New Frontiers in Cosmology and Galaxy Formation: Challenges for the Future

TL;DR

This paper discusses the upcoming challenges in cosmology related to understanding dark matter, dark energy, galaxy formation, and reconciling observations with theoretical models, emphasizing the need for improved observations and theories.

Contribution

It highlights key scientific challenges and outlines future directions for research in cosmology and galaxy formation, emphasizing observational and theoretical developments.

Findings

Dark sector dominates the universe and requires better probes.

Galaxy formation initiated at reionization epoch, needing new probes.

Current models conflict with observations like ULIRGS and downsizing.

Abstract

(Abridged) Cosmology faces three distinct challenges in the next decade. (1) The dark sector, both dark matter and dark energy, dominates the Universe. Key questions include determining the nature of both. Improved observational probes are crucial. (2) Galaxy formation was initiated at around the epoch of reionization: we need to understand how and when as well as to develop probes of earlier epochs. (3) Our simple dark matter-driven picture of galaxy assembly is seemingly at odds with several observational results, including the presence of ULIRGS at high z, the `downsizing' signature, chemical signatures of alpha-element ratios and suggestions that merging may not be important in defining the Hubble sequence. Understanding the physical implications is a major challenge for theorists and refiniing the observational uncertainties a major goal for observers.