Title:

A Nearby Window to Cosmology



Beth Willman
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics



Abstract:

  In the last few years, a combination of observational and
  computational advances have ignited the field of near-field
  cosmology - using galaxies in the nearby Universe as tracers of dark
  matter on small-scales and using their detailed properties as fossil
  records of the process of galaxy formation from the earliest times
  until now.  For example, since 2005, a dozen dwarf galaxies have
  been discovered around the Milky Way and M31 that are less luminous
  than previously thought possible to exist.  These discoveries will
  both revolutionize our understanding of galaxy formation at the
  lowest luminosities and will shed new light on the properties of
  dark matter on galaxy scales.  I present the results of these
  searches and discuss them in a cosmological context.  I will also
  highlight other powerful uses of resolved stellar populations to
  pursue answers to cosmological questions and discuss the bright
  future prospects for this field.