As the Milky Way’s closest siblings and its largest satellite galaxies, the LMC and SMC have long been of scientific interest. Concerted survey efforts have provided a panoramic view of this interacting system, providing a window to explore galaxy formation and evolution in the lower-mass regime. Deep photometry enables their linked star formation histories to be inferred, with time-domain studies identifying variable star populations which reveal their three-dimensional structure. Spectroscopic surveys not only provide insight into the chemical abundances of stars, but also - in combination with precise astrometry from Gaia - allow both the internal and global kinematics of the system to be resolved in detail. Recent studies have also revealed the LMC substantially affects the gravitational potential of Milky Way, and therefore other satellites and streams orbiting the Galaxy.

Following the success of the XMC Workshop Milky Clouds over Manhattan - the first in this series - we present XMC II: Clouds Over Yellowstone. In this workshop, we will continue existing discussions and open new conversations on the formation and evolution of the Clouds, and their interactions both with each other, and with the Milky Way. Specific emphasis will be placed on the Clouds in upcoming surveys at all wavelengths - including spectroscopy such as from SDSS-V and 4MOST; deep photometry such as from Roman, Rubin, and Euclid; and radio observations from the SKAO - and how the community can maximally leverage these current and forthcoming facilities. We will also explore synthesis between these different observations, and how they can be used to inform and constrain theoretical models.  

This workshop will be limited to approximately 50 participants and provide ample opportunity for discussion. It will also include time allocated to keynote and contributed talks; we aim for all participants to be able to present a contributed talk as desired. 

The main topics of the conference are:

• Star Formation History / Abundances

• Gas / HI / Local Volume Mapper

• Kinematics

• XMC-Milky Way Interaction

• Variable stars / Binaries

• Globular Clusters

• Stellar Periphery / Substructure

• The Clouds in upcoming surveys

 For any inquiries please contact the organizers at xmcworkshops@gmail.com