The Magellanic Clouds Survey: a Bridge to Nearby Galaxies
Abstract
We outline to the community the value of a Magellanic Clouds Survey that consists of three components: I) a complete-area, high resolution, multi-band UV-near-IR broadband survey; II) a narrowband survey in 7 key nebular filters to cover a statistically significant sample of representative HII regions and a large-area, contiguous survey of the diffuse, warm ISM; and III) a comprehensive FUV spectroscopic survey of 1300 early-type stars. The science areas enabled by such a dataset are as follows: A) assessment of massive star feedback in both HII regions and the diffuse, warm ISM; B) completion of a comprehensive study of the 30 Doradus giant extragalactic HII region (GEHR); C) development and quantitative parameterization of stellar clustering properties; D) extensive FUV studies of early-type stellar atmospheres and their energy distributions; and E) similarly extensive FUV absorption-line studies of molecular cloud structure and ISM extinction properties. These data will also allow a number of additional studies relating to the underlying stellar populations.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.0904.1987,
title = {The Magellanic Clouds Survey: a Bridge to Nearby Galaxies},
author = {Paul A. Scowen and Rolf Jansen and Matthew Beasley and Daniela Calzetti and Alex Fullerton and John Gallagher and Mark McCaughrean and Robert O'Connell and Sally Oey and Nathan Smith},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:0904.1987},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
8 pages - Science White Paper for the Astro2010 Decadal Survey Panel(s): Planetary Systems and Star Formation; Stars and Stellar Evolution; the Galactic Neighborhood