The diffuse cosmic background at ultraviolet, optical, and infrared wavelengths is produced by the emission of all stars across the history of the Universe. Its knowledge would thus inform us about stellar activity, galaxy evolution, dust extinction and the expansion rate of the Universe. In this talk I will report on an unprecedented measurement of this background using data from NASA’s Fermi mission and how it has allowed us to measure the star-formation history throughout the history of the Universe and the expansion rate of the Universe at recent times.

About the Speaker:

Marco Ajello is an assistant professor in the department of Physics and Astronomy of Clemson University. His research focuses on the origins of cosmological backgrounds and the evolution of massive black holes at the center of galaxies.

He obtained a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering in 2001 at the University of Palermo, Italy, followed by a master’s degree in Physics at the University of Trieste, Italy and a Ph.D. in Physics in 2007 awarded by the Technical University of Munich, Germany. After postdoctoral research at Stanford University and at the University of California, Berkeley, he joined the faculty at Clemson University in 2014.

Among other awards, Marco Ajello received the Otto Hahn Medal of the Max Planck Society and the URSAA award of Clemson University.  
                   
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