Abstract: The Circumgalactic Medium (CGM) encompasses the gas and dust spread throughout the extended galactic halo. Recent studies indicate that the CGM is crucial in bridging the inner parts of galaxies with local large-scale structures, as well as in regulating galaxy formation and evolution. After a brief review of the CGM theory and observations, I will focus on a specific galaxy: our own Milky Way. Given the abundant data available for the Milky Way, it's an ideal candidate for testing various CGM-related theories and models. I will discuss the gaseous components of its CGM and share several recent findings made by our research group. Finally, I will explore the prospects of CGM research in light of current and planned observatories and missions, both domestically and internationally.
Bio: TaoTao Fang is a professor at the Department of Astronomy at Xiamen University. He is also an observational astronomer. He received his Ph.D from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, M.S. from the University of Science and Technology of China, and B.S. from Wuhan University. He then worked as postdoc/researcher at the Carnegie Mellon University, the University of California at Berkeley and Irvine, before he joined Xiamen University. He was a Chandra fellow at UC Berkeley between 2003 and 2006, and he was awarded the Chinese National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars in 2015.
