Measuring Star Forming Activities in The Antennae: Region-by-region.

The Antennae is a proto-typical case of a pair of gas-rich galaxies in the process of merging, while experiencing active star formation. Recently obtained mid-IR data with the Spitzer Space Telescope provide new information on the nature of star forming regions in this system, complementary to the high resolution optical images from the Hubble and earlier IR data from ISO. By cross-referencing the optical emission line regions, individual star clusters can be identified and their colors and SEDs measured and compared with theoretical models. With this approach we are able to study previously unremarkable regions of active star formation, and find evidence that star formation may be triggered by the gravitational interaction in a sequential process. © 2005 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]