Hunting for the Most Distant Galaxies in the Universe

We understand very little about the first galaxies in the universe whose light has traveled over 12 billion years to reach our telescopes. The early universe was a much darker place, filled with neutral gas blocking starlight from traveling far from its source. However, some light from young, small galaxies blasted through the gas around them to escape and travel to us. The little light that we see from these ancient cosmic objects hints at a remarkable story: galaxies housing young stars hundreds of times the mass of our Sun, intense and powerful radiation, and a paucity of elements heavier than hydrogen and helium. Taylor will share her part in piecing together this story, highlighting what she’s learned from Keck Observatory about this distant time and what’s next for this rapidly developing field of research. The staff and management of the W. M. Keck Observatory wish to offer our deepest gratitude to our Astronomy Talk Series sponsors, Rob and Terry Ryan.