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Description
We present observations of ~7deg^2^ of the North American and Pelican Nebulae region at 24, 70, and 160um with the Spitzer Space Telescope Multiband I] ing Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS). We incorporate the MIPS observations with earlier Spitzer Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) observations, as well as archival near-infrared (IR) and optical data. We use the MIPS data to identify 1286 young stellar object (YSO) candidates. IRAC data alone can identify 806 more YSO candidates, for a total of 2076 YSO candidates. Prior to the Spitzer observations, there were only ~200 YSOs known in this region. Three subregions within the complex are highlighted as clusters: the Gulf of Mexico, the Pelican, and the Pelican's Hat. The Gulf of Mexico cluster is subject to the highest extinction (A_V_ at least ~30) and has the widest range of infrared colors of the three clusters, including the largest excesses and by far the most point-source detections at 70um. Just 3% of the cluster members were previously identified; we have redefined this cluster as about 10-100 times larger (in projected area) than was previously realized.
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