-deep WFC3/IR observations of the HUDF and ERS fields


The new WFC3/IR camera aboard HST enables us to survey the sky in the near-IR data 40x more efficiently than ever before -- permitting us to make enormous strides in our searches for z>=7 galaxies. Already deep observations exist over >~52 arcmin**2 in the HUDF09+ERS fields. With these data, we have been able to select 65+ z~7 galaxies, 30+ z~8 galaxies, and even some candidates at z~9-10 -- adding substantially to the 20-30 z~7 galaxy candidates known before WFC3. In this presentation, I summarize some of our early results, including the evolution of the UV LF from z~9 to z~4, the spectral properties of z~7-8 galaxies, and the stellar mass / SFR in z~7-8 galaxies. I will discuss the likely implications of these results for the reionization of the universe.






May 7, 2010
11:00 am

Array Operations Center Auditorium

All NRAO employees are invited to attend via video, available in Charlottesville Room 230, Green Bank Room 137 and Tucson N525.

Local Host: Chris Carilli