This Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Division of Astronomical Sciences will fund research to develop a unique catalog of open star clusters in the Milky Way galaxy through 2025. Led by Texas Christian University with $455,321 in funding, the research team will observe, compile, and analyze data on nearly all suitable open star clusters accessible through the Sloan Digital Sky Survey V and Gaia satellite. They will measure detailed abundances for over 20 elements to probe the chemical history and evolution of the Milky Way disk. This publicly available catalog is expected to comprise up to 90% of Gaia-confirmed open clusters with consistent measurements for ages, distances, reddening, dynamics, and elemental abundances. It will provide constraints on stellar migration and supernova yields over time to further understanding of galactic chemical tagging and feedback models. The research is aligned with the goals of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences program under the National Science Foundation to advance scientific knowledge and problems of national importance.
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