Syllabus

Study of distant galaxies to complement "archaeological" studies of nearby galaxies. Study of galaxies from z~0.5 to z>10. Goal is to
understand galaxy formation and evolution.

Key questions:

** When did galaxies form? Or more precisely, when were galaxies
assembled?

** What are the main physical processes at work?

Course Structure:

Course is primarily focused on observational results but discusses
theoretical developments and insights.

1) Cosmology: Discuss current cosmology, timescales, size scales,
relation to redshift. COBE/WMAP/HST Key Project. Key cosmological
epochs. Physical environment at different redshifts. Dark Matter.
Dark Energy. Reionization. Redshift and K-corrections. Surface
brightness varies as (1+z)4.

2) Cosmic baryon budget. Baryons a small fraction of mass density
but baryons are what we study and encompass complex physics. Where
are the baryons at the present epoch? Stars, gas/plasma (inside and
outside galaxies). The location of the baryons NOW tells us about
what we should be searching for in the past.

3) Cosmic star formation rate. Global sense of when stars formed as a
function of time (redshift). Madau diagram. Very important diagnostic
of the buildup of galaxies over time. When were most of the stars
formed that now are in galaxies? This may not tell us about when
galaxies came to look like galaxies today - star formation and
assembly are somewhat uncoupled. Mass buildup.

4) Distant Galaxies - a historical perspective. How we came to
understand galaxy formation from studies of distant galaxies is
important. Previous results set the current stage, define the
terminology and are the source of disagreements and issues that last
for years and even decades.... Morphology-density relation.
Butcher-Oemler effect. First galaxies (as a function of historical
time!). Mergers. CDM. Light vs. Mass.

5) Observational Capabilities. Key changes in technology that have
moved the field forward. High performance spectrographs. Optical and
then IR detector arrays. 8-10 m class telescopes. HST. Spitzer.
ALMA. NGST/JWST. These have redefined what we can do. Science is
enabled by technology. Science drives utilization of technology and
sometimes drives technology.

6) The Universe by time (redshift). The detectability of galaxies
varies with redshift and requires different observational techniques
and wavelength regions. The study of high-redshift galaxies naturally
breaks into redshift regimes, where higher redshift objects become
progressively more difficult to study. The regions and the facilities
used. Dropouts and photometric redshifts.

7) The universe at z~0.5-1.5. Field galaxies. Observations. Model
expectations. Areas of disagreement. What has happened between z~1
and the present epoch? Star formation rate. Types of galaxies. Mass
buildup. Disk formation and bulge/elliptical buildup.

8) The universe at z~0.5-1.5. Cluster galaxies. Galaxies in denser
environments. Contrast with field. Morphology-density relation.
Changes since z~1. Observational results and contrast with
theoretical expectations. Gravitational lensing in clusters. Models
of high-redshift source galaxies in lensing clusters.

9) The universe at z~1.5-3. The time of maximum star formation rate.
Major mass buildup in stars occurring during in this period. Lyman
Break Galaxies. ULIRGS/LIRGS. SCUBA sources. The existence of an
evolved population. Distant Red Galaxies and other descriptors of
evolved galaxies. Role of dust. Luminosity density and star formation
rates by type. Mass buildup. Development of disks and bulges at early
times.

10) The universe at z~3-6. The second billion years. Substantial
mass buildup. Physical processes in this period that define the
buildup of galaxies following the end of reionization at z~6. Role of
AGN. Feedback. Contrast models and observations. Luminosity
functions. Luminosity density and star formation rate. Acquisition of
large samples to give statistical weight. Mass of galaxies. Mass
buildup.

11) The universe at z~7-10+. The first billion years. The first
galaxies. First stars at even earlier times. Galaxies during the
reionization epoch. The "discovery" epoch. A key raison d'etre for
NGST/JWST. The frontier for exploration currently with HST and
Spitzer. Extremely challenging searches for faint and very rare
objects. Use of gravitational lenses to find high redshift sources.
Contrast with models and predictions.

12) Summary of current state of knowledge on galaxy formation and
evolution and prognosis for the future in the context of future
missions and telescopes. Future research opportunities.