HUBBLE
SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to collect World Class Science
DAILY
REPORT # 4540
PERIOD
COVERED: UT February 04, 2007 (DOY 035)
OBSERVATIONS
SCHEDULED
ACS/SBC
10862
Comprehensive
Auroral Imaging of Jupiter and Saturn during the
International
Heliophysical Year
A
comprehensive set of observations of the auroral emissions from
Jupiter
and Saturn is proposed for the International Heliophysical Year
in
2007, a unique period of especially concentrated measurements of
space
physics phenomena throughout the solar system. We propose to
determine
the physical relationship of the various auroral processes at
Jupiter
and Saturn with conditions in the solar wind at each planet.
This
can be accomplished with campaigns of observations, with a sampling
interval
not to exceed one day, covering at least one solar rotation.
The
solar wind plasma density approaching Jupiter will be measured by
the
New Horizons spacecraft, and a separate campaign near opposition in
May
2007 will determine the effect of large-scale variations in the
interplanetary
magnetic field {IMF} on the Jovian aurora by
extrapolation
from near-Earth solar wind measurements. A similar Saturn
campaign
near opposition in Jan. 2007 will combine extrapolated solar
wind
data with measurements from a wide range of locations within the
Saturn
magnetosphere by Cassini. In the course of making these
observations,
it will be possible to fully map the auroral footprints of
Io
and the other satellites to determine both the local magnetic field
geometry
and the controlling factors in the electromagnetic interaction
of
each satellite with the corotating magnetic field and plasma density.
Also
in the course of making these observations, the auroral emission
properties
will be compared with the properties of the near-IR
ionospheric
emissions {from ground-based observations} and non thermal
radio
emissions, from ground-based observations for Jupiter’s decametric
radiation
and Cassini plasma wave measurements of the Saturn Kilometric
Radiation
{SKR}.
WFPC2
11024
WFPC2
CYCLE 15 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.
NIC1/NIC2/NIC3
8795
NICMOS
Post-SAA calibration - CR Persistence Part 6
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 DARKSs. 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 i
mages.
Each observation will need its own CRMAP, as different SAA
passages
leave different imprints on the NICMOS detectors.
NIC3/ACS/SBC
11236
Did
Rare, Large Escape-Fraction Galaxies Reionize the Universe?
Lyman
continuum photons produced in massive starbursts may have played a
dominant
role in the reionization of the Universe. Starbursts are
important
contributors to the ionizing metagalactic background at lower
redshifts
as well. However, their contribution to the background depends
upon
the fraction of ionizing radiation that escapes from the intrinsic
opacity
of galaxies below the Lyman limit. Current surveys suggest that
the
escape fraction is close to zero in most galaxies, even among young
starbursts,
but is large in 15-25% of them. Non-uniform escape fractions
are
expected as a result of violent events creating clear paths in small
parts
of galaxies. The number of galaxies observed with high escape
fraction
will result from the combination of the intrinsic number with
clear
lines of sight and their orientation with respect to the observer.
We
propose to measure the fraction of escaping Lyman continuum radiation
in
a large sample (47) of z~0.7 starbursts in the COSMOS field. These
compact
UV-lumnious galaxies are good analogs to high redshift LBGs.
Using
the SBC/PR130L we can quickly (1-4 orbits) detect relative escape
fractions
(f_LC/f_1500) of 25% or more. This will be the first
measurement
of the escape fraction in sources between z=1 and the local
universe.
We expect ~10 detections. Stacking will set limits of <4% on
the
relative escape fraction in the rest. We will correlate the LC
detections
with the properties of the galaxies. By targeting z~0.7 in
COSMOS,
we will have tremendous ancillary information on those sources.
A
non-detection in all sources would be significant (99% confidence).
This
would imply that QSOs provide the overwhelming majority of ionizing
radtion
at z<1, requiring substantial evolution in the processes within
Lyman
break galaxies which allow large escape fractions at high
redshift.
WFPC2
11022
WFPC2
Cycle 15 Decontaminations and Associated Observations
This
proposal is for the WFPC2 decons. Also included are instrument
monitors
tied to decons: photometric stability check, focus monitor,
pre-
and post-decon internals {bias, intflats, kspots, & darks}, UV
throughput
check, VISFLAT sweep, and internal UV flat check.
WFPC2
11029
WFPC2
CYCLE 15 Intflat Linearity Check and Filter Rotation Anomaly
Monitor
Intflat
observations will be taken to provide a linearity check: the
linearity
test consists of a series of intflats in F555W, in each gain
and
each shutter. A combination of intflats, visflats, and earthflats
will
be used to check the repeatability of filter wheel motions.
{Intflat
sequences tied to decons, visits 1-18 in prop 10363, have been
moved
to the cycle 15 decon proposal xxxx for easier scheduling.} Note:
long-exposure
WFPC2 intflats must be scheduled during ACS anneals to
prevent
stray light from the WFPC2 lamps from contaminating long ACS
external
exposures.
WFPC2
11070
WFPC2
CYCLE 15 Standard Darks - part II
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
11084
Probing
the Least Luminous Galaxies in the Local Universe
We
propose to obtain deep color-magnitude data of eight new Local Group
galaxies
which we recently discovered: Andromeda XI, Andromeda XII, and
Andromeda
XIII {satellites of M31}; Canes Venatici I, Canes Venatici II,
Hercules,
and Leo IV {satellites of the Milky Way}; and Leo T, a new
"free-floating"
Local Group dwarf spheroidal with evidence for recent
star
formation and associated H I gas. These represent the least
luminous
galaxies known at *any* redshift, and are the only accessible
laboratories
for studying this extreme regime of galaxy formation. With
deep
WFPC-2 F606W and F814W pointings at their centers, we will
determine
whether these objects contain single or multiple age stellar
populations,
as well as whether these objects display a range of
metallicities.
WFPC2
11178
Probing
Solar System History with Orbits, Masses, and Colors of
Transneptunian
Binaries
The
recent discovery of numerous transneptunian binaries {TNBs} opens a
window
into dynamical conditions in the protoplanetary disk where they
formed
as well as the history of subsequent events which sculpted the
outer
Solar System and emplaced them onto their present day heliocentric
orbits.
To date, at least 47 TNBs have been discovered, but only about a
dozen
have had their mutual orbits and separate colors determined,
frustrating
their use to investigate numerous important scientific
questions.
The current shortage of data especially cripples scientific
investigations
requiring statistical comparisons among the ensemble
characteristics.
We propose to obtain sufficient astrometry and
photometry
of 23 TNBs to compute their mutual orbits and system masses
and
to determine separate primary and secondary colors, roughly tripling
the
sample for which this information is known, as well as extending it
to
include systems of two near-equal size bodies. To make the most
efficient
possible use of HST, we will use a Monte Carlo
technique to
optimally
schedule our observations.
WFPC2
11289
SL2S:
The Strong Lensing Legacy Survey
Recent
systematic surveys of strong galaxy-galaxy lenses {CLASS, SLACS,
GOODS,
etc.} are producing spectacular results for galaxy masses roughly
below
a transition mass M~10^13 Mo. The observed lens properties and
their
evolution up to z~0.2, consistent with numerical simulations, can
be
described by isothermal elliptical potentials. In contrast, modeling
of
giant arcs in X-ray luminous clusters {halo masses M >~10^13 Mo}
favors
NFW mass profiles, suggesting that dark matter halos are not
significantly
affected by baryon cooling. Until recently, lensing
surveys
were neither deep nor extended enough to probe the intermediate
mass
density regime, which is fundamental for understanding the assembly
of
structures. The CFHT Legacy Survey now covers 125 square degrees, and
thus
offers a large reservoir of strong lenses probing a large range of
mass
densities up to z~1. We have extracted a list of 150 strong lenses
using
the most recent CFHTLS data release via automated procedures.
Following
our first SNAPSHOT proposal in cycle 15, we propose to
continue
the Hubble follow-up targeting a larger list of 130 lensing
candidates.
These are intermediate mass range candidates {between
galaxies
and clusters} that are selected in the redshift range of 0.2-1
with
no a priori X-ray selection. The HST resolution is necessary for
confirming
the lensing candidates, accurate modeling of the lenses, and
probing
the total mass concentration in galaxy groups up to z~1 with the
largest
unbiased sample available to date.
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
08
08
FGS
REacq
07
07
OBAD
with Maneuver
30
30
SIGNIFICANT
EVENTS: (None)