T Tauri Stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud

Abstract

The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is an excellent laboratory to study the formation of solar-mass stars in a low-metallicity environment, similar to the conditions expected in the early phases of galactic evolution. Here we present preliminary results from a search for low-mass pre-main-sequence stars in the SMC based on Hubble Space Telescope archival data. Candidates are selected on the basis of their H_alpha emission and location in the [(F675W-F814W), F814W] color-magnitude diagram. We discuss characteristics of our candidate T Tauri sample and possible follow up work.

5 pages, presented at the IAOC Workshop on "Galactic Star Formation Across the Stellar Mass Spectrum" held in La Serena, Chile, March 2002; to be published in the ASP Conference Series, edited by J. M. De Buizer