Massive stars beyond the Local Group

C. Evans¹, F. Bresolin, R.-P. Kudritzki, W. Gieren, G. Pietrzy\¢nski
¹ UKATC, Royal Observatory, Blackford Hill, Edinburgh, EH9 3HJ, UK

The next generation of ground-based telescopes will open-up a wide range of systems in which to study individual massive stars. An ELT will enable tests of stellar evolution at lower metallicities than currently possible, crucial to exploring the possible role of massive stars in the early Universe. Moreover, an ELT would extend the reach of a new distance indicator advanced recently by Kudritzki et al. (2003). Here we present new VLT-FORS observations of the most visually-luminous stars in NGC 3109, at the edge of the Local Group, and use the data to illustrate the potential for stellar spectroscopy beyond the Local Group using an ELT.

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