Abstract

Galaxies are excellent laboratories for computational astrophysics, as they lie at the nexus of the “small scale” processes associated with stars and supermassive black holes, and those of large scale structure and cosmology. Moreover, galaxy formation simulations lie at the forefront of large scale computing and numerical methods, and the frontiers of galaxy formation are being probed by new observational facilities, including the soon-to-be-launched James Webb Space Telescope. Numerical modeling of galaxy formation promises a huge leap forward in predictive power if the community can incorporate physically motivated models of stellar and black hole feedback into larger scale simulations. This program will bring together leading scientists with expertise in topics relevant to galaxy formation across a wide range of scales and processes, including numerical techniques, star formation, AGN feedback, and large-scale structure. An additional focus will be on making links between computation, theory, and observations, in particular predictions relevant for the upcoming launch of JWST. The program will be hosted at the Center for Computational Astrophysics at the Flatiron Institute in New York city, and directed by Rachel Somerville (Rutgers/CCA) and Greg Bryan (Columbia/CCA). The first week-s lectures will be given by Romeel Davé (University of Edinburgh), Priya Natarajan (Yale University), Eve Ostriker (Princeton University) and Romain Teyssier (University of Zurich). Subsequent weeks will allow graduate students, postdocs, and faculty to collaborate on addressing some of the key outstanding puzzles in the field.