NOIRLab - The First Year Results From DESI

Dark energy is a mysterious force that is causing the expansion of the universe to accelerate. The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) attached to the Nicholas U. Mayall Telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory is currently measuring the redshifts to tens of millions of galaxies to help unravel the mystery of dark energy. In this podcast, NOIRLab’s Dr. Stephanie Juneau talks about the results from the first year of observations with DESI.   Bios:  Rob Sparks is in the Communications, Education and Engagement group at NSF’s NOIRLab in Tucson, Arizona. Dr. Stephanie Juneau is an astronomer at NSF NOIRLab, and a data scientist for the Astro Data Lab. She obtained her BSc and MSc in physics from the Université de Montréal, and her PhD from the University of Arizona in 2011. She then moved to CEA-Saclay in France, where she started as a Marie Curie fellow before becoming staff researcher in 2012. She moved back to Tucson, Arizona in 2016 to join the scientific staff at NSF NOIRLab.   Dr. Juneau’s expertise lies primarily in the field of supermassive black hole and galaxy evolution. She is interested in answering questions about the growth of galaxies and that of the black holes that reside in their centers, as well as the interplay between the two. Her work brings together multiwavelength observations, close comparison with numerical simulations, and ranges from detailed case studies to statistical analysis of large datasets. As a member of the DESI and Euclid collaborations, she is particularly excited about leveraging millions of galaxy and quasar spectra to further our understanding of the black hole-galaxy connection and expand to larger scales.   Links: NOIRLab Press Release: https://noirlab.edu/public/news/noirlab2408/ NOIRLab social media channels can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/NOIRLabAstro https://twitter.com/NOIRLabAstro https://www.instagram.com/noirlabastro/ https://www.youtube.com/noirlabastro   We've added a new way to donate to 365 Days of Astronomy to support editing, hosting, and production costs.  Just visit: https://www.patreon.com/365DaysOfAstronomy and donate as much as you can! Share the podcast with your friends and send the Patreon link to them too!  Every bit helps! Thank you! ------------------------------------ Do go visit http://www.redbubble.com/people/CosmoQuestX/shop for cool Astronomy Cast and CosmoQuest t-shirts, coffee mugs and other awesomeness! http://cosmoquest.org/Donate This show is made possible through your donations.  Thank you! (Haven't donated? It's not too late! Just click!) ------------------------------------ The 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast is produced by the Planetary Science Institute. http://www.psi.edu Visit us on the web at 365DaysOfAstronomy.org or email us at [email protected].