Notice:
Due to the conversion of some ACS WFC or HRC observations into
WFPC2,
or NICMOS observations after the loss of ACS CCD science
capability
in January, there may be an occasional discrepancy between a
proposal's
listed (and correct) instrument usage and the abstract that
follows
it.
HUBBLE
SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to collect World Class Science
DAILY
REPORT # 4479
PERIOD
COVERED: UT October 30, 2007 (DOY 303)
OBSERVATIONS
SCHEDULED
NIC1/NIC2/NIC3
11330
NICMOS
Cycle 16 Extended Dark
This
takes a series of Darks in parallel to other instruments.
NIC1/NIC2/NIC3
8794
NICMOS
Post-SAA calibration - CR Persistence Part 5
A
new procedure proposed to alleviate the CR-persistence problem of
NICMOS.
Dark frames will be obtained immediately upon exiting the SAA
contour
23, and every time a NICMOS exposure is scheduled within 50
minutes
of coming out of the SAA. The darks will be obtained in parallel
in
all three NICMOS Cameras. The POST-SAA darks will be non- standard
reference
files available to users with a USEAFTER date/time mark. The
keyword
'USEAFTER=date/time' will also be added to the header of each
POST-SAA
DARK frame. The keyword must be populated with the time, in
addition
to the date, because HST crosses the SAA ~8 times per day so
each
POST-SAA DARK will need to have the appropriate time specified, for
users
to identify the ones they need. Both the raw and processed images
will
be archived as POST-SAA DARKs. Generally we expect that all NICMOS
science/calibration
observations started within 50 minutes of leaving an
SAA
will need such maps to remove the CR persistence from the science
images.
Each observation will need its own CRMAP, as different SAA
passages
leave different imprints on the NICMOS detectors.
NIC2
11197
Sweeping
Away the Dust: Reliable Dark Energy with an Infrared Hubble
Diagram
We
propose building a high-z Hubble Diagram using type Ia supernovae
observed
in the infrared rest-frame J-band. The infrared has a number of
exceptional
properties. The effect of dust extinction is minimal,
reducing
a major systematic that may be biasing dark energy
measurements.
Also, recent work indicates that type Ia supernovae are
true
standard candles in the infrared meaning that our Hubble diagram
will
be resistant to possible evolution in the Phillip's relation over
cosmic
time. High signal-to-noise measurements of 16 type Ia events at
z~0.4
will be compared with an independent optical Hubble diagram from
the
ESSENCE project to test for a shift in the derived dark energy
equation
of state due to a systematic bias. In Cycle 15 we obtained
NICMOS
photometry of 8 ESSENCE supernovae and are awaiting template
observations
to place them on the IR Hubble diagram. Here we request
another
8 supernovae be studied in the final season of the ESSENCE
search.
Because of the bright sky background, H-band photometry of z~0.4
supernovae
is not feasible from the ground. Only the superb image
quality
and dark infrared sky seen by HST makes this test possible. This
experiment
may also lead to a better, more reliable way of mapping the
expansion
history of the universe with the Joint Dark Energy Mission.
NIC2
11219
Active
Galactic Nuclei in nearby galaxies: a new view of the origin of
the
radio-loud radio- quiet dichotomy?
Using
archival HST and Chandra observations of 34 nearby early-type
galaxies
{drawn from a complete radio selected sample} we have found
evidence
that the radio-loud/radio-quiet dichotomy is directly connected
to
the structure of the inner regions of their host galaxies in the
following
sense: [1] Radio-loud AGN are associated with galaxies with
shallow
cores in their light profiles [2] Radio-quiet AGN are only
hosted
by galaxies with steep cusps. Since the brightness profile is
determined
by the galaxy's evolution, through its merger history, our
results
suggest that the same process sets the AGN flavour. This
provides
us with a novel tool to explore the co-evolution of galaxies
and
supermassive black holes, and it opens a new path to understand the
origin
of the radio-loud/radio-quiet AGN dichotomy. Currently our
analysis
is statistically incomplete as the brightness profile is not
available
for 82 of the 116 targets. Most galaxies were not observed
with
HST, while in some cases the study is obstructed by the presence of
dust
features. We here propose to perform an infrared NICMOS snapshot
survey
of these 82 galaxies. This will enable us to i} test the reality
of
the dichotomic behaviour in a substantially larger sample; ii} extend
the
comparison between radio-loud and radio-quiet AGN to a larger range
of
luminosities.
WFPC2
11167
A
Unique High Resolution Window to Two Strongly Lensed Lyman Break
Galaxies
On
rare occasions, the otherwise very faint Lyman Break Galaxies {LBGs}
are
magnified by gravitational lensing to provide exceptional targets
for
detailed spectroscopic and imaging studies. We propose HST WFPC2 and
NICMOS
imaging of two strongly lensed Lyman Break Galaxies {LBGs} that
were
recently discovered by members of our team. These two LBGs -- the
"8
O'Clock Arc" and the "SDSS J1206+5142 Arc" -- are currently the
brightest
known LBGs, roughly 3 times brighter than the former
record-holder,
MS1512-cB58 {a.k.a. "cB58"}. The z=2.73 "8 O'Clock Arc"
extends
~10 arcsec in length and is magnified by a factor of 12. The
z=2.00
"SDSS J1206+5142 Arc" also extends ~10 arcsec in length and is
magnified
by a factor of 30. Due to their brightness and magnification,
these
two strongly lensed LBGs offer an unprecedented opportunity for
the
very detailed investigation of two individual galaxies at high
redshift.
We are currently pursuing a vigorous ground-based campaign to
obtain
multi-wavelength {UV, optical, NIR, radio} observations of these
two
LBGs, but our campaign currently lacks a means of obtaining
high-resolution
optical/NIR imaging -- a lack that currently only HST
can
address. Our prime objective for this proposal is to obtain high
resolution
HST images of these two systems with two-orbit WFPC2 images
in
the BVI bands and two-orbit NICMOS/NIC2 images in the J and H bands.
These
data will allow us to construct detailed lensing models, probe the
mass
and light profiles of the lenses and their environments, and
constrain
the star formation histories and rest-frame UV/optical
spectral
energy distributions of the LBGs.
WFPC2
11179
Dynamics
of Clumpy Supersonic Flows in Stellar Jets and in the
Laboratory
We
propose to reobserve three stellar jets in order to quantify how
rapidly
clumps in these flows accelerate and decelerate, and to compare
the
results with ongoing numerical simulations and laboratory
experiments.
Each jet has been imaged twice before with HST, and precise
proper
motions have been measured for all emitting knots in the jets.
Images
from the first two epochs show clear differential motions between
adjacent
clumps, as well as shear, and possibly fragmentation. The
proposed
third epoch will enable us to measure the first ever
accelerations
in jets, quantify errors in existing proper motion
measurements,
and observe in real time how fluid instabilities develop
in
supersonic flows. The new images will make it possible to compare the
behavior
of astrophysical flows directly with numerical simulations and
with
laboratory experiments of bow shocks and clumpy flows in progress
at
the Omega laser facility.
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 05 05
FGS
REacq 08 08
OBAD
with Maneuver 26 26
SIGNIFICANT
EVENTS: (None)