Exploring Our Place in the Milky Way

The Milky Way is a complex ecosystem, where stellar birth in the multi-phase interstellar medium is governed by the complex interplay of often competing physical agents such as gravity, turbulence, magnetic fields, and radiation. Our Sun, and along with it the Earth, are embedded in a cavity of tenuous hot gas, the Local Bubble. We believe this structure originated from the energy and momentum released by multiple supernova explosions displacing the nearby interstellar medium and triggering the formation of new generations of stars.

To better understand our cosmic home and the evolution of our Galactic neighborhood, we have performed numerical simulations of the Milky Way including the formation of Local Bubble analogs. The goal of the project is to investigate key aspects of the simulation data and compare with multi-wavelength astronomical observations.

This project offers students the opportunity to become acquainted with central research topics in modern astronomy and astrophysics and to learn and/or use basic skills in data science and visualization. It is also an invitation to explore new aspects of our Universe. The project will benefit from the energy and unbiased perspective of a research partner who is interested in exploration and enjoys working with complex data.