Physics
Scientific paper
Jul 2005
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2005hst..prop10520s&link_type=abstract
HST Proposal ID #10520
Physics
Hst Proposal Id #10520 Stellar Populations
Scientific paper
Determining the star formation histories {SFHs} and chemical evolution of nearby galaxies gives us powerful constrains on the physical processes that regulate galaxy evolution. The SFHs can be measured most accurately by comparing the observed densities of stars in color-magnitude diagrams {CMDs} to predictions from stellar evolutionary models. WFPC2 imaging of the Leo I dSph shows it is unique because its stellar population is relatively young. Approximately 68% of its stars formed between 1 and 7 Gyr ago and only 12% of its stars formed > 10 Gyr ago. We propose to vastly improve the derived SFH of Leo I by exploiting ACS/WFC's higher quantum efficiency at bluer wavelengths, higher spatial resolution, and larger field-of-view. The figure of merit for our proposed observations, defined as the age resolution times the number of stars detected, will be a factor of 12 higher than existing WFPC2 observations. To surmount the degeneracy of age and metallicity in the CMD, we have independently measured the metallicity distribution of its stars using spectroscopy. Simultaneously modeling the metallicity distribution and CMD, we will firmly constrain the evolution of the Leo I dSph, a unique example of an isolated dwarf galaxy that has not been influenced by interactions with the Milky Way or M31.
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