SIMBAD references

With an astrometric and photometric survey at the microarcsec level over a significant part of our Galaxy (1%), also reaching the brightest objects in the closest galaxies of the Local Group, GAIA will provide distances of extreme accuracy for all types of stars of all stellar populations, even those which are very sparsely represented in the solar neighborhood. With the parallel determination of extinction/reddening and metallicities by the use of multicolor photometry and low resolution spectroscopy, this huge amount of basic data will provide an extended basis for reading in situ stellar and galactic evolution. All parts of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram will be comprehensively calibrated, especially the stellar candles (pulsating variable stars, cluster sequences, supergiants, central stars of planetary nebulae, etc.), stimulating a revolution in the methods used to determine cosmic distance scales.