Variable Stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC)

Horace Smith博士将利用这笔资金研究小麦哲伦星云（SMC）特定区域的变星。101个先前已知的变量和225个新发现的可疑变量将包括在这次调查中。这不仅将是迄今为止最广泛的SMC变星研究之一，就研究的恒星数量而言，而且它将比几乎所有其他SMC变星的研究更加暗淡。首次建立了SMC造父变星最弱恒星的周期-光度关系和周期-频率直方图。与SMC RR天琴座恒星的性质和分布有关的问题也将被探索。麦哲伦星云中的造父变星在发现周期-光度关系方面发挥了重要作用。它们还帮助勾勒出麦哲伦星云的结构，并用于测试恒星脉动理论和恒星演化理论。由于这些原因，麦哲伦造父变星一直是观测者最喜欢的目标。史密斯博士的研究将扩展造父变星SMC和天琴座RR的数据库，以更好地了解它们的性质、演化和分布。

Dr. Horace Smith will use this grant to study variable stars in a specific area of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). One hundred and one previously known variables and two hundred and five newly discovered, suspected variables will be included in this survey. This will not only be one of the most extensive studies of SMC variables to date in terms of the number of stars studied, but it will extend fainter than almost all other investigations of SMC field variable stars. For the first time the period-luminosity relations and period-frequency histogram of the faintest SMC Cepheid stars will be established. Questions relating to the nature and distribution of SMC RR Lyrae stars will also be explored. Cepheid stars in the Magellanic Clouds played a significant role in the discovery of the period-luminosity relation. They also helped outline the structure of the Magellanic Clouds, and they have served to test both stellar pulsation theory and stellar evolution theory. For these reasons the Magellanic Cloud Cepheids have been favorite targets of observers. Dr. Smith's study will expand the data base on SMC Cepheids and RR Lyraes to better understand their nature, evolution, and distribution.