The stellar halos of galaxies, the stellar streams that they can include, and the dwarf satellites orbiting around them provide strong constraints on the nature of the dark matter and the baryon physics at play during galaxy formation and evolution.

Although low surface brightness features and the faintest of the dwarf galaxies are difficult to observe, there has been considerable progress in recent years. Reproducing these structures, as well as some of the other physical properties of dwarf galaxies nevertheless remains a challenge for numerical simulations. The advent of deep, wide-field, and high-resolution observations and more advanced theoretical models, should enable a more realistic understanding of the physical processes governing the formation of dwarf galaxies, the role of the environment on their evolution and how they contribute to the assembly of massive galaxies, including our own Milky Way, through cosmic time.

This symposium will bring together researchers working in and beyond the Local Group. Thanks to large imaging surveys and high-resolution spectroscopic instruments, including Gaia, VLT, MeerKAT and ALMA, we start to have a more detailed view of the stellar populations, gas properties, and kinematics of the dwarf galaxies and stellar streams. Major steps forward are expected from the spatial missions Euclid and ARRAKIHS but also ROMAN, as well as from ground-based surveys such as the Rubin Observatory, to name a few. These also prepare for exciting spectroscopic follow-up opportunities with the ELT. The ambition of this symposium is therefore to discuss the most recent advances in observational and theoretical studies of low surface brightness and low-mass galaxies, to foster collaborations, and to help identify the priorities for the future.

Programme

• Block1: The richness of the LSB Universe: diffuse haloes, stellar streams, tidal features, dwarf satellites
• Block2: Dwarf galaxies across cosmic time
• Block3: Multiwavelength tracers of low surface brightness emission
• Block4: Formation and evolution of faint structures: models vs. observations
• Block5: Observational constraints on the cosmological models
• Block6: Prospects with up-coming surveys

Invited speakers

• Jean-Charles Cuillandre (CEA, France)
• Annette Ferguson (University of Edinburgh, UK)

Scientific organisers

Chairs:Bahar Bidaran (University of Granada, Spain) & Pascale Jablonka (EPFL, CH)
Co-chairs: Leslie Hunt (INAF-Arcetri Observatory, Italy) & Reynier Peletier (University of Groningen, the Netherlands)
SOC: Betsey Adams (ASTRON, the Netherlands) Alessandro Boselli (Laboratory of Astrophysics, Marseille, France) Camila Correa (CEA, France) Arianna di Cintio (University of La Laguna/IAC, Spain) Pierre-Alain Duc (Observatory of Strasbourg, France ) Denis Erkal (University of Surrey, UK) Maria Angeles Gómez Flechoso (University of Complutense, Spain) Rodrigo Ibata (Observatory of Strasbourg, France) Kate Isaak (ESA) Soeren Larsen (Radboud University, the Netherlands) Alfonso Lopez Aguerri (IAC, Spain) Francine Marleau (University of Innsbruck, Austria) Isabel Perez (University of Granada, Spain) Ruben Sanchez-Janssen (University of Edinburgh, UK) Maria Angela Raj (University of Groningen, the Netherlands) Yves Revaz (EPFL, CH) Tomas Ruiz-Lara (University of Granada, Spain) Teymoor Saifollahi (Observatory of Strasbourg, France)

Contact

Bahar Bidaran, bidaran at ugr.es Pascale Jablonka, Pascale.Jablonka at epfl.ch