Breaking the Baryonic Degeneracy: Disentangling Cosmology from Galaxy Formation using CAMELS

Project Description:

In modern cosmology, measuring the large-scale structure of the Universe is hindered by a major theoretical bottleneck known as the “baryonic degeneracy.” On small cosmic scales, stellar feedback from SNe and AGN redistributes gas and dark matter in a way that perfectly mimics changes to fundamental cosmological parameters, such as the overall matter density (Ωm). This project utilises the CAMELS (Cosmology and Astrophysics with MachinE Learning Simulations) dataset, a large suite of thousands of hydrodynamic simulations in which both cosmological and astrophysical feedback parameters are systematically varied. By analysing the 1D power spectra P(k) generated by these simulations, this study aims to use data science techniques to disentangle the signatures of cosmic expansion from the physics of galaxy formation.

Research Area:

Astrophysics

Project Level:

Honours

This Project Is Offered At The Following Node(s):

(NWU)

Special Requirements:

The student should have experience programming in Python and basic Linux terminal usage. Prior Machine Learning experience is not strictly required, but will be advantageous.