Abstract
Over the next 5 years the VVV collaboration (Vista Variable in the Via Lactea) will conduct an extensive survey of the galactic bulge and disk in the near-IR, using the new VISTA telescope. This public survey covers a field of 520 sqr. deg, including not only regions of high star formation, but also 33 known globular clusters and ∼350 open clusters. The final product will be a deep IR atlas in 5 passbands for ∼109 point sources among which we expect 106 variable stars. These will be produce a 3-D map of the surveyed region using well-understood primary distance indicators such as RR Lyrae stars. The observations will be combined with data from MACHO, OGLE, EROS, VST, Spitzer, HST, Chandra, Integral, and ALMA for a complete understanding of the variable sources in the inner Milky Way. Several important implications for the history of the Milky Way, for globular cluster evolution, for the population census of the bulge and center, and for the pulsation theory will follow from this survey.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 287-290 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union |
Volume | 5 |
Issue number | S262 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Aug 2009 |
Keywords
- Galaxy: bulge
- Galaxy: disk
- Stars: variables: Cepheids
- Stars: variables: other
- Surveys
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine (miscellaneous)
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Nutrition and Dietetics
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
- Space and Planetary Science