GALFACTS Full-Stokes Studies of SNRs and HII Regions

GALFACTS，银河阿雷西博l波段馈电阵列（ALFA）连续凌日巡天，是一项全斯托克斯1.4 GHz射电连续巡天，从2008年初开始从阿雷西博天文台观测整个天空。国际合作小组的博士。Charles Kerton（爱荷华州立大学），Chris Salter（国家天文学和电离层中心/阿雷西博天文台），Roland Kothes（加拿大国家研究委员会）和Tyler Foster（布兰登大学）将利用GALFACTS研究超新星遗迹（SNRs）， HII区域和在我们银河系中发现的大型射电连续环和热斑。HII区域和信噪比都在星际介质的化学和物理演化中发挥着至关重要的作用，通过紫外线辐射、恒星风、爆炸运动和冲击不断重塑银河系盘。因此，详细了解snr和HII区域的性质——它们的大小、能量、全球统计数据——对于理解银河系的物理结构和演化，以及其他更遥远的星系都是非常重要的。GALFACTS将提供一些从银河面延伸出来的大型连续环和突状结构的最高分辨率视图，并为这些物体的模型提供重要的约束条件，这些物体可能代表当地星际介质中的主要结构。GALFACTS调查的科学回报预计将非常高，其数据产品将引起大量研究人员的兴趣。Kerton博士的团队计划制作一个扩展连续发射源的目录，这将提供从阿雷西博观测到的射电连续天空的最终总结，并将影响他的团队和更广泛的天文学界未来的研究。此外，该项目将为银河天文学的研究生和本科生提供研究和培训机会，重点是射电天文学技术以及大型多波长数据集的处理和解释。计划通过阿雷西博天文台游客中心、爱荷华州立大学天文馆并与爱荷华州科学中心合作，为普通公众和学校开展外联活动。

GALFACTS, the Galactic Arecibo L-Band Feed Array (ALFA) Continuum Transit Survey, is a full-Stokes 1.4 GHz radio continuum survey of the entire sky visible from the Arecibo Observatory that began observations in early 2008. The international collaborative group of Drs. Charles Kerton (Iowa State University), Chris Salter (National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center/Arecibo Observatory), Roland Kothes (National Research Council - Canada), and Tyler Foster (Brandon University) will utilize GALFACTS to study supernova remnants (SNRs), HII regions and the large radio continuum loops and spurs found in our Galaxy. Both HII regions and SNRs play a vital role in the chemical and physical evolution of the interstellar medium, constantly reshaping the Galactic disk via ultraviolet radiation, stellar winds, explosive motions, and shocks. Detailed understanding of the properties of both SNRs and HII regions - their sizes, energies, global statistics - is thus of great importance in understanding the physical structure and evolution of the Galaxy, and by extension other more distant galaxies. GALFACTS will provide the highest resolution view ever of some of the large continuum loops and spur structures extending from the Galactic plane and provide important constraints on models of these objects which probably represent major structures in the local interstellar medium. The scientific return from the GALFACTS survey is expected to be extremely high and its data products will be of interest to a large community of researchers. Dr. Kerton's group plans to produce a catalog of extended continuum emission sources that will provide the definitive summary of the radio continuum sky as seen from Arecibo and will shape future studies by both his group and the wider astronomy community. In addition, the project will provide a research and training opportunity for both graduate and undergraduate students in Galactic astronomy with an emphasis on radio astronomy techniques and the handling and interpretation of large multi-wavelength data sets. Outreach activities are planned for both the general public and schools through the observatory visitor center at Arecibo, the planetarium at Iowa State University, and in cooperation with the Science Center of Iowa.