Ancient History in the Local Group of Galaxies: The Milky Way's Faintest, Darkest, and Most Ancient Satellite Galaxies

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The outer region of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, contains a few dozen satellite galaxies. This is surprising because hundreds are predicted by the prevailing theory of galaxy formation. The smallest satellite galaxies are also the best places to study the mysterious dark matter. The team will use cutting-edge observations at optical wavelengths to examine the satellite galaxies. The observations will help us understand galaxy formation and dark matter. Senior team members will train junior team members. The research will be featured in modern exhibits at the historic Mount Wilson Observatory in California. The exhibits will target elementary and high-school students from underrepresented groups in low-income areas.The team will obtain spectra and imaging of the recently-enlarged population of candidate satellite galaxies of the Milky Way. Their goals are to investigate (1) how many satellites are dwarf galaxies, (2) their masses and metallicities, (3) the best targets for indirect detection of dark matter, (4) the differences between dwarf galaxies originating near the Magellanic Clouds versus those formed closer to the Milky Way, (5) their orbits around the Milky Way, and (6) their chemical abundance patterns.