JWST Cycle 1 GTO program
Take a trip back through time with the James Webb Space Telescope. By using massive galaxy clusters as cosmic gravitational lenses, CANUCS enables us to study the evolution of low mass galaxies from 13.5 billion years ago through to the relatively recent 5 billion years ago. Using all three of JWST's near-infrared instruments, the CANUCS dataset provides high-quality imaging and spectroscopy for thousands of galaxies to determine their distances, luminosities, star formation histories, metallicities, dust properties, sizes and morphologies. NIRISS slitless spectroscopy dissects large or strongly-lensed galaxies to determine the spatial distribution of these properties allowing their internal evolution to be determined. NIRCam imaging in a multitude of wide and medium bands enables determining reliable structures, distances and histories for tens of thousands of distant galaxies. NIRSpec prism spectroscopy provides more detailed information on a subset of galaxies, including extreme starburst galaxies and accreting black holes.
CANUCS will use all three of JWST's near-infrared instruments. The NIRISS low-resolution grisms will provide spectra of thousands of galaxies per field. NIRCam imaging will sample the galaxies structures and SEDs from 0.8 to 5 microns. NIRSpec follow-up low resolution spectroscopy will target galaxies discovered by NIRCam and NIRISS as well as those for which NIRISS does not provide a redshift.
With the power of gravitational lensing we will find and study low-mass galaxies across all epochs. We will search for the earliest galaxies, in rest-frame UV continuum and Lyman alpha line emission.
With low-resolution grism spectroscopy we can isolate nebular line emission and make emission line ratio maps, in order to understand physical properties like SFR, dust, metallicity and ionization.
We will study how galaxies are transformed as they fall into dense galaxy clusters.
The CAnadian NIRISS Unbiased Cluster Survey (CANUCS) is a component of the NIRISS Guaranteed Time Observations survey that will devote 200 hours to study galaxies lensed by five massive foreground galaxy clusters. More information to come; targets and observation strategy available at JWST-GTO 1208.
