Dartmouth Events

Abstract: What is the nature of the ultra-faint satellites of the Milky Way? Only discovered within the last ∼15 years, these systems have significant implications for the faint end of the galaxy luminosity function, the validity of cosmological models, the nature of dark matter, and the origins of the first galaxies. Yet they are still far from being understood. The presence or absence of dark matter, and thus whether they are indeed galaxies, remains unclear in some of the recently discovered systems. While the existing dynamical analyses rely heavily on the assumption of dynamical equilibrium, several ultra-faints show signs of tidal disturbance. For some, it is not even clear if they are true stellar associations. In this talk, I will discuss observational challenges in understanding such faint systems, as well as our efforts to overcome these challenges in order to shed light on the true nature of the faintest of galaxies.