Probing the Formation and Evolution of early-type galaxies: the SAURON project

We are conducting a systematic study of a carefully selected sampleof nearby E/S0 galaxies and Sa bulges using the unique panoramic integral-fieldspectrograph SAURON, mounted at the WHT. The goal of the SAURON projectis to fully map the gaseous/stellar kinematics and the stellar populations of a representative sample of 80 early-type galaxies up to 1 Re,probing different environments (clusters, field). These data, used in combination with existing ground-based and HST observations, and fed to the theoretical machinery we have developed, will allow to determine theintrinsic dynamical structure of the galaxies. We will also measure the masses of central black holes, relate the internal dynamics to the ageand metallicity of the stellar populations, and establish the historyof metal enrichment as a function of Hubble type and environment. Some brief results on two targets observed during the SAURON campaign will serve as an illustration of the unique and high quality data we are currently gathering. This revised version was published online in September 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.