A programme of Astrophysics, Cosmology and Technology in Cardiff 2013-2016

We propose a programme of Astrophysics, Cosmology and Technology development for Astrophysics and Cosmology, to investigate star and planet formation in our own and other galaxies, how galaxies form and evolve, and how the Universe we see around us today originated in the big bang. We will use our world-leading position in exploitation of the Herschel satellite galactic and extragalactic surveys, along with complemeantary observations with other facilities and theoretical modelling. We will also develop new sophisticated yet robust statistical methods for exploiting the large datasets emerging from the Planck satellite and other large cosmological surveys. We will continue to develop the world's most sensitive detectors for very long infrared wavelengths, along with associated optical components utilising 'metamaterials' the class of materials designed and manufactured by human beings to have the properties best suited to their task, rather than relying on naturally occurring minerals and plastics. Both of these areas of technology development have potential wide applications outside of Astronomy, in areas such as security scanners and bio-medical imaging for example. The technologies used for imaging can also be extended to undertake spectroscopy, and we propose a programme to develop the capability to obtain a spectrum of every point in a large area image of the sky, which is essential for understanding how far away the objects found in deep surveys are, but also what the conditions in the gas that make up these objects are.