Collaborative Research: The Evolution of Dwarf Galaxies - A Comprehensive View of the Magellanic Clouds

研究人员对附近的两个矮小星系--大麦哲伦星云和小麦哲伦星云--进行了大规模的成像和光谱调查。虽然大多数矮小星系的研究具有挑战性，因为它们本质上很暗，但麦哲伦星云(MC)就在附近，是研究低质量星系结构和动力学的独特实验室。研究人员将利用麦哲伦恒星历史成像调查(SMASH)和阿帕奇点天文台星系演化实验(APOEE)的高分辨率光谱来显著提高我们对麦哲伦星系的了解。研究人员将创建两个MC上元素丰度模式和梯度的大型地图。通过这些观测的结合，他们希望通过使用核反应模型并与模拟进行比较来了解MC中元素丰度随时间和空间的变化。此外，研究人员还将通过在Zooniverse平台上开发的名为“远地点光谱动物园”的公民科学项目，让公众参与最先进的研究。公民将目视检查200万个单独的远地点光谱的样本--包括几乎所有来源的时间序列光谱--并对远地点目标进行分类，标记出任何似乎具有当前自动远地点光谱分析管道中未识别的有趣或“异常”光谱特征的对象。这些公民科学家将学习天文学的许多方面，包括具有发射线光谱的恒星、时变天体、双线光谱双星、化学奇特恒星和激变变星。市民将通过在调查中对恒星进行补充分类来加强研究。调查人员将通过与公民科学家分类进行比较来检查管道分析的准确性。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The investigators lead large imaging and spectroscopic surveys of two nearby dwarf galaxies, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. While most dwarf galaxies are challenging to study because they are intrinsically faint, the Magellanic Clouds (MCs) are nearby and serve as a unique laboratory to study the structure and dynamics of low-mass galaxies. The investigators will utilize the power of both the imaging Survey of the MAgellanic Stellar History (SMASH) and high-resolution spectroscopy from the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) to substantially improve our knowledge of the MCs.The investigators will create large maps of the element abundance patterns and gradients across both MCs. With this combination of observations, they hope to understand the elemental abundance changes over time and space in the MCs by using nuclear reaction models and drawing comparisons to simulations. In addition, the investigators will engage the public in state-of-the art research through a citizen science project called "The APOGEE Spectral Zoo", which will be developed on the Zooniverse platform. Citizens will visually inspect samples of the two million individual APOGEE spectra - including time series spectra on almost all sources - and classify the APOGEE targets, flagging any that appear to have interesting or "abnormal" spectral features that are not currently recognized in the current automated APOGEE spectral analysis pipeline. These citizen scientists will learn many aspects of astronomy, including stars with emission line spectra, time variable objects, double-line spectroscopic binary stars, chemically peculiar stars and cataclysmic variables. The citizens will enhance the research by producing a complementary classification of stars in the survey. The investigator will check the accuracy of the pipeline analysis by comparison with the citizen scientists classifications.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.