Planning US Partnership in Galactic Structure with the Chinese LAMOST Telescope

由于银河系是唯一一个我们可以测量其三维空间位置、三维速度和组成恒星的单个金属丰度的星系，它是理解星星形成和星系组装历史、星系中暗物质分布以及星系盘形成的基石。直到现在，随着拥有数千根光纤的大口径望远镜的出现，我们才有可能以足够的细节观察我们银河系的足够大的一部分，从而将其全球结构和合并历史逐星星拼凑起来。大天区多目标光纤光谱望远镜（LAMOST）是最有前途的设施，在短期内获得该项目所需的数百万银河系恒星的光谱。根据该奖项，Heidi Newberg博士（伦斯勒理工学院）将寻求在美国的十几位银河系天文学家和中国类似规模的天文学家之间建立伙伴关系。这些科学家将共同开发一个科学案例，利用目前正在中国兴隆观测站建设的LAMOST设施进行银河系结构恒星调查。 将对LAMOST项目进行重要评估，以确定在一般美国天文学家、LAMOST美国（PLUS）小组参与者和LAMOST项目本身之间建立正式关系所需的条件。

Because the Milky Way is the only galaxy for which we can measure the three-dimensional spatial positions, three dimensional velocities, and the individual metallicities of its component stars, it is a cornerstone to understanding the history of star formation and galaxy assembly, the distribution of dark matter in galaxies, and the creation of galactic disks. Only now, with the availability of large aperture telescopes with thousands of fibers, is it becoming possible to view a large enough part of our own galaxy in sufficient detail to piece together its global structure and merger history star by star. The Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) is the most promising facility for obtaining, in the near term, the millions of spectra of Galactic stars that are needed for this project. Under this award, Dr. Heidi Newberg (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) will seek to establish a partnership between a dozen Galactic astronomers in the United States and a similarly sized group of astronomers in China. These scientists will work together to develop a science case for doing a Galactic structure stellar survey using the LAMOST facility, currently under construction at the Xinglong Observing Station in China. Significant assessment of the LAMOST project will be carried out to determine what is necessary to create a formal relationship between United States astronomers in general, the Participants in LAMOST US (PLUS) team, and the LAMOST project itself.