MID-INFRARED OUTPUT OF THE QUIESCENT GALAXY NGC3115

in this proposal, more time is being requested for mrieke.m31_m32. almost any stellar population present in a galaxy should contain a number of asymptotic giant branch (agb) stars. this phase of stellar evolution is very difficult to model, and hence the inverse issue of trying to model the output of a composite stellar population as a function of time is extremely uncertain. we propose a search for emission from the circumstellar shells around the agb stars present in the nuclues of ngc 3115, a nearby s0 galaxy with an old stellar population. this will extend the iso study of agb stars in m31 and m32 to the only other quiescent galaxy observable. the agb star emission will be characterized by the presence of a silicate feature at 10 microns. truncated!, Please see actual data for full text [truncated!, Please see actual data for full text]