Gas and dust in and in front of the Galactic Center
| Program ID | 19008 |
|---|---|
| Science Category | Interstellar Medium |
| Program Type | Analysis |
| Category | Medium |
| Principal Investigator | Adam Ginsburg |
| PI Institution | University of Florida |
| Co-Investigators |
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| Abstract | The central few kiloparecs of our galaxy are filled with gas and stars, but we do not know where the gas is. This gas is what feeds the center of our Galaxy, transitioning through the Central Molecular Zone (CMZ) before ending up in stars in the Nuclear Stellar Disk or in Sgr A*. Because we cannot measure the distance to gas clouds, and there is a large region where the Galactic Bar dominates dynamics, we do not know how it flows inward. Roman's capabilities of measuring stellar variability, astrometry, and photometry with unprecedented accuracy and depth in the infrared provides the first opportunity to address the fundamental question: what is the structure of gas in the inner Galaxy? We propose to use RR Lyrae variables and Red Clump stars as standard candles to map the bar-dominated region and proper-motion-derived distance measurements to perform 20 pc resolution tomography of clouds in the CMZ.These measurements using the RGPS and GBTDS will be provided to the community as a tool to invert our question: given the extinction, caused by the clouds we map, what is the distance to extinguished stars? The proposed program therefore addresses both key science questions and a critical need for the Roman Galactic community. |