Spitzer Space Telescope - General Observer Proposal #20389


The Environmental Dependence of Galaxy Star Formation Rates

Principal Investigator: Vandana Desai
           Institution: Caliornia Institue of Technology

Co-Investigators: 
Alfonso Aragon-Salamanca, University of Nottingham                    
Philip Best, Royal Observatory Edinburgh                              
Douglas Clowe, Steward Observatory                                    
Julianne Dalcanton, University of Washington                          
Gabriella De Lucia, Max-Planck Institut fuer Astrophysik              
Rose Finn, University of Massachusetts                                
Claire Halliday, Max-Planck Institut fuer Astrophysik                 
Pascale Jablonka, GEPI, Observatoire de Paris-Meudon                  
Bo Milvang-Jensen, Max Planck Institute fur extraterrestrische Physik 
Bianca Poggianti, Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova                  
Gregory Rudnick, NOAO                                                 
Charlot Stephane, Max-Planck Institut fuer Astrophysik                
Dennis Zaritsky, Steward Observatory                                  

Science Category: high-z galaxies (z>0.5) 
 Observing Modes: MipsScan 
  Hours Approved: 7.4 

Abstract:
We are requesting 29.6 hours of observations with MIPS in order to
study the star formation rates of galaxies out to the infall regions
(30'x30') of 4 well-studied high redshift (z = 0.8) clusters from the
ESO Distant Cluster Survey (EDisCS).  These observations will provide
star formation rates that are unbiased by dust for galaxies in a wide
range of local environments, and for clusters with a variety of
masses.  Our goals are to establish the dependence of galaxy star
formation rates on local galaxy density at z=0.8, determine whether
there are environments where the star formation is enhanced over the
field, and understand how dust obscuration depends upon environment.