Collaborative Research: Bolometric Studies of Cosmic Star Formation History

AST-0709356/AST-0708793Cowie/ bargercowie博士领导的合作项目。在夏威夷莫纳克亚山的詹姆斯克拉克麦克斯韦望远镜上，使用革命性的水肺相机进行亚毫米观测，揭示了一群被尘埃遮蔽的超明亮星系的存在，这些星系在高红移宇宙中主导着恒星的形成。这台名为SCUBA-2的新相机将宽视场的绘制速度提高了近三个数量级，并将极大地扩展对亚毫米宇宙和尘埃恒星形成历史的理解。该项目将在适合在450微米波长观测的天气条件下，对大天文台起源深度调查（GOODS）的两个经过大量研究的领域进行SCUBA-2调查。由于该波长比所使用的其他波长短，因此混淆极限较低，因此这些数据将能够(i)测量对亚毫米背景有贡献的更典型的源，（ii）测量接近黑体分布的其余波长峰值的通量，以及（iii）获得更准确的源位置。将亚毫米数据与来自太空和地面的无线电、红外、光学和x射线数据相结合，将确定遥远的、严重被尘埃遮蔽的源的多波长特性，并为光谱跟踪提供准确的位置。这项研究将确定红移、光度和恒星形成速率，从而追踪遥远宇宙中被遮蔽的恒星形成的范围和演化。了解宇宙恒星形成的历史是现代天文学的一个主要目标，也是公众的一大兴趣所在。这项研究将为大众科学文章、网站和技术和非专业社区的广泛部门提供信息。这些调查人员以前收集的数据已经提供给社区，并证明对许多外部项目很有价值：这种定期发布的做法将继续使用新的调查数据。两位调查人员继续在各自的机构中促进多样性和文化互动，包括来自整个太平洋地区的学生（在夏威夷），并努力让女性（在威斯康星州）参与进来，她们仍然是一个被远远低估的群体。

AST-0709356/AST-0708793Cowie/BargerThis is a collaborative project led by Dr Cowie. Sub-millimeter observations with the revolutionary SCUBA camera on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, revealed the existence of a population of dust-obscured, ultra-luminous galaxies that dominates star formation in the high-redshift Universe. The new camera, SCUBA-2, speeds up the mapping of wide fields by almost three orders of magnitude, and will dramatically expand understanding of the sub-millimeter Universe and the history of dusty star formation. This project will carry out a SCUBA-2 survey of two heavily studied fields of the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS), during weather conditions suitable for observing at a wavelength of 450-microns. Since the confusion limit is lower at this wavelength, which is shorter than other wavelengths used, these data will be able to (i) measure the more typical sources contributing to the sub-millimeter background, (ii) measure fluxes close to the rest wavelength peak of the blackbody distribution, and (iii) obtain much more accurate positions for the sources. Combining the sub-millimeter data with radio, infrared, optical, and X-ray data, from space and from the ground, will determine the multi-wavelength properties of the distant, heavily dust-obscured sources, and provide accurate positions for spectroscopic follow-up. The research will determine redshifts, luminosities, and star formation rates, and thus trace the extent and evolution of obscured star formation in the distant Universe.Understanding the star formation history of the universe is a major goal of modern astronomy, and of great public interest. This research will inform popular science articles, web sites, and frequent talks to broad sections of the technical and lay communities. Previous data collected by these investigators have been made available to the community and have proved valuable for many outside projects: this practice of regular release will continue with the new survey data. Both investigators continue to promote diversity and cultural interaction at their respective institutions, including students from throughout the Pacific arena (in Hawaii), and a strong effort to involve women (in Wisconsin), who remain a vastly under-represented group.