sci astro hubble http://groups google com/group/sci astro hubble?hl=en
sci astro hubble@googlegroups com
Today's topics:
- Daily Report #5157 - 1 messages, 1 author http://groups google com/group/sci astro hubble/t/c5359488c341b1d3?hl=en
- Daily Report #5158 - 1 messages, 1 author http://groups google com/group/sci astro hubble/t/ba894277c6879c30?hl=en
- Daily Report #5159 - 1 messages, 1 author http://groups google com/group/sci astro hubble/t/04fc6669c86db5ff?hl=en
- Daily Report #5160 - 1 messages, 1 author http://groups google com/group/sci astro hubble/t/068ddae079873721?hl=en
============================================================================== TOPIC: Daily Report #5157
http://groups google com/group/sci astro hubble/t/c5359488c341b1d3?hl=en
== 1 of 1 == Date: Wed, Aug 11 2010 10:47 am From: "Cooper, Joe"
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to Collect World Class Science
DAILY REPORT #5157
PERIOD COVERED: 5am August 10 - 5am August 11, 2010 (DOY 222/09:00z-223/09:00z)
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: (None)
COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None)
SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL
FGS GSAcq 7 7 FGS REAcq 8 8 OBAD with Maneuver 6 6
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None)
OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED
COS/NUV/FUV 11728
The Impact of Starbursts on the Gaseous Halos of Galaxies
Perhaps the most important (yet uncertain) aspects of galaxy evolution are the processes by which galaxies accrete gas and by which the resulting star formation and black hole growth affects this accreting gas It is believed that both the form of the accretion and the nature of the feedback change as a function of the galaxy mass At low mass the gas comes in cold and the feedback is provided by massive stars At high mass, the gas comes in hot, and the feedback is from an AGN The changeover occurs near the mass where the galaxy population transitions from star-forming galaxies to red and dead ones The population of red and dead galaxies is building with cosmic time, and it is believed that feedback plays an important role in this process: shutting down star formation by heating and/or expelling the reservoir of cold halo gas To investigate these ideas, we propose to use COS far-UV spectra of background QSOs to measure the properties of the halo gas in a sample of galaxies near the transition mass that have undergone starbursts within the past 100 Myr to 1 Gyr The galactic wind associated with the starburst is predicted to have affected the properties of the gaseous halo To test this, we will compare the properties of the halos of the post-starburst galaxies to those of a control sample of galaxies matched in mass and QSO impact parameter Do the halos of the post-starburst galaxies show a higher incidence rate of Ly-Alpha and metal absorption-lines? Are the kinematics of the halo gas more disturbed in the post-starbursts? Has the wind affected the ionization state and/or the metallicity of the halo? These data will provide fresh new insights into the role of feedback from massive stars on the evolution of galaxies, and may also offer clues about the properties of the QSO metal absorption-line systems at high-redshift
COS/NUV/S/CCD/FUV 12082
Extending COS/G130M Coverage Down to 905A With Two New Central Wavelengths
These exploratory observations will provide sensitivity, wavelength range, and resolution measurements for two new COS FUV G130M central wavelength settings These new settings will extend COS/G130M coverage down to 905? in two new bandpasses; 1021-1171? (BLUE) and 905-1055? (Ultra-BLUE) The modes are chosen to provide continuous coverage from 905? to the existing coverage in the G130M/1291? setting with approximately 30? of overlap in each mode for cross-calibration purposes No focus adjustments will be made for these settings, as this is deemed an unnecessary risk to COS
These new modes have the potential to provide greater than FUSE sensitivity at moderate (3, 000-5, 000) resolution
Three WD targets are defined;
1) GD50 (GSC-04717-00588; a well observed standard WD) 2) WD0320-539 (GSC-08493-00891, one of the targets used in exploring the G140L sensitivity), 3) REJ0503-289 (WD-5001-289 = GSC-04717-00588, a hot EUVE bright WD)
But only target 2) is used at this time
In the observations section, G130M/1291A is a placeholder for the BLUE and Super-BLUE settings
STIS/CCD 11845
CCD Dark Monitor Part 2
Monitor the darks for the STIS CCD
STIS/CCD 11847
CCD Bias Monitor-Part 2
Monitor the bias in the 1x1, 1x2, 2x1, and 2x2 bin settings at gain=1, and 1x1 at gain = 4, to build up high-S/N superbiases and track the evolution of hot columns
STIS/CCD 11849
STIS CCD Hot Pixel Annealing
This purpose of this activity is to repair radiation induced hot pixel damage to the STIS CCD by warming the CCD to the ambient instrument temperature and annealing radiation-damaged pixels
Radiation damage creates hot pixels in the STIS CCD Detector Many of these hot pixels can be repaired by warming the CCD from its normal operating temperature near -83 deg C to the ambient instrument temperature (~ +5 deg C) for several hours The number of hot pixels repaired is a function of annealing temperature The effectiveness of the CCD hot pixel annealing process is assessed by measuring the dark current behavior before and after annealing and by searching for any window contamination effects
STIS/CCD/MA2 11568
A SNAPSHOT Survey of the Local Interstellar Medium: New NUV Observations of Stars with Archived FUV Observations
We propose to obtain high-resolution STIS E230H SNAP observations of MgII and FeII interstellar absorption lines toward stars within 100 parsecs that already have moderate or high-resolution far-UV (FUV), 900-1700 A, observations available in the MAST Archive Fundamental properties, such as temperature, turbulence, ionization, abundances, and depletions of gas in the local interstellar medium (LISM) can be measured by coupling such observations Due to the wide spectral range of STIS, observations to study nearby stars also contain important data about the LISM embedded within their spectra However, unlocking this information from the intrinsically broad and often saturated FUV absorption lines of low-mass ions, (DI, CII, NI, OI), requires first understanding the kinematic structure of the gas along the line of sight This can be achieved with high resolution spectra of high-mass ions, (FeII, MgII), which have narrow absorption lines, and can resolve each individual velocity component (interstellar cloud) By obtaining short (~10 minute) E230H observations of FeII and MgII, for stars that already have moderate or high- resolution FUV spectra, we can increase the sample of LISM measurements, and thereby expand our knowledge of the physical properties of the gas in our galactic neighborhood STIS is the only instrument capable of obtaining the required high resolution data now or in the foreseeable future
WFC3/ACS/IR 11563
Galaxies at z~7-10 in the Reionization Epoch: Luminosity Functions to <0 2L* from Deep IR Imaging of the HUDF and HUDF05 Fields
The first generations of galaxies were assembled around redshifts z~7-10+, just 500-800 Myr after recombination, in the heart of the reionization of the universe We know very little about galaxies in this period Despite great effort with HST and other telescopes, less than ~15 galaxies have been reliably detected so far at z>7, contrasting with the ~1000 galaxies detected to date at z~6, just 200-400 Myr later, near the end of the reionization epoch WFC3 IR can dramatically change this situation, enabling derivation of the galaxy luminosity function and its shape at z~7-8 to well below L*, measurement of the UV luminosity density at z~7-8 and z~8-9, and estimates of the contribution of galaxies to reionization at these epochs, as well as characterization of their properties (sizes, structure, colors) A quantitative leap in our understanding of early galaxies, and the timescales of their buildup, requires a total sample of ~100 galaxies at z~7-8 to ~29 AB mag We can achieve this with 192 WFC3 IR orbits on three disjoint fields (minimizing cosmic variance): the HUDF and the two nearby deep fields of the HUDF05 Our program uses three WFC3 IR filters, and leverages over 600 orbits of existing ACS data, to identify, with low contamination, a large sample of over 100 objects at z~7-8, a very useful sample of ~23 at z~8-9, and limits at z~10 By careful placement of the WFC3 IR and parallel ACS pointings, we also enhance the optical ACS imaging on the HUDF and a HUDF05 field We stress (1) the need to go deep, which is paramount to define L*, the shape, and the slope alpha of the luminosity function (LF) at these high redshifts; and (2) the far superior performance of our strategy, compared with the use of strong lensing clusters, in detecting significant samples of faint z~7-8 galaxies to derive their luminosity function and UV ionizing flux Our recent z~7 4 NICMOS results show that wide-area IR surveys, even of GOODS-like depth, simply do not reach faint enough at z~7-9 to meet the LF and UV flux objectives In the spirit of the HDF and the HUDF, we will waive any proprietary period, and will also deliver the reduced data to STScI The proposed data will provide a Legacy resource of great value for a wide range of archival science investigations of galaxies at redshifts z~2-9 The data are likely to remain the deepest IR/optical images until JWST is launched, and will provide sources for spectroscopic follow up by JWST, ALMA and EVLA
WFC3/IR 11671
Kinematic Reconstruction of the Origin and IMF of the Massive Young Clusters at the Galactic Center
We propose to exploit the wide field capabilities of Wide Field Camera 3 to study star formation at the Galactic center By studying young stars located in the most physically extreme region of our Galaxy, we can test star formation theories, which suggest that such environments should favor high mass stars and, in extreme cases, should suppress star formation entirely Specifically, we will measure the proper motions and photometry of stars over the full extent of the three massive young clusters that have been identified at the Galactic Center (Arches, Quintuplet, and the Young Nuclear Star Cluster) These observations are a factor of ?2000 more efficient than what can be done with ground-based adaptive optics Our goals are two-fold First, we hope to establish the initial sites of star formation in order to obtain an accurate estimate of the conditions that led to the stellar populations within these clusters Answering this question for the Young Nuclear Star Cluster is particularly important as it establishes whether or not star formation can indeed proceed within 0 1 pc of our Galaxy?s supermassive black hole Second, we will measure the IMF in the Arches and Quintuplet, where dynamical evolution is less severe, using proper motions to determine membership and to reveal the tidal radius Probing how the properties of the emergent stellar populations within our Galaxy may be affected by the physical environment in which they arise is an important first step to understanding how they might vary as a function of cosmic time and thereby affect our models of galaxy formation and evolution
WFC3/IR 11696
Infrared Survey of Star Formation Across Cosmic Time
We propose to use the unique power of WFC3 slitless spectroscopy to measure the evolution of cosmic star formation from the end of the reionization epoch at z>6 to the close of the galaxy- building era at z~0 3 Pure parallel observations with the grisms have proven to be efficient for identifying line emission from galaxies across a broad range of redshifts The G102 grism on WFC3 was designed to extend this capability to search for Ly-alpha emission from the first galaxies Using up to 250 orbits of pure parallel WFC3 spectroscopy, we will observe about 40 deep (4-5 orbit) fields with the combination of G102 and G141, and about 20 shallow (2-3 orbit) fields with G141 alone
Our primary science goals at the highest redshifts are: (1) Detect Lya
in ~100 galaxies with z>5
6 and measure the evolution of the Lya
luminosity function, independent of of cosmic variance; 2) Determine
the connection between emission line selected and continuum-break
selected galaxies at these high redshifts, and 3) Search for the
proposed signature of neutral hydrogen absorption at re-ionization
At
intermediate redshifts we will (4) Detect more than 1000 galaxies in
Halpha at 0
5 To identify single-line Lya emitters, we will exploit the wide
0
8--1
9um wavelength coverage of the combined G102+G141 spectra
All
[OII] and [OIII] interlopers detected in G102 will be reliably
separated from true LAEs by the detection of at least one strong line
in the G141 spectrum, without the need for any ancillary data
We
waive all proprietary rights to our data and will make high-level data
products available through the ST/ECF
WFC3/UVIS 11903 UVIS Photometric Zero Points This proposal obtains the photometric zero points in 53 of the 62
UVIS/WFC3 filters: the 18 broad-band filters, 8 medium-band filters,
16 narrow-band filters, and 11 of the 20 quad filters (those being
used in cycle 17)
The observations will be primary obtained by
observing the hot DA white dwarf standards GD153 and G191-B2B
A
redder secondary standard, P330E, will be observed in a subset of the
filters to provide color corrections
Repeat observations in 16 of the
most widely used cycle 17 filters will be obtained once per month for
the first three months, and then once every second month for the
duration of cycle 17, alternating and depending on target
availability
These observations will enable monitoring of the
stability of the photometric system
Photometric transformation
equations will be calculated by comparing the photometry of stars in
two globular clusters, 47 Tuc and NGC 2419, to previous measurements
with other telescopes/instruments
WFC3/UVIS 11905 WFC3 UVIS CCD Daily Monitor The behavior of the WFC3 UVIS CCD will be monitored daily with a set
of full-frame, four-amp bias and dark frames
A smaller set of 2Kx4K
subarray biases are acquired at less frequent intervals throughout the
cycle to support subarray science observations
The internals from
this proposal, along with those from the anneal procedure (Proposal
11909), will be used to generate the necessary superbias and superdark
reference files for the calibration pipeline (CDBS)
WFC3/UVIS 11908 Cycle 17: UVIS Bowtie Monitor Ground testing revealed an intermittent hysteresis type effect in the
UVIS detector (both CCDs) at the level of ~1%, lasting hours to days
Initially found via an unexpected bowtie-shaped feature in flatfield
ratios, subsequent lab tests on similar e2v devices have since shown
that it is also present as simply an overall offset across the entire
CCD, i
e
, a QE offset without any discernable pattern
These lab
tests have further revealed that overexposing the detector to count
levels several times full well fills the traps and effectively
neutralizes the bowtie
Each visit in this proposal acquires a set of
three 3x3 binned internal flatfields: the first unsaturated image will
be used to detect any bowtie, the second, highly exposed image will
neutralize the bowtie if it is present, and the final image will allow
for verification that the bowtie is gone
==============================================================================
TOPIC: Daily Report #5158 == 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Aug 12 2010 9:09 am
From: "Cooper, Joe" HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to Collect World Class Science DAILY REPORT #5158 PERIOD COVERED: 5am August 11 - 5am August 12, 2010 (DOY 223/09:00z-224/09:00z) 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: (None) COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None) FGS GSAcq 5 5
FGS REAcq 11 11
OBAD with Maneuver 3 3 SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None) OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED ACS/WFC 11996 CCD Daily Monitor (Part 3) This program comprises basic tests for measuring the read noise and
dark current of the ACS WFC and for tracking the growth of hot pixels
The recorded frames are used to create bias and dark reference images
for science data reduction and calibration
This program will be
executed four days per week (Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun) for the duration of
Cycle 17
To facilitate scheduling, this program is split into three
proposals
This proposal covers 308 orbits (19
25 weeks) from 21 June
2010 to 1 November 2010
ACS/WFC/WFC3/IR/UV 12056 A Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury - I We propose to image the north east quadrant of M31 to deep limits in
the UV, optical, and near-IR
HST imaging should resolve the galaxy
into more than 100 million stars, all with common distances and
foreground extinctions
UV through NIR stellar photometry (F275W,
F336W with WFC3/UVIS, F475W and F814W with ACS/WFC, and F110W and
F160W with WFC3/NIR) will provide effective temperatures for a wide
range of spectral types, while simultaneously mapping M31's
extinction
Our central science drivers are to: understand high-mass
variations in the stellar IMF as a function of SFR intensity and
metallicity; capture the spatially-resolved star formation history of
M31; study a vast sample of stellar clusters with a range of ages and
metallicities
These are central to understanding stellar evolution
and clustered star formation; constraining ISM energetics; and
understanding the counterparts and environments of transient objects
(novae, SNe, variable stars, x-ray sources, etc
)
As its legacy, this
survey adds M31 to the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds as a
fundamental calibrator of stellar evolution and star-formation
processes for understanding the stellar populations of distant
galaxies
Effective exposure times are 977s in F275W, 1368s in F336W,
4040s in F475W, 4042s in F814W, 699s in F110W, and 1796s in F160W,
including short exposures to avoid saturation of bright sources
These
depths will produce photon-limited images in the UV
Images will be
crowding-limited in the optical and NIR, but will reach below the red
clump at all radii
The images will reach the Nyquist sampling limit
in F160W, F475W, and F814W
ACS/WFC3 11670 The Host Environments of Type Ia Supernovae in the SDSS Survey The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Supernova Survey has discovered nearly
500 type Ia supernovae and created a large, unique, and uniform sample
of these cosmological tools
As part of a comprehensive study of the
supernova hosts, we propose to obtain Hubble ACS images of a large
fraction of these galaxies
Integrated colors and spectra will be
measured from the ground, but we require high-resolution HST imaging
to provide accurate morphologies and color information at the site of
the explosion
This information is essential in determining the
systematic effects of population age on type Ia supernova luminosities
and improving their reliability in measuring dark energy
Recent
studies suggest two populations of type Ia supernovae: a class that
explodes promptly after star-formation and one that is delayed by
billions of years
Measuring the star-formation rate at the site of
the supernova from colors in the HST images may be the best way to
differentiate between these classes
ACS/WFC3 11735 The LSD Project: Dynamics, Merging and Stellar Populations of a Sample
of Well-Studied LBGs at z~3 A large observational effort with the ground-based ESO/VLT telescopes
allowed us to obtain deep, spatially-resolved, near-IR spectra of
complete sample of 11 Lyman-Break Galaxies at z~3
1
These
observations were used to obtain, for the first time, the metallicity
and the dynamical properties of a sample of objects that, albeit
small, is representative of the total population of the LBGs
We
propose to use HST to obtain high-resolution optical and near-IR
images of this sample of LBGs in order to study the broad-band
morphology and the stellar light distribution of these galaxies
These
images, exploiting the superior spatial resolution of HST images and
the low-background : 1- will allow a precise measure of the dynamical
mass from the velocity field derived with spectroscopy; 2- will permit
a comparison of the distribution of star formation (from the line
emission) with the underlying stellar population, and, 3- will be used
to check if the complex velocity field and the multiple line-emitting
regions detected in most targets can be ascribed to on-going mergers
This accurate study will shed light on a number of unsolved problems
still affecting the knowledge of the LBGs
COS/NUV 11705 Physical Properties of Quasar Outflows: From BALs to Mini-BALs Accretion disk outflows are important components of quasar
environments
They might play a major role in facilitating accretion,
regulating star formation in the host galaxies and distributing metals
to the surrounding gas
They reveal themselves most conspicuously via
broad absorption lines (BALs), but they appear even more frequently in
other guises such as the weaker and narrower "mini-BALs
" How are
these diverse outflow features related? Are mini-BALs really just
"mini" versions of the BALs, or do they represent a fundamentally
different type of outflow, with different degrees of ionization,
column densities, mass loss rates, physical origins, etc
? We propose HST-COS spectroscopy to make the first quantitative
assessment of the outflow physical conditions across the full range of
weak/narrow mini-BALs to strong/broad BALs
Our strategy is to measure
key diagnostic lines (SVI, OVI, CIII, SIV, PV, etc
) at 930A - 1130A
(rest- frame) in a sample of 7 outflow quasars with known mini-BALs
through weak BALs
We will then 1) combine the COS data with
ground-based spectra of the same quasars to include more lines (CIV,
SiIV) at longer wavelengths, and 2) include in our analysis a nearly
identical UV/optical dataset obtained previously for a sample of
quasars with strong BALs
Our study of this combined dataset will be
an essential next step toward a more global understanding of quasar
outflows
NIC2/WFC3/IR 11548 Infrared Imaging of Protostars in the Orion A Cloud: The Role of
Environment in Star Formation We propose NICMOS and WFC3/IR observations of a sample of 252
protostars identified in the Orion A cloud with the Spitzer Space
Telescope
These observations will image the scattered light escaping
the protostellar envelopes, providing information on the shapes of
outflow cavities, the inclinations of the protostars, and the overall
morphologies of the envelopes
In addition, we ask for Spitzer time to
obtain 55-95 micron spectra of 75 of the protostars
Combining these
new data with existing 3
6 to 70 micron photometry and forthcoming
5-40 micron spectra measured with the Spitzer Space Telescope, we will
determine the physical properties of the protostars such as envelope
density, luminosity, infall rate, and outflow cavity opening angle
By
examining how these properties vary with stellar density (i
e
clusters vs
groups vs
isolation) and the properties of the
surrounding molecular cloud; we can directly measure how the
surrounding environment influences protostellar evolution, and
consequently, the formation of stars and planetary systems
Ultimately, this data will guide the development of a theory of
protostellar evolution
STIS/CCD 11845 CCD Dark Monitor Part 2 Monitor the darks for the STIS CCD
STIS/CCD 11847 CCD Bias Monitor-Part 2 Monitor the bias in the 1x1, 1x2, 2x1, and 2x2 bin settings at gain=1,
and 1x1 at gain = 4, to build up high-S/N superbiases and track the
evolution of hot columns
WFC3/ACS/IR 11563 Galaxies at z~7-10 in the Reionization Epoch: Luminosity Functions to
<0
2L* from Deep IR Imaging of the HUDF and HUDF05 Fields The first generations of galaxies were assembled around redshifts
z~7-10+, just 500-800 Myr after recombination, in the heart of the
reionization of the universe
We know very little about galaxies in
this period
Despite great effort with HST and other telescopes, less
than ~15 galaxies have been reliably detected so far at z>7,
contrasting with the ~1000 galaxies detected to date at z~6, just
200-400 Myr later, near the end of the reionization epoch
WFC3 IR can
dramatically change this situation, enabling derivation of the galaxy
luminosity function and its shape at z~7-8 to well below L*,
measurement of the UV luminosity density at z~7-8 and z~8-9, and
estimates of the contribution of galaxies to reionization at these
epochs, as well as characterization of their properties (sizes,
structure, colors)
A quantitative leap in our understanding of early
galaxies, and the timescales of their buildup, requires a total sample
of ~100 galaxies at z~7-8 to ~29 AB mag
We can achieve this with 192
WFC3 IR orbits on three disjoint fields (minimizing cosmic variance):
the HUDF and the two nearby deep fields of the HUDF05
Our program
uses three WFC3 IR filters, and leverages over 600 orbits of existing
ACS data, to identify, with low contamination, a large sample of over
100 objects at z~7-8, a very useful sample of ~23 at z~8-9, and limits
at z~10
By careful placement of the WFC3 IR and parallel ACS
pointings, we also enhance the optical ACS imaging on the HUDF and a
HUDF05 field
We stress (1) the need to go deep, which is paramount to
define L*, the shape, and the slope alpha of the luminosity function
(LF) at these high redshifts; and (2) the far superior performance of
our strategy, compared with the use of strong lensing clusters, in
detecting significant samples of faint z~7-8 galaxies to derive their
luminosity function and UV ionizing flux
Our recent z~7
4 NICMOS
results show that wide-area IR surveys, even of GOODS-like depth,
simply do not reach faint enough at z~7-9 to meet the LF and UV flux
objectives
In the spirit of the HDF and the HUDF, we will waive any
proprietary period, and will also deliver the reduced data to STScI
The proposed data will provide a Legacy resource of great value for a
wide range of archival science investigations of galaxies at redshifts
z~2-9
The data are likely to remain the deepest IR/optical images
until JWST is launched, and will provide sources for spectroscopic
follow up by JWST, ALMA and EVLA
WFC3/IR/S/C 11929 IR Dark Current Monitor Analyses of ground test data showed that dark current signals are more
reliably removed from science data using darks taken with the same
exposure sequences as the science data, than with a single dark
current image scaled by desired exposure time
Therefore, dark current
images must be collected using all sample sequences that will be used
in science observations
These observations will be used to monitor
changes in the dark current of the WFC3-IR channel on a day-to-day
basis, and to build calibration dark current ramps for each of the
sample sequences to be used by Gos in Cycle 17
For each sample
sequence/array size combination, a median ramp will be created and
delivered to the calibration database system (CDBS)
WFC3/UVIS 11905 WFC3 UVIS CCD Daily Monitor The behavior of the WFC3 UVIS CCD will be monitored daily with a set
of full-frame, four-amp bias and dark frames
A smaller set of 2Kx4K
subarray biases are acquired at less frequent intervals throughout the
cycle to support subarray science observations
The internals from
this proposal, along with those from the anneal procedure (Proposal
11909), will be used to generate the necessary superbias and superdark
reference files for the calibration pipeline (CDBS)
WFC3/UVIS/IR 11702 Search for Very High-z Galaxies with WFC3 Pure Parallel WFC3 will provide an unprecedented probe to the early universe beyond
the current redshift frontier
Here we propose a pure parallel program
using this new instrument to search for Lyman-break galaxies at
6
5 (1) We will use both the UVIS and the IR channels, and do not need to
seek optical data from elsewhere
(2) Our program will likely triple the size of the probable candidate
samples at z~7 and z~8, and will complement other targeted programs
aiming at the similar redshift range
(3) Being a pure parallel program, our survey will only make very
limited demand on the scarce HST resources
More importantly, as the
pure parallel pointings will be at random sight-lines, our program
will be least affected by the bias due to the large scale structure
("cosmic variance")
(4) We aim at the most luminous LBG population, and will address the
bright-end of the luminosity function at z~8 and z~7
We will
constrain the value of L* in particular, which is critical for
understanding the star formation process and the stellar mass assembly
history in the first few hundred million years of the universe
(5) The candidates from our survey, most of which will be the
brightest ones that any surveys would be able to find, will have the
best chance to be spectroscopically confirmed at the current 8--10m
telescopes
(6) We will also find a large number of extremely red, old galaxies at
intermediate redshifts, and the fine spatial resolution offered by the
WFC3 will enable us constrain their formation history based on the
study of their morphology, and hence shed light on their connection to
the very early galaxies in the universe
==============================================================================
TOPIC: Daily Report #5159 == 1 of 1 ==
Date: Fri, Aug 13 2010 4:10 am
From: "Cooper, Joe" HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to Collect World Class Science DAILY REPORT #5159 PERIOD COVERED: 5am August 12 - 5am August 13, 2010 (DOY 223/09:00z-224/09:00z) FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY: Significant Spacecraft Anomalies: (The following are preliminary
reports of potential non-nominal performance that will be
investigated
) HSTARS: 12353 - GSAcq(2,1,1) at 224/10:01:19z and REAcq(2,1,1) at 224/11:33z
Resulted in Fine Lock Backup on FGS2
Observations possibly affected ACS 49-60 Proposal ID#11655; WFC3
116-118 Proposal ID#11905
COMPLETED OPS REQUEST: (None) COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None) FGS GSAcq 10 10
FGS REAcq 07 07
OBAD with Maneuver 09 09 SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None) OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED ACS/WFC 11655 Dynamics of the Galactic Bulge/bar We request second-epoch ACS observations of four star fields in the
Galactic bar
These will allow us to measure proper motions for tens
of thousands of stars well below the turnoff, to construct a dynamical
model for the bulge/bar (in combination with data already in hand from
other HST fields, and from VLT spectroscopy), and hence to take a
unique look at the internal dynamical structure of the central regions
of our Galaxy
By relating the kinematics with stellar population we
can elucidate the formation history of the bulge and bar, and their
relation to the surrounding Galactic disk
This is a resubmission of
an approved Cycle 15 proposal that was hit by the ACS malfunction
ACS/WFC/WFC3/IR/UV 12056 A Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury - I We propose to image the north east quadrant of M31 to deep limits in
the UV, optical, and near-IR
HST imaging should resolve the galaxy
into more than 100 million stars, all with common distances and
foreground extinctions
UV through NIR stellar photometry (F275W,
F336W with WFC3/UVIS, F475W and F814W with ACS/WFC, and F110W and
F160W with WFC3/NIR) will provide effective temperatures for a wide
range of spectral types, while simultaneously mapping M31's
extinction
Our central science drivers are to: understand high-mass
variations in the stellar IMF as a function of SFR intensity and
metallicity; capture the spatially-resolved star formation history of
M31; study a vast sample of stellar clusters with a range of ages and
metallicities
These are central to understanding stellar evolution
and clustered star formation; constraining ISM energetics; and
understanding the counterparts and environments of transient objects
(novae, SNe, variable stars, x-ray sources, etc
)
As its legacy, this
survey adds M31 to the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds as a
fundamental calibrator of stellar evolution and star-formation
processes for understanding the stellar populations of distant
galaxies
Effective exposure times are 977s in F275W, 1368s in F336W,
4040s in F475W, 4042s in F814W, 699s in F110W, and 1796s in F160W,
including short exposures to avoid saturation of bright sources
These
depths will produce photon-limited images in the UV
Images will be
crowding-limited in the optical and NIR, but will reach below the red
clump at all radii
The images will reach the Nyquist sampling limit
in F160W, F475W, and F814W
COS/NUV 11705 Physical Properties of Quasar Outflows: From BALs to Mini-BALs Accretion disk outflows are important components of quasar
environments
They might play a major role in facilitating accretion,
regulating star formation in the host galaxies and distributing metals
to the surrounding gas
They reveal themselves most conspicuously via
broad absorption lines (BALs), but they appear even more frequently in
other guises such as the weaker and narrower "mini-BALs
" How are
these diverse outflow features related? Are mini-BALs really just
"mini" versions of the BALs, or do they represent a fundamentally
different type of outflow, with different degrees of ionization,
column densities, mass loss rates, physical origins, etc
? We propose HST-COS spectroscopy to make the first quantitative
assessment of the outflow physical conditions across the full range of
weak/narrow mini-BALs to strong/broad BALs
Our strategy is to measure
key diagnostic lines (SVI, OVI, CIII, SIV, PV, etc
) at 930A - 1130A
(rest- frame) in a sample of 7 outflow quasars with known mini-BALs
through weak BALs
We will then 1) combine the COS data with
ground-based spectra of the same quasars to include more lines (CIV,
SiIV) at longer wavelengths, and 2) include in our analysis a nearly
identical UV/optical dataset obtained previously for a sample of
quasars with strong BALs
Our study of this combined dataset will be
an essential next step toward a more global understanding of quasar
outflows
STIS/CCD 11845 CCD Dark Monitor Part 2 Monitor the darks for the STIS CCD
STIS/CCD 11847 CCD Bias Monitor-Part 2 Monitor the bias in the 1x1, 1x2, 2x1, and 2x2 bin settings at gain=1,
and 1x1 at gain = 4, to build up high-S/N superbiases and track the
evolution of hot columns
WFC3/ACS/IR 11563 Galaxies at z~7-10 in the Reionization Epoch: Luminosity Functions to
<0
2L* from Deep IR Imaging of the HUDF and HUDF05 Fields The first generations of galaxies were assembled around redshifts
z~7-10+, just 500-800 Myr after recombination, in the heart of the
reionization of the universe
We know very little about galaxies in
this period
Despite great effort with HST and other telescopes, less
than ~15 galaxies have been reliably detected so far at z>7,
contrasting with the ~1000 galaxies detected to date at z~6, just
200-400 Myr later, near the end of the reionization epoch
WFC3 IR can
dramatically change this situation, enabling derivation of the galaxy
luminosity function and its shape at z~7-8 to well below L*,
measurement of the UV luminosity density at z~7-8 and z~8-9, and
estimates of the contribution of galaxies to reionization at these
epochs, as well as characterization of their properties (sizes,
structure, colors)
A quantitative leap in our understanding of early
galaxies, and the timescales of their buildup, requires a total sample
of ~100 galaxies at z~7-8 to ~29 AB mag
We can achieve this with 192
WFC3 IR orbits on three disjoint fields (minimizing cosmic variance):
the HUDF and the two nearby deep fields of the HUDF05
Our program
uses three WFC3 IR filters, and leverages over 600 orbits of existing
ACS data, to identify, with low contamination, a large sample of over
100 objects at z~7-8, a very useful sample of ~23 at z~8-9, and limits
at z~10
By careful placement of the WFC3 IR and parallel ACS
pointings, we also enhance the optical ACS imaging on the HUDF and a
HUDF05 field
We stress (1) the need to go deep, which is paramount to
define L*, the shape, and the slope alpha of the luminosity function
(LF) at these high redshifts; and (2) the far superior performance of
our strategy, compared with the use of strong lensing clusters, in
detecting significant samples of faint z~7-8 galaxies to derive their
luminosity function and UV ionizing flux
Our recent z~7
4 NICMOS
results show that wide-area IR surveys, even of GOODS-like depth,
simply do not reach faint enough at z~7-9 to meet the LF and UV flux
objectives
In the spirit of the HDF and the HUDF, we will waive any
proprietary period, and will also deliver the reduced data to STScI
The proposed data will provide a Legacy resource of great value for a
wide range of archival science investigations of galaxies at redshifts
z~2-9
The data are likely to remain the deepest IR/optical images
until JWST is launched, and will provide sources for spectroscopic
follow up by JWST, ALMA and EVLA
WFC3/IR 11696 Infrared Survey of Star Formation Across Cosmic Time We propose to use the unique power of WFC3 slitless spectroscopy to
measure the evolution of cosmic star formation from the end of the
reionization epoch at z>6 to the close of the galaxy- building era at
z~0
3
Pure parallel observations with the grisms have proven to be
efficient for identifying line emission from galaxies across a broad
range of redshifts
The G102 grism on WFC3 was designed to extend this
capability to search for Ly-alpha emission from the first galaxies
Using up to 250 orbits of pure parallel WFC3 spectroscopy, we will
observe about 40 deep (4-5 orbit) fields with the combination of G102
and G141, and about 20 shallow (2-3 orbit) fields with G141 alone
Our primary science goals at the highest redshifts are: (1) Detect Lya
in ~100 galaxies with z>5
6 and measure the evolution of the Lya
luminosity function, independent of of cosmic variance; 2) Determine
the connection between emission line selected and continuum-break
selected galaxies at these high redshifts, and 3) Search for the
proposed signature of neutral hydrogen absorption at re-ionization
At
intermediate redshifts we will (4) Detect more than 1000 galaxies in
Halpha at 0
5 To identify single-line Lya emitters, we will exploit the wide
0
8--1
9um wavelength coverage of the combined G102+G141 spectra
All
[OII] and [OIII] interlopers detected in G102 will be reliably
separated from true LAEs by the detection of at least one strong line
in the G141 spectrum, without the need for any ancillary data
We
waive all proprietary rights to our data and will make high-level data
products available through the ST/ECF
WFC3/IR/S/C 11929 IR Dark Current Monitor Analyses of ground test data showed that dark current signals are more
reliably removed from science data using darks taken with the same
exposure sequences as the science data, than with a single dark
current image scaled by desired exposure time
Therefore, dark current
images must be collected using all sample sequences that will be used
in science observations
These observations will be used to monitor
changes in the dark current of the WFC3-IR channel on a day-to-day
basis, and to build calibration dark current ramps for each of the
sample sequences to be used by Gos in Cycle 17
For each sample
sequence/array size combination, a median ramp will be created and
delivered to the calibration database system (CDBS)
WFC3/UVIS 11903 UVIS Photometric Zero Points This proposal obtains the photometric zero points in 53 of the 62
UVIS/WFC3 filters: the 18 broad-band filters, 8 medium-band filters,
16 narrow-band filters, and 11 of the 20 quad filters (those being
used in cycle 17)
The observations will be primary obtained by
observing the hot DA white dwarf standards GD153 and G191-B2B
A
redder secondary standard, P330E, will be observed in a subset of the
filters to provide color corrections
Repeat observations in 16 of the
most widely used cycle 17 filters will be obtained once per month for
the first three months, and then once every second month for the
duration of cycle 17, alternating and depending on target
availability
These observations will enable monitoring of the
stability of the photometric system
Photometric transformation
equations will be calculated by comparing the photometry of stars in
two globular clusters, 47 Tuc and NGC 2419, to previous measurements
with other telescopes/instruments
WFC3/UVIS 11905 WFC3 UVIS CCD Daily Monitor The behavior of the WFC3 UVIS CCD will be monitored daily with a set
of full-frame, four-amp bias and dark frames
A smaller set of 2Kx4K
subarray biases are acquired at less frequent intervals throughout the
cycle to support subarray science observations
The internals from
this proposal, along with those from the anneal procedure (Proposal
11909), will be used to generate the necessary superbias and superdark
reference files for the calibration pipeline (CDBS)
WFC3/UVIS/IR 11702 Search for Very High-z Galaxies with WFC3 Pure Parallel WFC3 will provide an unprecedented probe to the early universe beyond
the current redshift frontier
Here we propose a pure parallel program
using this new instrument to search for Lyman-break galaxies at
6
5 (1) We will use both the UVIS and the IR channels, and do not need to
seek optical data from elsewhere
(2) Our program will likely triple the size of the probable candidate
samples at z~7 and z~8, and will complement other targeted programs
aiming at the similar redshift range
(3) Being a pure parallel program, our survey will only make very
limited demand on the scarce HST resources
More importantly, as the
pure parallel pointings will be at random sight-lines, our program
will be least affected by the bias due to the large scale structure
("cosmic variance")
(4) We aim at the most luminous LBG population, and will address the
bright-end of the luminosity function at z~8 and z~7
We will
constrain the value of L* in particular, which is critical for
understanding the star formation process and the stellar mass assembly
history in the first few hundred million years of the universe
(5) The candidates from our survey, most of which will be the
brightest ones that any surveys would be able to find, will have the
best chance to be spectroscopically confirmed at the current 8--10m
telescopes
(6) We will also find a large number of extremely red, old galaxies at
intermediate redshifts, and the fine spatial resolution offered by the
WFC3 will enable us constrain their formation history based on the
study of their morphology, and hence shed light on their connection to
the very early galaxies in the universe
==============================================================================
TOPIC: Daily Report #5160 == 1 of 1 ==
Date: Mon, Aug 16 2010 4:44 am
From: "Cooper, Joe" HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to Collect World Class Science DAILY REPORT #5160 PERIOD COVERED: 5am August 13 - 5am August 16, 2010 (DOY 225/09:00z-228/09:00z) 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: (None) COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None) FGS GSAcq 25 25
FGS REAcq 21 21
OBAD with Maneuver 21 21 SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None) OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED ACS/WFC/WFC3/IR/UV 12056 A Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury - I We propose to image the north east quadrant of M31 to deep limits in
the UV, optical, and near-IR
HST imaging should resolve the galaxy
into more than 100 million stars, all with common distances and
foreground extinctions
UV through NIR stellar photometry (F275W,
F336W with WFC3/UVIS, F475W and F814W with ACS/WFC, and F110W and
F160W with WFC3/NIR) will provide effective temperatures for a wide
range of spectral types, while simultaneously mapping M31's
extinction
Our central science drivers are to: understand high-mass
variations in the stellar IMF as a function of SFR intensity and
metallicity; capture the spatially-resolved star formation history of
M31; study a vast sample of stellar clusters with a range of ages and
metallicities
These are central to understanding stellar evolution
and clustered star formation; constraining ISM energetics; and
understanding the counterparts and environments of transient objects
(novae, SNe, variable stars, x-ray sources, etc
)
As its legacy, this
survey adds M31 to the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds as a
fundamental calibrator of stellar evolution and star-formation
processes for understanding the stellar populations of distant
galaxies
Effective exposure times are 977s in F275W, 1368s in F336W,
4040s in F475W, 4042s in F814W, 699s in F110W, and 1796s in F160W,
including short exposures to avoid saturation of bright sources
These
depths will produce photon-limited images in the UV
Images will be
crowding-limited in the optical and NIR, but will reach below the red
clump at all radii
The images will reach the Nyquist sampling limit
in F160W, F475W, and F814W
S/C 12046 COS FUV DCE Memory Dump Whenever the FUV detector high voltage is on, count rate and current
draw information is collected, monitored, and saved to DCE memory
Every 10 msec the detector samples the currents from the HV power
supplies (HVIA, HVIB) and the AUX power supply (AUXI)
The last 1000
samples are saved in memory, along with a histogram of the number of
occurrences of each current value
In the case of a HV transient (known as a "crackle" on FUSE), where
one of these currents exceeds a preset threshold for a persistence
time, the HV will shut down, and the DCE memory will be dumped and
examined as part of the recovery procedure
However, if the current
exceeds the threshold for less than the persistence time (a
"mini-crackle" in FUSE parlance), there is no way to know without
dumping DCE memory
By dumping and examining the histograms regularly,
we will be able to monitor any changes in the rate of "mini-crackles"
and thus learn something about the state of the detector
WFC3/UV 12008 Primordial formation of Close Binaries in Globular Clusters with Low
Density Cores The primordial binary population is a key input parameter for any
realistic model of dense star cluster dynamics
However, the number of
primordial binaries and its direct implications for the formation rate
of close binaries remain poorly understood
Theoretical calculations
show that cataclysmic variables can be formed directly from primordial
binaries in or near the core of low core density globular clusters
We
propose to use Chandra/HST to study low density core globular clusters
systematically and to test the prediction that low-luminosity X-ray
sources can be formed from primordial binaries in the cluster core
This project will complement our successful Chandra/HST program to
study the dynamical formation of X-ray sources in high core density
globular clusters
ACS/WFC 11996 CCD Daily Monitor (Part 3) This program comprises basic tests for measuring the read noise and
dark current of the ACS WFC and for tracking the growth of hot pixels
The recorded frames are used to create bias and dark reference images
for science data reduction and calibration
This program will be
executed four days per week (Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun) for the duration of
Cycle 17
To facilitate scheduling, this program is split into three
proposals
This proposal covers 308 orbits (19
25 weeks) from 21 June
2010 to 1 November 2010
WFC3/IR/S/C 11929 IR Dark Current Monitor Analyses of ground test data showed that dark current signals are more
reliably removed from science data using darks taken with the same
exposure sequences as the science data, than with a single dark
current image scaled by desired exposure time
Therefore, dark current
images must be collected using all sample sequences that will be used
in science observations
These observations will be used to monitor
changes in the dark current of the WFC3-IR channel on a day-to-day
basis, and to build calibration dark current ramps for each of the
sample sequences to be used by Gos in Cycle 17
For each sample
sequence/array size combination, a median ramp will be created and
delivered to the calibration database system (CDBS)
WFC3/UVIS 11908 Cycle 17: UVIS Bowtie Monitor Ground testing revealed an intermittent hysteresis type effect in the
UVIS detector (both CCDs) at the level of ~1%, lasting hours to days
Initially found via an unexpected bowtie-shaped feature in flatfield
ratios, subsequent lab tests on similar e2v devices have since shown
that it is also present as simply an overall offset across the entire
CCD, i
e
, a QE offset without any discernable pattern
These lab
tests have further revealed that overexposing the detector to count
levels several times full well fills the traps and effectively
neutralizes the bowtie
Each visit in this proposal acquires a set of
three 3x3 binned internal flatfields: the first unsaturated image will
be used to detect any bowtie, the second, highly exposed image will
neutralize the bowtie if it is present, and the final image will allow
for verification that the bowtie is gone
WFC3/UVIS 11907 UVIS Cycle 17 Contamination Monitor The UV throughput of WFC3 during Cycle 17 is monitored via weekly
standard star observations in a subset of key filters covering
200-600nm and F606W, F814W as controls on the red end
The data will
provide a measure of throughput levels as a function of time and
wavelength, allowing for detection of the presence of possible
contaminants
WFC3/UVIS 11905 WFC3 UVIS CCD Daily Monitor The behavior of the WFC3 UVIS CCD will be monitored daily with a set
of full-frame, four-amp bias and dark frames
A smaller set of 2Kx4K
subarray biases are acquired at less frequent intervals throughout the
cycle to support subarray science observations
The internals from
this proposal, along with those from the anneal procedure (Proposal
11909), will be used to generate the necessary superbias and superdark
reference files for the calibration pipeline (CDBS)
STIS/CCD 11847 CCD Bias Monitor-Part 2 Monitor the bias in the 1x1, 1x2, 2x1, and 2x2 bin settings at gain=1,
and 1x1 at gain = 4, to build up high-S/N superbiases and track the
evolution of hot columns
STIS/CCD 11845 CCD Dark Monitor Part 2 Monitor the darks for the STIS CCD
WFC3/ACS/IR 11677 Is 47 Tuc Young? Measuring its White Dwarf Cooling Age and Completing
a Hubble Legacy With this proposal we will firmly establish the age of 47 Tuc from its
cooling white dwarfs
47 Tuc is the nearest and least reddened of the
metal-rich disk globular clusters
It is also the template used for
studying the giant branches of nearby resolved galaxies
In addition,
the age sensitive magnitude spread between the main sequence turnoff
and horizontal branch is identical for 47 Tuc, two bulge globular
clusters and the bulge field population
A precise relative age
constraint for 47 Tuc, compared to the halo clusters M4 and NGC 6397,
both of which we recently dated via white dwarf cooling, would
therefore constrain when the bulge formed relative to the old halo
globular clusters
Of particular interest is that with the higher
quality ACS data on NGC 6397, we are now capable with the technique of
white dwarf cooling of determining ages to an accuracy of +/-0
4 Gyrs
at the 95% confidence level
Ages derived from the cluster turnoff are
not currently capable of reaching this precision
The important role
that 47 Tuc plays in galaxy formation studies, and as the metal-rich
template for the globular clusters, makes the case for a white dwarf
cooling age for this metal-rich cluster compelling
Several recent analyses have suggested that 47 Tuc is more than 2 Gyrs
younger than the Galactic halo
Others have suggested an age similar
to that of the most metal poor globular clusters
The current
situation is clearly uncertain and obviously a new approach to age
dating this important cluster is required
With the observations of 47 Tuc, this project will complete a legacy
for HST
It will be the third globular cluster observed for white
dwarf cooling; the three covering almost the full metallicity range of
the cluster system
Unless JWST has its proposed bluer filters (700
and 900 nm) this science will not be possible perhaps for decades
until a large optical telescope is again in space
Ages for globular
clusters from the main sequence turnoff are less precise than those
from white dwarf cooling making the science with the current proposal
truly urgent
WFC3/IR 11671 Kinematic Reconstruction of the Origin and IMF of the Massive Young
Clusters at the Galactic Center We propose to exploit the wide field capabilities of Wide Field Camera
3 to study star formation at the Galactic center
By studying young
stars located in the most physically extreme region of our Galaxy, we
can test star formation theories, which suggest that such environments
should favor high mass stars and, in extreme cases, should suppress
star formation entirely
Specifically, we will measure the proper
motions and photometry of stars over the full extent of the three
massive young clusters that have been identified at the Galactic
Center (Arches, Quintuplet, and the Young Nuclear Star Cluster)
These
observations are a factor of ?2000 more efficient than what can be
done with ground-based adaptive optics
Our goals are two-fold
First,
we hope to establish the initial sites of star formation in order to
obtain an accurate estimate of the conditions that led to the stellar
populations within these clusters
Answering this question for the
Young Nuclear Star Cluster is particularly important as it establishes
whether or not star formation can indeed proceed within 0
1 pc of our
Galaxy's supermassive black hole
Second, we will measure the IMF in
the Arches and Quintuplet, where dynamical evolution is less severe,
using proper motions to determine membership and to reveal the tidal
radius
Probing how the properties of the emergent stellar populations
within our Galaxy may be affected by the physical environment in which
they arise is an important first step to understanding how they might
vary as a function of cosmic time and thereby affect our models of
galaxy formation and evolution
ACS/WFC3 11670 The Host Environments of Type Ia Supernovae in the SDSS Survey The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Supernova Survey has discovered nearly
500 type Ia supernovae and created a large, unique, and uniform sample
of these cosmological tools
As part of a comprehensive study of the
supernova hosts, we propose to obtain Hubble ACS images of a large
fraction of these galaxies
Integrated colors and spectra will be
measured from the ground, but we require high-resolution HST imaging
to provide accurate morphologies and color information at the site of
the explosion
This information is essential in determining the
systematic effects of population age on type Ia supernova luminosities
and improving their reliability in measuring dark energy
Recent
studies suggest two populations of type Ia supernovae: a class that
explodes promptly after star-formation and one that is delayed by
billions of years
Measuring the star-formation rate at the site of
the supernova from colors in the HST images may be the best way to
differentiate between these classes
WFC3/UVIS/IR 11644 A Dynamical-Compositional Survey of the Kuiper Belt: A New Window Into
the Formation of the Outer Solar System The eight planets overwhelmingly dominate the solar system by mass,
but their small numbers, coupled with their stochastic pasts, make it
impossible to construct a unique formation history from the dynamical
or compositional characteristics of them alone
In contrast, the huge
numbers of small bodies scattered throughout and even beyond the
planets, while insignificant by mass, provide an almost unlimited
number of probes of the statistical conditions, history, and
interactions in the solar system
To date, attempts to understand the
formation and evolution of the Kuiper Belt have largely been dynamical
simulations where a hypothesized starting condition is evolved under
the gravitational influence of the early giant planets and an attempt
is made to reproduce the current observed populations
With little
compositional information known for the real Kuiper Belt, the test
particles in the simulation are free to have any formation location
and history as long as they end at the correct point
Allowing
compositional information to guide and constrain the formation,
thermal, and collisional histories of these objects would add an
entire new dimension to our understanding of the evolution of the
outer solar system
While ground based compositional studies have hit
their flux limits already with only a few objects sampled, we propose
to exploit the new capabilities of WFC3 to perform the first ever
large-scale dynamical-compositional study of Kuiper Belt Objects
(KBOs) and their progeny to study the chemical, dynamical, and
collisional history of the region of the giant planets
The
sensitivity of the WFC3 observations will allow us to go up to two
magnitudes deeper than our ground based studies, allowing us the
capability of optimally selecting a target list for a large survey
rather than simply taking the few objects that can be measured, as we
have had to do to date
We have carefully constructed a sample of 120
objects which provides both overall breadth, for a general
understanding of these objects, plus a large enough number of objects
in the individual dynamical subclass to allow detailed comparison
between and within these groups
These objects will likely define the
core Kuiper Belt compositional sample for years to come
While we have
many specific results anticipated to come from this survey, as with
any project where the field is rich, our current knowledge level is
low, and a new instrument suddenly appears which can exploit vastly
larger segments of the population, the potential for discovery -- both
anticipated and not -- is extraordinary
WFC3/IR 11631 Binary Brown Dwarfs and the L/T Transition Brown dwarfs traverse spectral types M, L and T as their atmospheric
structure evolves and they cool into oblivion
This SNAPSHOT program
will obtain WFC3-IR images of 45 nearby late-L and early-T dwarfs to
investigate the nature of the L/T transition
Recent analyses have
suggested that a substantial proportion of late-L and early-T dwarfs
are binaries, comprised of an L dwarf primary and T dwarf secondary
WFC3-IR observations will let us quantify this suggestion by expanding
coverage to a much larger sample, and permitting comparison of the L/T
binary fraction against ?normal? ultracool dwarfs
Only eight L/T
binaries are currently known, including several that are poorly
resolved: we anticipate at least doubling the number of resolved
systems
The photometric characteristics of additional resolved
systems will be crucial to constraining theoretical models of these
late-type ultracool dwarfs
Finally, our data will also be eminently
suited to searching for extremely low luminosity companions,
potentially even reaching the Y dwarf regime
ACS/WFC3 11604 The Nuclear Structure of OH Megamaser Galaxies We propose a snapshot survey of a complete sample of 80 OH megamaser
galaxies
Each galaxy will be imaged with the ACS/WFC through F814W
and a linear ramp filter (FR656N or FR716N or FR782N or FR853N)
allowing us to study both the spheroid and the gas morphology in
Halpha + [N II]
We will use the 9% ramps FR647M (5370-7570 angstroms)
centered at 7000 angstroms and FR914M (7570-10, 719 angstroms) 8000
angstroms for continuum subtraction for the high and low z objects
respectively
OH megamaser galaxies (OHMG) form an important class of
ultraluminous IR-galaxies (ULIRGs) whose maser lines emit QSO-like
luminosities
ULIRGs in general are associated with recent mergers but
it is often unclear whether their power output is dominated by
starbursts or a hidden QSO because of the high absorbing columns which
hide their nuclei even at X-ray wavelengths
In contrast, OHMG exhibit
strong evidence for the presence of an energetically important and
recently triggered active nucleus
In particular it is clear that much
of the gas must have already collapsed to form a nuclear disk which
may be the progenitor of a circum-nuclear torus, a key element of the
unified scheme of AGN
A great advantage of studying OHMG systems over
the general ULIRG population, is that the circum-nuclear disks are
effectively "fixed" at an inner, edge on, orientation, eliminating
varying inclination as a nuisance parameter
We will use the HST
observations in conjunction with existing maser and spectroscopic data
to construct a detailed picture of the circum-nuclear regions of a
hitherto relatively neglected class of galaxy that may hold the key to
understanding the relationship between galaxy mergers, nuclear
star-formation, and the growth of massive black holes and the
triggering of nuclear activity
WFC3/ACS/IR 11597 Spectroscopy of IR-Selected Galaxy Clusters at 1 < z < 1
5 We propose to obtain WFC3 G141 and G102 slitless spectroscopy of
galaxy clusters at 1 < z < 1
5 that were selected from the IRAC survey
of the Bootes NDWFS field
Our IRAC survey contains the largest sample
of spectroscopically confirmed clusters at z > 1
The WFC3 grism data
will measure H-alpha to determine SFR, and fit models to the low
resolution continua to determine stellar population histories for the
brighter cluster members, and redshifts for the red galaxies too faint
for ground-based optical spectroscopy
STIS/CCD 11572 Characterizing Atmospheric Sodium in the Transiting Hot-Jupiter
HD189733b We propose STIS transit observations of the exoplanet HD189733b with
the goal of measuring atmospheric atomic sodium
Our strategy is to
repeat the observing methods used for HD209458b, which resulted in a
successful exoplanetary atmospheric sodium detection
Initial
ground-based measurements suggest that the sodium signature on
HD189733 could be up to three times larger than HD209458b, making a
robust 8 detection possible within a 12 orbit program observing three
transits
Transit transmission spectra resulting from space-based
measurements have the advantage of retaining absolute transit depths
when features are measured, which will make it possible to provide an
observational link between sodium and atmospheric haze detected with
ACS
Such a link can break modeling degeneracies and providing
stringent constraints on the overall atmospheric properties, making
such atmospheric information as abundances and the
temperature-pressure-altitude relation known
A successful measurement
will also allow for comparative atmospheric exoplanetology, as an
atmospheric feature will be measured with the same instrument in two
separate planets
WFC3/ACS/IR 11563 Galaxies at z~7-10 in the Reionization Epoch: Luminosity Functions to
<0
2L* from Deep IR Imaging of the HUDF and HUDF05 Fields The first generations of galaxies were assembled around redshifts
z~7-10+, just 500-800 Myr after recombination, in the heart of the
reionization of the universe
We know very little about galaxies in
this period
Despite great effort with HST and other telescopes, less
than ~15 galaxies have been reliably detected so far at z>7,
contrasting with the ~1000 galaxies detected to date at z~6, just
200-400 Myr later, near the end of the reionization epoch
WFC3 IR can
dramatically change this situation, enabling derivation of the galaxy
luminosity function and its shape at z~7-8 to well below L*,
measurement of the UV luminosity density at z~7-8 and z~8-9, and
estimates of the contribution of galaxies to reionization at these
epochs, as well as characterization of their properties (sizes,
structure, colors)
A quantitative leap in our understanding of early
galaxies, and the timescales of their buildup, requires a total sample
of ~100 galaxies at z~7-8 to ~29 AB mag
We can achieve this with 192
WFC3 IR orbits on three disjoint fields (minimizing cosmic variance):
the HUDF and the two nearby deep fields of the HUDF05
Our program
uses three WFC3 IR filters, and leverages over 600 orbits of existing
ACS data, to identify, with low contamination, a large sample of over
100 objects at z~7-8, a very useful sample of ~23 at z~8-9, and limits
at z~10
By careful placement of the WFC3 IR and parallel ACS
pointings, we also enhance the optical ACS imaging on the HUDF and a
HUDF05 field
We stress (1) the need to go deep, which is paramount to
define L*, the shape, and the slope alpha of the luminosity function
(LF) at these high redshifts; and (2) the far superior performance of
our strategy, compared with the use of strong lensing clusters, in
detecting significant samples of faint z~7-8 galaxies to derive their
luminosity function and UV ionizing flux
Our recent z~7
4 NICMOS
results show that wide-area IR surveys, even of GOODS-like depth,
simply do not reach faint enough at z~7-9 to meet the LF and UV flux
objectives
In the spirit of the HDF and the HUDF, we will waive any
proprietary period, and will also deliver the reduced data to STScI
The proposed data will provide a Legacy resource of great value for a
wide range of archival science investigations of galaxies at redshifts
z~2-9
The data are likely to remain the deepest IR/optical images
until JWST is launched, and will provide sources for spectroscopic
follow up by JWST, ALMA and EVLA
WFC3/UVI/IR 11557 The Nature of Low-Ionization BAL QSOs The rare subclass of optically-selected QSOs known as low-ionization
broad absorption line (LoBAL) QSOs show signs of high-velocity gas
outflows and reddened continua indicative of dust obscuration
Recent
studies show that galaxies hosting LoBAL QSOs tend to be ultraluminous
infrared systems that are undergoing mergers, and that have dominant
young (< 100 Myr) stellar populations
Such studies support the idea
that LoBAL QSOs represent a short- lived phase early in the life of
QSOs, when powerful AGN-driven winds are blowing away the dust and gas
surrounding the QSO
If so, understanding LoBALs would be critical in
the study of phenomena regulating black hole and galaxy evolution,
such as AGN feedback and the early stages of nuclear accretion
These
results, however, come from very small samples that may have serious
selection biases
We are therefore taking a more aggressive approach
by conducting a systematic multiwavelength study of a volume limited
sample of LoBAL QSOs at 0
5 < z < 0
6 drawn from SDSS
We propose to
image their host galaxies in two bands using WFC3/UVIS and WFC3/IR to
study the morphologies for signs of recent tidal interactions and to
map their interaction and star forming histories
We will thus
determine whether LoBAL QSOs are truly exclusively found in young
merging systems that are likely to be in the early stages of nuclear
accretion
WFC3/UV 11556 Investigations of the Pluto System We propose a set of high SNR observations of the Pluto system that
will provide improved lightcurves, orbits, and photometric properties
of Nix and Hydra
The key photometric result for Nix and Hydra will be
a vastly improved lightcurve shape and rotation period to test if the
objects are in synchronous rotation or not
A second goal of this
program will be to retrieve a new epoch of albedo map for the surface
of Pluto
These observations will also improve masses and in some case
densities for the bodies in the Pluto system
COS/NUV/FUV 11522 COS-GTO: Star Formation/Lyman-Alpha A sample of 20 star-forming galaxies will be observed with COS G130M
The galaxies were selected from the Kitt Peak International
Spectroscopic Survey (KISSR) data release and cover a broad range of
luminosity, oxygen abundance, and reddening
The goal of the program
is to characterize the Lyman-alpha properties and establish
correlations with fundamental galaxy properties
Each galaxy will be
observed for one orbit
NIC3/WFC3/IR 11149 Characterizing the Stellar Populations in Lyman-Alpha Emitters and
Lyman Break Galaxies at 5
7 The epoch of reionization marks a major phase transition of the
Universe, during which the intergalactic space became transparent to
UV photons
Determining when this occurred and the physical processes
involved represents the latest frontier in observational cosmology
Over the last few years, searches have intensified to identify the
population of high-redshift (z>6) galaxies that might be responsible
for this process, but the progress is hampered partly by the
difficulty of obtaining physical information (stellar mass, age, star
formation rate/history) for individual sources
This is because the
number of z>6 galaxies that have both secure spectroscopic redshifts
and high-quality infrared photometry (especially with Spitzer/IRAC) is
still fairly small
Considering that only several photometric points
are available per source, and that many model SEDs are highly
degenerate, it is crucial to obtain as many observational constraints
as possible for each source to ensure the validity of SED modeling
To
better understand the physical properties of high-redshift galaxies,
we propose here to conduct HST/NICMOS (72 orbits) and Spitzer/IRAC
(102 hours) imaging of spectroscopically confirmed, bright (z<26 mag
(AB)) Ly-alpha emitters (LAEs) and Lyman-break galaxies (LBGs) at
5
7 ============================================================================== You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "sci
astro
hubble"
group
To post to this group, visit http://groups
google
com/group/sci
astro
hubble?hl=en To unsubscribe from this group, send email to sci
astro
hubble+unsubscribe@googlegroups
com To change the way you get mail from this group, visit:
http://groups
google
com/group/sci
astro
hubble/subscribe?hl=en To report abuse, send email explaining the problem to abuse@googlegroups
com ==============================================================================
Google Groups: http://groups
google
com/?hl=en The following information is a reminder of your current mailing
list subscription: You are subscribed to the following list:
[list_name] using the following email:
example@example.com You may automatically unsubscribe from this list at any time by
visiting the following URL: https://aus-city
com/cgi-bin/dada/mail
cgi/u/HST_REPORTS/example/example
com/ If the above URL is inoperable, make sure that you have copied the
entire address
Some mail readers will wrap a long URL and thus break
this automatic unsubscribe mechanism
You may also change your subscription by visiting this list's main screen: <[program_url]/list/[list]> If you're still having trouble, please contact the list owner at: The following physical address is associated with this mailing list: [physical_address]=http://groups
google
com/group/sci
astro
hubble/t/ba894277c6879c30?hl=en
SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL
http://groups
google
com/group/sci
astro
hubble/t/04fc6669c86db5ff?hl=en
SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL
http://groups
google
com/group/sci
astro
hubble/t/068ddae079873721?hl=en
SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL
<mailto:[list_owner_email]>
- This mailing list is a public mailing list - anyone may join or leave, at any time.
-
This mailing list is announce-only.
HST Status Report list
Privacy Policy:
Private list