WoU-MMA: Constraining Merger-triggered SMBH Mass Growth with the Evolution of Galaxy/SMBH Scaling Relations

This project will explore the formation and evolution of pairs of supermassive black holes in the center of large galaxies, with masses greater than a million times the mass of the Sun. This program will determine how these pairs of supermassive black holes evolve and grow together with their host galaxy. This program will also study the impact of galaxy mergers on the growth of supermassive black hole pairs. This project will also fund six University of Colorado undergraduate students to help expand the number of summer nighttime astronomy programs at Rocky Mountain National Park. This park runs a popular nighttime astronomy program in the summers, and visitor demand is rising beyond current capacity. The students will begin the Rocky Mountain National Park astronomy programs with presentations related to astronomy topics such as supermassive black holes and galaxies, ending with telescope viewings. One of the most important issues in astrophysics today is understanding how galaxies and their supermassive black holes (SMBHs) coevolve. This program will determine how the merger stage and the merger mass ratio affect the relative growth of SMBHs and stellar bulges. This program will also explore the mass ratio of the binary black hole population by making the first observational measurements of how the binary SMBH mass ratio evolves during a galaxy merger. Another important scientific goal is to establish how SMBH coalesce. Indeed, detections of sub-pc separation binary SMBHs remain elusive, the evolution of binary SMBHs in the sub-pc regime is also poorly constrained. Importantly, this work will help explain the recent detection of a louder-than-expected gravitational wave background by NANOGrav. As part of the broadening impacts activities, this program will expand the number of summer nighttime astronomy programs at Rocky Mountain National Park to help meet demand, and to add 3 nights of sky glow data collection to aid the park’s application for a protected International Dark Sky designation. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.