Letters of Intent received in 2022

LoI 2024-2193
A Coherent View of Atomic and Molecular Gas from Infrared to Radio Wavelengths

Topics

+ How do massive stars and black holes alter the physical conditions in their surrounding ISM, and how is that feedback best probed with infrared and radio instruments?

+ What is the structure of the ISM down to scales of clouds and beyond, and how is it impacted by feedback?

+ After two years of JWST operations and a decade of ALMA data, what has been learned about the relationship between gas and dust, and how to use one to probe the other?

+ How can infrared and radio lines help refine our view of astrochemistry and the ISM physical conditions in the Milky Way and beyond, and their evolution with redshift?

Rationale

Star formation and black holes are fed by the interstellar medium (ISM), which is in turn modified by these phenomena. Wavelengths from the infrared to the radio provide invaluable windows into the cooler constituents of the ISM (dust, atomic gas, and molecular gas), as well as the feedback processes that modify it (radiation, winds, and shocks). A coherent, integrative view of the ISM at these wavelengths is fundamental for advancing our understanding of how star formation and black hole growth proceeds across cosmic time. Ground-breaking facilities operating from infrared to (sub-)millimeter and radio wavelengths are starting operation, being constructed, or in advanced planning (JWST, ALMA2030 upgrade, AtLAST, MeerKAT, ASKAP, SKA, ngVLA, DSA2000), and their high resolution, high sensitivity, high quality imaging, and superb spectroscopic capabilities have the potential to transform our understanding of the mechanisms that regulate how galaxies grow and evolve. Now is the time to take a look at how observations enabled by these facilities have changed our understanding of the ISM, and how to fully exploit their potential to provide a comprehensive new view of the role of the gas and the impact and importance of feedback processes.

This 2-day focus meeting aims to take stock of the new unfolding understanding of the ISM, star formation, and accreting black holes in our own Milky Way and external galaxies enabled by facilities in operation (JWST, ALMA, MeerKAT, ASKAP), to identify the next pressing questions that need to be answered, and to re-frame the science that should be addressed by the remarkable capabilities of upcoming and future facilities in the infrared to radio. This is a forward looking meeting. Invited speakers will be asked to address how the newly gained knowledge from JWST, ALMA, MeerKAT, and ASKAP data will impact the science to be done with SKA, ngVLA, and other future facilities.