The cosmic downsizing of quasars is still a big puzzle in astronomy and it is commonly believed that the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) must have played a significant role in quenching itself, in a self-regulatory mechanism popularly termed “AGN feedback” . The AGN feedback also plays a crucial role in black hole and host galaxy co-evolution across cosmic time (the M-sigma relation). Here I will discuss the nature and impact of pc scale outflows from AGN, detected in X-rays. On the other hand, the feeding of the supermassive black hole (SMBH) at the center of AGNs is an equally interesting puzzle. We still do not know how matter from the host galaxy loses their angular momentum and falls into the accretion disk, finally feeding the SMBH. In an extensive X-ray spectral variability study of Compton-thin Type-II AGN, we found the presence of clumpy gas in the near vicinity (<pc) of the SMBH which are likely candidates of matter which fall into the black hole and feed them, creating the luminous AGN.

Zoom Recording: https://uky.zoom.us/rec/share/2ffed6_OqD7gDmicFWJh_V2OHKSGO0Yqc8qctNtXi5iOnTwI9FQDlF8NZFGRsNa7.AXJT014OPTkA-TxI

The cosmic downsizing of quasars is still a big puzzle in astronomy and it is commonly believed that the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) must have played a significant role in quenching itself, in a self-regulatory mechanism popularly termed “AGN feedback” . The AGN feedback also plays a crucial role in black hole and host galaxy co-evolution across cosmic time (the M-sigma relation). Here I will discuss the nature and impact of pc scale outflows from AGN, detected in X-rays. On the other hand, the feeding of the supermassive black hole (SMBH) at the center of AGNs is an equally interesting puzzle. We still do not know how matter from the host galaxy loses their angular momentum and falls into the accretion disk, finally feeding the SMBH. In an extensive X-ray spectral variability study of Compton-thin Type-II AGN, we found the presence of clumpy gas in the near vicinity (<pc) of the SMBH which are likely candidates of matter which fall into the black hole and feed them, creating the luminous AGN.

Zoom Recording: https://uky.zoom.us/rec/share/2ffed6_OqD7gDmicFWJh_V2OHKSGO0Yqc8qctNtXi5iOnTwI9FQDlF8NZFGRsNa7.AXJT014OPTkA-TxI

The Southern Stellar Stream Spectroscopic Survey (S5) is an ongoing spectroscopic program that maps the newly discovered stellar streams with the fiber-fed AAOmega spectrograph on the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT). S5 is the first systematic program pursuing a complete census of known streams in the Southern Hemisphere, providing a uniquely powerful sample for understanding the building blocks of the Milky Way's stellar halo, the progenitors and formation of stellar streams, the mass and shape of the Milky Way's halo, and ultimately the nature of dark matter. The survey started in Summer 2018 and has mapped ~20 streams with over 50 nights on AAT. In this talk, I will give a brief overview of the current status of the program, highlighting the latest science results from the survey, and end the talk with the public data release plan.

Zoom Recording: https://uky.zoom.us/rec/share/paz-EUSX-RPTLxR_bh9fOpUkrdfRrijEg3vPg7cdyqpX6EQREvS9LPJ8_O_SjsI.Z-EES8dDkrCZJ0-6

The Southern Stellar Stream Spectroscopic Survey (S5) is an ongoing spectroscopic program that maps the newly discovered stellar streams with the fiber-fed AAOmega spectrograph on the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT). S5 is the first systematic program pursuing a complete census of known streams in the Southern Hemisphere, providing a uniquely powerful sample for understanding the building blocks of the Milky Way's stellar halo, the progenitors and formation of stellar streams, the mass and shape of the Milky Way's halo, and ultimately the nature of dark matter. The survey started in Summer 2018 and has mapped ~20 streams with over 50 nights on AAT. In this talk, I will give a brief overview of the current status of the program, highlighting the latest science results from the survey, and end the talk with the public data release plan.

Zoom Recording: https://uky.zoom.us/rec/share/paz-EUSX-RPTLxR_bh9fOpUkrdfRrijEg3vPg7cdyqpX6EQREvS9LPJ8_O_SjsI.Z-EES8dDkrCZJ0-6

Low mass galaxies provide an essential testing ground for theoretical predictions of cosmology. Their number densities, structures, and internal dynamics can be extremely insightful for studying dark matter and galaxy formation on small scales. I will discuss recent results studying ultra-diffuse galaxies (UDGs). UDGs hold the promise of new constraints on low mass galaxies dynamics, as their spatial extent and often significant globular cluster populations provide probes on spatial scales where dark matter should dominate the kinematics. I will also discuss the dynamics of two UDGs that seem to lack most, if not all, of their dark matter and host an intriguing population of globular clusters. I will finish by presenting a new wide-field survey carried out with the 48-lens Dragonfly Telephoto Array. With an excellent photometric depth, the Dragonfly Wide Field Survey will provide an unprecedented view of the low surface brightness universe over a wide area of the sky (350 square degrees). The main goal of the survey is to provide information on the properties and statistics of the dwarf galaxy population beyond the Local Group but it will also provide a useful resource for other resolved, low surface brightness phenomena, such as stellar streams and tidal tails, stellar halos, intragroup light and the extent of massive galaxies.

Zoom Recording: https://uky.zoom.us/rec/share/enMKk_C1E4A0dIkX9Zhd5Ahkgr8FoOy-47Maqeu1dWM0X75nhZTPwWY8XkGV_uUm.isTz3MAuWX8Eo8q9

Low mass galaxies provide an essential testing ground for theoretical predictions of cosmology. Their number densities, structures, and internal dynamics can be extremely insightful for studying dark matter and galaxy formation on small scales. I will discuss recent results studying ultra-diffuse galaxies (UDGs). UDGs hold the promise of new constraints on low mass galaxies dynamics, as their spatial extent and often significant globular cluster populations provide probes on spatial scales where dark matter should dominate the kinematics. I will also discuss the dynamics of two UDGs that seem to lack most, if not all, of their dark matter and host an intriguing population of globular clusters. I will finish by presenting a new wide-field survey carried out with the 48-lens Dragonfly Telephoto Array. With an excellent photometric depth, the Dragonfly Wide Field Survey will provide an unprecedented view of the low surface brightness universe over a wide area of the sky (350 square degrees). The main goal of the survey is to provide information on the properties and statistics of the dwarf galaxy population beyond the Local Group but it will also provide a useful resource for other resolved, low surface brightness phenomena, such as stellar streams and tidal tails, stellar halos, intragroup light and the extent of massive galaxies.

Zoom Recording: https://uky.zoom.us/rec/share/enMKk_C1E4A0dIkX9Zhd5Ahkgr8FoOy-47Maqeu1dWM0X75nhZTPwWY8XkGV_uUm.isTz3MAuWX8Eo8q9

Understanding how galaxies assemble their baryonic content is one of the major open questions in galaxy formation and evolution.  The key processes that govern the smooth secular growth of galaxies over time include gas accretion, star formation, energetic feedback, and outflows, collectively referred to as the cycle of baryons.  The gas-phase metallicity of the interstellar medium in galaxies is sensitive to baryon cycling, and scaling relations between metallicity and global galaxy properties such as stellar mass and star-formation rate are valuable probes of gas flows and galaxy growth.  I will present the latest observational constraints on the evolution of the mass-metallicity relation and the fundamental metallicity relation (mass-SFR-metallicity) from z=0 to z~3.3, spanning the past 12 Gyr of cosmic history.  I will discuss the implications for outflow rates and mass loading factors of galactic winds.  I will also examine future observational prospects to improve the connection between gas flows and the metal and gas content of galaxies, and to extend gas-phase abundance studies into the epoch of reionization with JWST.

Understanding how galaxies assemble their baryonic content is one of the major open questions in galaxy formation and evolution.  The key processes that govern the smooth secular growth of galaxies over time include gas accretion, star formation, energetic feedback, and outflows, collectively referred to as the cycle of baryons.  The gas-phase metallicity of the interstellar medium in galaxies is sensitive to baryon cycling, and scaling relations between metallicity and global galaxy properties such as stellar mass and star-formation rate are valuable probes of gas flows and galaxy growth.  I will present the latest observational constraints on the evolution of the mass-metallicity relation and the fundamental metallicity relation (mass-SFR-metallicity) from z=0 to z~3.3, spanning the past 12 Gyr of cosmic history.  I will discuss the implications for outflow rates and mass loading factors of galactic winds.  I will also examine future observational prospects to improve the connection between gas flows and the metal and gas content of galaxies, and to extend gas-phase abundance studies into the epoch of reionization with JWST.