The X-ray source populations of the magellanic clouds.

ROSAT performed about 250 PSPC observations pointed towards the Magellanic Clouds (MCs). A systematic analysis of the data yielded catalogues with more than 750 X-ray sources in the LMC and about 520 in the SMC region. Cross-correlations with catalogues from various other wavelength bands and utilizing the derived X-ray properties allowed to identify a significant fraction of the X-ray sources and to classify many unknown sources as candidates for X-ray binaries, supernova remnants and supersoft sources in the MCs. This makes it possible to study in detail the source populations in these nearby galaxies on a large statistical basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]