What can we learn from the Large Magellanic Cloud with GLAST

The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is one of our closest neighbouring galaxies. Its proximity, and the fact that we view it almost face‐on, render it uniquely suited for studying with GLAST the content, distribution, and origin of cosmic rays in a galaxy other than the Milky Way. With EGRET, high‐energy gamma rays above 100 MeV were already detected from the direction of the LMC, but this small galaxy could not yet be spatially resolved. We performed simulations using preliminary response functions for the Large Area Telescope on GLAST to assess whether this instrument will be able to resolve the LMC in high‐energy gamma rays. Once the LMC is resolved, we will be able to study for example high‐energy processes in the massive star‐forming region 30 Doradus or high‐energy emission associated with the prominent superbubble LMC 2, a potential cosmic‐ray acceleration site.