The HST Daily Report will not be issued from 12/25/08 to
1/04/09,
inclusive. It will resume on Monday, January 5, 2009.
The HST science proposals that will execute during this
hiatus will be
listed at the end of the Daily Report for 12/24.
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to collect World Class
Science
DAILY REPORT Â Â Â Â #4762
PERIOD COVERED: 5am December 22 - 5am December 23, 2008
(DOY
                         357/1000z-358/1000z)
OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED
ACS/SBC 11885
SBC Dark Current Measurement
This takes a series of SBC dark measurements over a
continuous period of
about 6 hours (4 orbits). The aim is to collect dark
images during an
extended SBC on-time. Earlier measurements indicate that
the dark
current increases with SBC on-time and may also be
increasing with
overall SBC use. The 6-hour time matches the longest time
used by any
observer. As with all SBC observations this needs
continuous SAA free
time.
FGS 11945
Asteroseismology of Extrasolar Planet Host Stars
Detections of stellar oscillations, although a very
demanding task in
terms of observing time, offers a return of more accurate
knowledge
about the structure of stars than can be obtained in any
other way. In
particular, detecting the 10-15 highest amplitude modes in
solar-like
stars to signal-to-noise of just a few sigma each allows
robust
constraints on the stellar density to <1%, and the
stellar age to within
5-10% of its main sequence lifetime. Ten day observing
runs using the
FGS as a photometer on any of the 5 best transiting planet
systems would
enable these asteroseismology returns. From more precisely
observed
transit shapes than can be obtained from the ground a
completely
independent constraint on stellar density to ~1% can be
obtained. The
long observation sets required for asteroseismology also
provide an
excellent opportunity of detecting transits from other
planets, e.g.
hypothesized inner -orbit Hot Earths, should any exist.
WFPC2 11302
WFPC2 CYCLE 16 Standard Darks - Part III
This dark calibration program obtains dark frames every
week in order to
provide data for the ongoing calibration of the CCD dark
current rate,
and to monitor and characterize the evolution of hot
pixels. Over an
extended period these data will also provide a monitor of
radiation
damage to the CCDs.
WFPC2 11793
WFPC2 Cycle 16 Internal Monitor
This calibration proposal is the Cycle 15 routine internal
monitor for
WFPC2, to be run weekly to monitor the health of the
cameras. A variety
of internal exposures are obtained in order to provide a
monitor of the
integrity of the CCD camera electronics in both bays (both
gain 7 and
gain 15 -- to test stability of gains and bias levels), a
test for
quantum efficiency in the CCDs, and a monitor for possible
buildup of
contaminants on the CCD windows. These also provide raw
data for
generating annual super-bias reference files for the
calibration
pipeline.
FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:
Significant Spacecraft Anomalies: (The following are
preliminary reports
of potential non-nominal performance that will be
investigated.)
HSTARS: (None)
COMPLETED OPS REQUEST:
18370-1 - Adjust NCS CPL Setpoint (6º C) @ 358/0033z
COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None)
                     SCHEDULED     SUCCESSFUL
FGS GSacq               2                   2                      Â
FGS REacq              13                 13                    Â
OBAD with Maneuver 28Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 28Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None)