  The Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) is designed to gather the
best and deepest multiwavelength data for studying the formation and evolution
of galaxies and active galactic nuclei, the distribution of dark and luminous
matter at high redshift, the cosmological parameters from distant supernovae,
and the extragalactic background light. The program uses the most powerful
space- and ground-based telescopes to cover two fields, each 10'x16', centered
on the Hubble Deep Field North and the Chandra Deep Field South, already the
sites of extensive observations from X-ray through radio wavelengths. GOODS
incorporates 3.6-24 micron observations from a SIRTF Legacy Program, four-band
ACS imaging from an HST Treasury Program, and extensive new ground-based
imaging and spectroscopy. GOODS data products will be made available on a rapid
time-scale, enabling community research on a wide variety of topics. Here we
describe the project, emphasizing its application for studying the mass
assembly history of galaxies.
