"Our observing robots have been working hard for a few years already. Now, they are helping us scan the sky in a whole new way," said Dhanesh Krishnarao, an Assistant Professor of Physics at Colorado College and member of the SDSS team. "I can't wait to see what we learn about our home in the Milky Way."

At the heart of this effort is the Local Volume Mapper (LVM) project, utilizing state-of-the-art telescopes situated at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile's Atacama Desert. The LVM's fully robotic survey operations mark a new phase in exploring the interstellar gas and dust that influence galactic evolution.

"Our Milky Way is more than just the sum of its stars," explained Dr. Niv Drory, the LVM Program Head. "The space between stars is filled with interstellar gas and dust that plays a crucial role in how galaxies evolve. Stars enrich this material with heavy elements through stellar winds and supernova explosions, which later become part of new stars, planets - and even living things like us."

Modern telescopes typically focus on faint, distant galaxies using large mirrors that capture small sky segments. However, studying the interplay between stars and their surrounding environment requires instruments capable of observing nearby gas in detail over expansive sky regions - a challenge addressed by the unique design of the LVM telescopes.

SDSS-V's LVM facility aims to create a global map of the Milky Way's interstellar material, with formal survey operations beginning in late 2023. Remarkably, the LVM's robotic setup eliminates the need for onsite personnel, though an international team of students and faculty oversee the system virtually, often at convenient local times.

Evelyn Johnston, the LVM Survey Operations Scientist, highlighted the project's educational impact: "The close involvement of students in the commissioning, testing, and initial operations of the system is a particularly unique aspect of SDSS-V that is helping to train the next generation of astronomers in survey-based astronomy."

Robotic observations enable students and faculty to monitor the telescopes without the need for overnight shifts. "The Local Volume Mapper will let us uniquely link individual stars to their impact on the surrounding gas, a key missing piece in understanding how galaxies grow and evolve," said Kathryn Kreckel, lead author of the first science paper from the project.

SDSS data, including that from LVM, will be made publicly available, with the initial release slated for summer 2025. This release aims to familiarize astronomers with this unprecedented scale of data.

SDSS-V also advances diversity in astronomy through its Faculty and Student Team (FAST) program. FAST provides financial and mentoring support for students and faculty from minority-serving institutions, integrating them into the SDSS collaboration.

Krishnarao, who leads the FAST program, emphasized the importance of inclusivity: "LVM data presents a new way to understand our Milky Way, and our FAST teams will be right there with us from the beginning."

Related Links
SDSS
Stellar Chemistry, The Universe And All Within It