“Not seeing the complexity of everything that can alter the life of a galaxy sometimes leads to misconceptions”

Interview with Dimitri Gadotti

On nights which are sufficiently dark, we can observe a starry strip that runs across the sky from side to side. This is the arm of our Galaxy, because (rather like people) spiral galaxies like our own have huge arms, which are linked via a central bar of stars. But why don’t all galaxies have this structure? And why do some of them develop it earlier than others? Maybe Dimitri Gadotti, Astronomer of the European Southern Observatory (ESO), can give us the answer as he is Principal Investigator (IP) of the TIMER project. The objective of this international program is to calculate the epoch when the bars of the galactic disks were formed, the structures that are formed when they are dynamically settled. And to understand how galaxies were formed and evolved throughout cosmic history this aspect is crucial. Dimitri Gadotti has set up this project during his visit to the IAC in the framework of the Severo Ochoa Program, which aims to foster, among others, collaboration between the scientific communities of prestigious institutions. >> Read the interview