Final Report Summary - FIRST (The first stars and galaxies)
The FIRST project has the goal of investigating the nature and properties of the first stars and galaxies that form only a few hundred million years after the Big Bang. This critical phase of the evolution of the Universe witnessed the emission of light from the first stars and accreting black holes - which enlightened an otherwise dark Universe - and the first appearance of the chemical building blocks of Life, metals and dust grains released by the first supernovae. It also witnessed the assembly of the first galaxies that, according to the hierarchical structure formation paradigm, represent the progenitors of larger systems, such as our own Milky Way.
The FIRST research team has successfully investigated some of the most important processes that shape the evolution of the infant Universe. New theoretical models have enabled to shed light on cosmic epochs that are not yet accessible to direct observations. Within FIRST, we have interpreted the signatures of the first stars in the most distant galaxies currently known as well as in the oldest and most chemically immature stars in our local neighbourhood. Following the fate of the first black holes formed as leftovers of the first stars, we have reconstructed the possible formation pathways of the super massive black holes heavier than one billion solar masses that light up the nuclei of massive galaxies less than 1 billion years after the Big Bang.
The FIRST research team has successfully investigated some of the most important processes that shape the evolution of the infant Universe. New theoretical models have enabled to shed light on cosmic epochs that are not yet accessible to direct observations. Within FIRST, we have interpreted the signatures of the first stars in the most distant galaxies currently known as well as in the oldest and most chemically immature stars in our local neighbourhood. Following the fate of the first black holes formed as leftovers of the first stars, we have reconstructed the possible formation pathways of the super massive black holes heavier than one billion solar masses that light up the nuclei of massive galaxies less than 1 billion years after the Big Bang.