A Study of Early Galaxy Characteristics Within the VANDELS DR4 Sample

With the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) deployed and operating smoothly, the study of distant galaxies from some of the earliest stages of the Universe is now possible. Studies of the VANDELS Survey and other existing data sets like it are important for establishing key characteristics of how galaxies form and for informing next-generation projects with JWST. The VANDELS Data Release 4 Sample spans ∼0.2 deg² and consists of 2087 galaxies from the CANDELS Ultra Deep Field and the Hubble Ultra Deep Survey regions at redshift 1.0 ≤ z ≤ 7.0 (McLure et al). To constrain for targets with potential Lyα and CIII] emissions, a redshift range of 2.947 ≤ z ≤ 3.191 was chosen, resulting in a subsample of 79 Star Forming (SF) galaxies. Commonly present spectral emission lines within the sample were identified and correlations between attributes, such as stellar mass, star formation rate, redshift, and absolute magnitude were studied. The comparison of these results with future JWST observations at higher redshifts promises to reveal new and compelling science about the birth and evolution of the Universe’s first galaxies.