Millimeter Array Scientific Highlights

Cosmology and the Early Universe

  1. Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropy can be measured on scales less than 2 arcminutes.
    • The MMA will reach about 2 microkelvin rms for a 1 arcminute beam in 1 hour
      • Seeds of clusters & galaxies
      • Sunyaev--Zel'dovich Effect in Clusters will provide estimates of cluster physics & peculiar motions
    • Size and curvature of the Universe from the Hubble Constant and q.
      • Sunyaev--Zel'dovich and X--ray data
      • Expanded `CO' Tully--Fisher relation
  2. Epoch of Galaxy Formation and Subsequent Galaxy Evolution
    • Detect dust emission from galaxies just brighter than the Milky Way to z~20.
    • CO emission from high z galaxies
      • Ultraluminous galaxies to z~3
          Cloverleaf A Molecular Cloverleaf (100K jpg) CO (7-6) emission from the Cloverleaf Quasar (z=2.6) at 0.9" resolution superposed on HST optical image. Contours are multiples of 10%. MMA resolution would equal or exceed that obtained by the HST. Image from the Caltech Millimeter Array.
        • Normal (e.g. Milky Way) galaxies to z~1
        • Follow evolution of galaxies

    • Imaging Gas in Galaxies
      • Galactic Structure
        • Dynamics of interacting, merging, spiral and barred galaxies
        • Detailed comparison with optical & infrared
        • Evolution of galaxy morphology
      • Star Formation
        • Imaging gas from individual star forming cores in nearby galaxies
        • Role of galaxy morphology
        • Role of environment
      • Starbursts
        • Dynamics: collisionally & bar induced starbursts
        • Gas properties & star formation efficiency
      • Evolution of ISM
        • Trace the life cycle of molecular clouds
        • Impact of star formation on molecular clouds
      • The Magellanic Clouds: Unique Laboratories
        • Observe large population of clouds at same distance with resolution better than 0.2 pc
        • Role of environment on star formation process
        • Evolutionary sequence of star formation

    • Galactic Nuclei
      • The Galactic Center Source Sgr A*
        • Kinematics of neutral gas on a scale of 1000 AU
        • Continuum emission from Sgr A* accretion disk
      • Active Galactic Nuclei
        • Gas and dust properties on pc scales
        • Creating & fueling AGN, circumnuclear disks
        • Interaction of radio jets with ISM



      NRAO The Millimeter Array is A Project of the
      National Radio Astronomy Observatory
      and the National Science Foundation


      Back to the Science Highlights Page