In the last few years, a standard model of cosmology has emerged, called the LCDM model. Ordinary luminous matter (baryons) makes up only a small fraction (about 4 percent) of the total mass density. The remaining part of the universe is dark and made up of two different ingredients: Dark Matter and Dark Energy.
The theory of cold dark matter (CDM) provides now a successful framework for understanding structure formation in the universe. In a universe dominated by CDM and a cosmological constant galaxy formation and evolution is a complex combination of hierarchical clustering, gas dissipation, merging events and secular evolution
NYU Abu Dhabi's Galaxy Formation Group uses state of the art numerical cosmological simulations to study galaxy formation and evolution during cosmic times with the aim to use the visible part of the Universe to unveil its dark side.