CORS BAADE-WESSELINK DISTANCE TO THE LMC NGC 1866 BLUE POPULOUS CLUSTER

We used optical, near-infrared photometry, and radial velocity data for a sample of 11 Cepheids belonging to the young LMC blue populous cluster NGC 1866 to estimate their radii and distances on the basis of the CORS Baade-Wesselink method. This technique, based on an accurate calibration of surface brightness as a function of (U - B), (V - K) colors, allows us to estimate, simultaneously, the linear radius and the angular diameter of Cepheid variables, and consequently to derive their distance. A rigorous error estimate on radii and distances was derived by using Monte Carlo simulations. Our analysis gives a distance modulus for NGC 1866 of 18.51 +/- 0.03 mag, which is in agreement with several independent results.