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M. Dickinson (STScI), GOODS Legacy Team
GOODS is a SIRTF Legacy program to study galaxy evolution over the widest range of redshift and lookback time. It aims to trace the mass assembly history of galaxies, the evolution of their stellar populations, and their energetic output from star formation and active nuclei. SIRTF can observe rest-frame near- and mid-infrared light from objects at 1 < z < 6, but very deep exposures are needed to detect ``ordinary'' objects at such redshifts. GOODS will build on the deepest observations from NASA's other Great Observatories, Hubble and Chandra, and from ESA'S XMM-Newton, with extensive observing support from ESO and NOAO. We will survey ~300 arcmin2 in two fields, the Hubble Deep Field North and the Chandra Deep Field South. Dividing the survey provides insurance against clustering variance, and guarantees access for astronomers in both hemispheres.
GOODS will observe for 25 hours/position with IRAC (3.6-8\mum). A smaller, ultradeep IRAC field (75-100 hours) is planned, contingent upon on-orbit tests of instrument performance. The IRAC observations can detect rest-frame near-infrared light from the progenitors of galaxies like the Milky Way out to z \approx 4. We also plan 10 hour MIPS exposures at 24\mum, pending on-orbit tests to establish the sensitivity gain relative to GTO observations of these fields. The MIPS data will be sensitive to emission from dust-obscured star formation in relatively ordinary galaxies (e.g., Lyman break objects) out to z=2.5, and, with X-ray data, will permit a census of supermassive black holes in obscured and unobscured AGN. GOODS data will also provide the best limits to the extragalactic background light at 3.6-24\mum. We will create a public archive of the deepest observations from X-ray through radio wavelengths. These data will offer a uniquely comprehensive history of galaxy evolution, and will serve as a bridge to future exploration in these wavelength and redshift regimes with NGST.
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