GAIA Galaxy Survey: A Multi-Colour Galaxy Survey with GAIA

Dipartimento di Astronomia and CISAS "Giuseppe Colombo", Università  di Padova, Vicolo dell'Osservatorio 2, 35122 Padova, Italy

Abstract

The performance expected from a galaxy survey to be carried out with GAIA, the GAIA Galaxy Survey, is outlined. From a statistical model of galaxy number density, size and surface brightness distribution, and from detailed numerical simulations based on real images, it is conservatively estimated that GAIA would be able to detect and observe about 3 million galaxies brighter than V ≅ 17 and to provide multi-colour and multi-epoch broad-band photometry of these with an end-of-mission angular resolution of ≅0.35 arcsec and a photometric accuracy of ≅0.2 mag/arsec² at μ_V=20 mag/arsec². The substantial scientific case for performing such a survey and the additional efforts required in terms of mission preparation, operations and telemetry are also discussed.