SIGNALS: Unveiling Star-Forming Regions in Nearby Galaxies

Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Corporation, Kamuela HI

Investigators

Abstract

The investigators seek to understand how stars form in galaxies, how their birthplace affects their properties, and how multiple generations of stars transform galaxies. Stars affect their environment by returning new elements to the interstellar gas. These new elements are then recycled to form new stars. Stars form in a wide variety of environments. These can be different galaxy to galaxy, location to location. The result is that each star has its own story. By studying 50,000 regions where stars actively form, scientists will understand what triggers their formation, how efficiently stars form, and how each generation transforms the gas around them. This will also help researchers to understand the star-formation history of the whole Universe since the Big-Bang. This project is led by a woman from the First Nations of Canada based in Hawaii and is composed of a group of 70 researchers including more than 40% of woman. Positive impacts are expected on the local community in Hawaii. The team will collaborate with a statewide STEM program, Mauna Kea Scholars, to develop a workshop for their students. Mauna Kea Scholars provides telescope time on the Mauna Kea Observatories for Hawaii public high schools students. Most of the students are underrepresented minorities, including girls, Native Hawaiians, and traditionally underserved students. The workshop will teach the students new skills applicable within their research, encouraging confidence in their abilities. Using data from the SIGNALS survey conducted at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope with a Fourier Transform Spectrograph, the investigators will study the spectra of 50,000 spatially resolved star-forming regions, and the stars within, at a mean spatial resolution of 20 pc. Secondary data from UV, IR, HI and CO will allow the team to properly measure the local environmental properties such as the density of stars and gas around each region. The team will analyze the data using a custom-tailored modeling technique and a global study stellar populations in different environments. Their goals are to first measure the impact of the environment on the star formation process. Second, link the stellar recycling processes to the local chemical enrichment and dynamics within the surrounding star-forming regions. Their third goal is measuring the star formation rate as a function of the measured indicators, so these indicators can be accurately applied to studies of more distant galaxies. This project is jointly funded by Astronomy Division and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). 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.