Brinson Lecture: Let There Be Light: The Observational Quest of the First Galaxies 

Where: School of the Art Institute of Chicago, MacLean Ballroom (112 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago)
Who Should Attend: All campus and open to the public
Hosted By: Physical Sciences Division (PSD), Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC)

The first billion years after the Big Bang is widely regarded as the final observational frontier in assembling a complete picture of cosmic history. During this period early stars and galaxies formed and the Universe became bathed in light for the first time. Hydrogen clouds in the space in between galaxies transformed from an atomic gas to a fully ionized medium consisting of detached protons and electrons. How and when did this ‘cosmic reionization’ occurred and were early star-forming galaxies the primary agents? Recent progress has raised the exciting prospect that we will soon be able to directly witness this dramatic period when the Universe emerged from darkness and the first galaxies began to shine. At this Brinson Lecture, Professor Richard Ellis will review the rapid progress being made with current facilities, and the prospects with upcoming ones, including the James Webb Space Telescope and extremely large ground-based telescopes now under construction.

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