This is a collaborative project led by Dr Cowie. Sub-millimeter observations with the revolutionary SCUBA camera on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, revealed the existence of a population of dust-obscured, ultra-luminous galaxies that dominates star formation in the high-redshift Universe. The new camera, SCUBA-2, speeds up the mapping of wide fields by almost three orders of magnitude, and will dramatically expand understanding of the sub-millimeter Universe and the history of dusty star formation. This project will carry out a SCUBA-2 survey of two heavily studied fields of the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS), during weather conditions suitable for observing at a wavelength of 450-microns. Since the confusion limit is lower at this wavelength, which is shorter than other wavelengths used, these data will be able to (i) measure the more typical sources contributing to the sub-millimeter background, (ii) measure fluxes close to the rest wavelength peak of the blackbody distribution, and (iii) obtain much more accurate positions for the sources. Combining the sub-millimeter data with radio, infrared, optical, and X-ray data, from space and from the ground, will determine the multi-wavelength properties of the distant, heavily dust-obscured sources, and provide accurate positions for spectroscopic follow-up. The research will determine redshifts, luminosities, and star formation rates, and thus trace the extent and evolution of obscured star formation in the distant Universe.
Understanding the star formation history of the universe is a major goal of modern astronomy, and of great public interest. This research will inform popular science articles, web sites, and frequent talks to broad sections of the technical and lay communities. Previous data collected by these investigators have been made available to the community and have proved valuable for many outside projects: this practice of regular release will continue with the new survey data. Both investigators continue to promote diversity and cultural interaction at their respective institutions, including students from throughout the Pacific arena (in Hawaii), and a strong effort to involve women (in Wisconsin), who remain a vastly under-represented group.
