Related papers: First Light and Reionization: A Conference Summary
A summary is given of the current status and plans for gravitational-wave searches at all plausible wavelengths, from the size of the observable universe to a few kilometers. The anticipated scientific payoff from these searches is…
We review cosmological backgrounds of gravitational waves with a particular attention to the scientific potential of the eLISA/NGO mission. After an overview of cosmological backgrounds and detectors, we consider different cosmological…
Observations at long wavelengths, in the wide interval from a few to 1000 micron, are essential to study diffuse media in galaxies, including all kinds of atomic, ionic and molecular gases and dust grains. Hence they are particularly suited…
Ultraviolet emission from the first generation of stars in the Universe ionized the intergalactic medium in a process which was completed by z~6; the wavelength of these photons has been redshifted by (1+z) into the near infrared today and…
The last decade has been dense with new developments in the search for the sources of Galactic cosmic rays. Some of these developments have confirmed the tight connection between cosmic rays and supernovae in our Galaxy, through the…
This article is the written version of the closing talk presented at the conference `A Century of Cosmology' held at San Servolo, Italy, in August 2007. I focus on the prospects of constraining fundamental physics from cosmological…
In the first part of this review we discuss the basic observational features at the end of the cosmic ray energy spectrum. We also present there the main characteristics of each of the experiments involved in the detection of these…
A unifying theme of this conference was the use of different approaches to understand astrophysical sources of energetic particles in the TeV range and above. In this summary I review how gamma-ray astronomy, neutrino astronomy and (to some…
In these lecture notes we review the current knowledge about the formation of the first luminous objects. We start from the cosmological context of hierarchical models of structure formation, and discuss the main physical processes which…
How and when did the first generation of stars form at the end of the cosmic dark ages? Quite generically, within variants of the cold dark matter model of cosmological structure formation, the first sources of light are expected to form in…
Astronomical observations in the electromagnetic window - microwave, radio and optical - have revealed that most of the Universe is dark. The only reason we know that dark matter exists is because of its gravitational influence on luminous…
Recent years have seen tremendous progress in our understanding of the cosmos, which in turn points to even deeper questions to be further addressed. Concurrently the laser technology has undergone dramatic revolutions, providing exciting…
Two fundamental laws are needed for prediction in the universe: (1) a basic dynamical law and (2) a law for the cosmological initial condition. Quantum cosmology is the area of basic research concerned with the search for a theory of the…
We review some of the possible observable effects (reionization, feedback on galaxy formation, supernovae and metal enrichment) of the first collapsed, luminous (Pop III) objects in the universe. We show that supernovae in these objects…
Gravitational lenses can provide crucial information on the geometry of the Universe, on the cosmological scenario of formation of its structures as well as on the history of its components with look-back time. In this review, I focus on…
During its early evolution the Universe provided a laboratory to probe fundamental physics at high energies. Relics from those early epochs, such as the light elements synthesized during primordial nucleosynthesis when the Universe was only…
The investigation of the emergence of life is a major endeavour of science. Astronomy is contributing to it in three fundamental manners: (1) by measuring the chemical enrichment of the Universe, (2) by investigating planet formation and…
Feedback effects due to massive stars and supernovae in the first objects are shown to strongly regulate both galaxy formation/evolution and the reionization process. Here we review the most important ones in some detail. We discuss how…
The post-inflationary epochs are critical for comprehending the early evolution of our Universe. This article delves into the cosmological signatures that shed light on these early epochs, particularly focusing on the generation of various…
The origin of ultra high energy cosmic rays promises to lead us to a deeper understanding of the structure of matter. This is possible through the study of particle collisions at center-of-mass energies in interactions far larger than…