Curiosity Lab: Studying Cosmic Cupcakes: Using Galaxy Clusters to Explore the Evolution of Our Universe
October 11, 2026
- 3:00 pm
Virtual
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The laws of physics that describe our universe operate across a staggering range of spatial scales, influencing everything from microscopic grains of cold dust in interstellar space to enormous reservoirs of hot gas spanning millions of light-years. While vast, the observable universe is not infinite, which raises the question: how large can an astronomical object be? In this talk, Dr. Anthony Flores ’14, a postdoctoral researcher at Rutgers University, describes the largest objects in the universe still bound by gravity: massive galaxy clusters. By studying these galaxy clusters as a function of their age, we can learn more about their constituent parts as well as gain insight into the properties of the universe at large. This presentation will cover observations of galaxy clusters across the electromagnetic spectrum (from radio to X-ray) using our current state-of-the-art telescopes and describe ongoing efforts to improve our instruments for the next generation of astronomical studies.
