SDL Astronomy and Astrophysics

Prof. Dr. Susanne Pfalzner

Head of Sim and Data Lab Astro

• Institute for Advanced Simulation (IAS)
• Jülich Supercomputing Centre (JSC)

Building 16.4 /
Room 319

+49 2461/61-85420

E-Mail

The Sim Data Lab Astronomy and Astrophysics is a targeted research and support structure that provides an interface between the Supercomputer facilities in Jülich and the Astrophysics research communities.

Purpose

Our tasks include the support of Data Science Projects and High Performance Computing Simulations for the Astrophysics Community. We support users in their research by

• advising code choices for their scientific applications,
• supporting the development and application of scalable methods,
• development of an integrated application infrastructure for high performance computational astrophysics (HPCA),
• supporting the development of data analysis tools,
• initiation of collaborative projects for advancing high performance computational astrophysics and data science,
• visualization of the obtained results

In addition, we host repositories of commonly used codes and data bases and offer workshops in above mentioned areas.

Research Topics

Solar system formation

There are a number of indications that the Solar system formed in a massive cluster and most likely had an encounter with another star during its formation phase. We investigate how these solar system properties constrain the actual fly-by parameters and the properties of its birth cluster.

Oumuamuas

The discovery of 1I/‘Oumuamua confirmed that planetesimals must exist in great numbers in interstellar space. Originally generated during planet formation, they are scattered from their original systems and subsequently drift through interstellar space. We investigate what consequences the existence of such objects might have.

Young cluster development

Most stars do not form in isolation but as part of a stellar group consisting of a few dozen to several million stars with stellar densities ranging from 0.01 to several 100 M⊙ pc-3. Our research shows that clustered star formation works under surprisingly tight constraints with respect to cluster size and density.

Projects

PUNCH4NFDI

The prime goal of PUNCH4NFDI is the setup of a federated and "FAIR" science data platform, offering the infrastructures and interfaces necessary for the access to and use of data and computing resources of the involved communities and beyond.

B3D

Big Bang to Big Data is an interdisciplinary research, technology, and education alliance for data-intensive radio astronomy. B3D aims to help develop and apply the data science expertise and methodology increasingly needed for astrophysical research.

VdR

The association coordinates and supports the scientific, technical and organizational aspects for the development, construction and networking of the data infrastructure required for the use of data-intensive radio telescopes.

SFB 1601

Within the new CRC 1601 entitled “The Cosmic Evolution of the Habitats of Massive Stars” researchers are investigating the physical processes that determine the habitats of massive stars in different galactic environments.

Gallery

Visualization is an important tool for analyzing and understanding simuation data in astronomy and astrophysics. The visualization group at JSC assists users by developing and adapting software tools to meet special needs.

Examples can be seen below.

Especially time-dependent effects call for presenting the data in an animation or video. These can be used in presentations, inside websites, presentations or for media purposes. The JSC visualisation team provides hard- and software to capture, edit and publish the content.