WIYN Open Cluster Study Photometry: The Next Generation

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The research to be carried out here is an extension and expansion of a previously NSF supported program of open cluster photometry as part of the WIYN Open Cluster Study (WOCS). The goals of the WOCS in general are to create a database of high quality open cluster astrometry, photometry, and spectroscopy which in turn can be applied to investigate a range of astrophysical questions. Examples include the shape of the initial mass function and its universality, the extent of convective overshoot in stellar cores, the determination of precise cluster ages, the metallicity gradient in the Galaxy, and the extragalactic distance scale. In addition to continued use of the WIYN 3.5 and 0.9-meter telescopes to obtain precision photometry in support of WOCS, additional activities will be undertaken to extend the photometric component of WOCS. First, in collaboration with Chilean astronomer Dr. Doug Geisler at the Universidad de Concepcion, imaging/photometry will be extended to a sample of southern hemisphere open clusters in the 3rd and 4th Galactic quadrants. Second, near-infrared photometry will be obtained of WOCS clusters in order to develop color-magnitude diagrams with the largest color baseline possible. Third, WOCS clusters will be surveyed for variable stars using the University of Florida's Rosemary Hill Observatory. The resulting photometric database will be made freely available to the community. The work will also help establish an international collaboration between a US and Chilean university. An educational component is included in which undergraduate and graduate students will be trained in observing and data reduction. Moreover, the variable star survey will be carried out in large part by high school students using a CCD imaging system on the 30-inch telescope at the Rosemary Hill Observatory (thereby enhancing the local infrastructure for research, education, and training).