Glenn Kacprzak

Associate Investigator

Swinburne University of Technology

Biography

Dr Glenn Kacprzak is an Associate Professor at Swinburne’s Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing. His research is focused on understanding the formation and evolution of galaxies by studying the connection between extended halo gas and the host galaxy. A/Prof. Kacprzak conducts this research using the bright light from distant background quasars (QSOs). QSOs, acting as a flashlight, shine through these halos where the gas interacts with the light and produces absorption features. Virtually all types of galaxies are observed to prominently absorb the Mg II 2796, 2803 doublet. Through this research, A/Prof. Kacprzak is contributing to broader understandings of areas such as halo kinematics, dynamics, chemical content, ionization conditions and cosmic evolution back to half the current age of the universe and out to projected galactocentric radii of several 100 kpc. Using high resolution imaging of these galaxies, a direct comparison between the gas properties as measured from quasar spectra and the galaxy luminous properties is possible, providing deeper insight into the role of gas in galaxy evolution.