HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to collect World Class
Science
DAILY REPORT # 4303
PERIOD COVERED: UT February 20, 2007 (DOY 051)
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}.
ACS/SBC 11048
SBC MAMA Recovery
Procedure to be used when ACS MAMA anomalously shuts down.
Recovery
procedure is designed to carefully bring the MAMA back to
operating
condition while watching for possible problems. The final
step is to do
a fold analysis which gives detailed information about how
well the
instrument is performing. Only the first four visits are
to be executed.
Visits 5 to 7 whih are a repaeat of 1 to 4 are to be kept
on hold.
NIC1 10879
A search for planetary-mass companions to the nearest L
dwarfs -
completing the survey
We propose to extend the most sensitive survey yet
undertaken for very
low-mass companions to ultracool dwarfs. We will use
NICMOS to complete
imaging of an all-sky sample of 87 L dwarfs in 80 systems
within 20
parsecs of the Sun. The combination of infrared imaging
and proximity
allows us to search for companions with mass ratios
q>0.25 at
separations exceeding ~3 AU, while probing companions with
q>0.5 at ~1.5
AU separation. This resolution is crucial, since no
ultracool binaries
are known in the field with separations exceeding 15 AU.
Fifty L dwarfs
from the 20-parsec sample have high- resolution imaging,
primarily
through our Cycle 13 HST proposal which identified six new
binaries,
including an L/T system. Here, we propose to target the
remaining 30
dwarfs
NIC1/NIC2/NIC3 11060
NICMOS Photometric Stability Monitoring
This NICMOS calibration proposal carries out photometric
monitoring
observations during Cycle 15. The format is the same as
the Cycle 14
version of the program {10725}, but a few modifications
were made with
respect to the Cycle 12 program 9995 and Cycle 13 program
10381.
Provisions had to be made to adopt to 2-gyro mode {G191B2B
was added as
extra target to provide target visibility through most of
the year}.
Where before 4 or 7 dithers were made in a filter before
we moved to the
next filter, now we observe all filters at one position
before moving to
the next dither position. While the previous method was
chosen to
minimize the effect of persistence, we now realize that
persistence may
be connected to charge trapping and by moving through the
filter such
that the count rate increases, we reach equilibrium more
quickly between
charge being trapped and released. We have also increased
exposure times
where possible to reduce the charge trapping non-
linearity effects.
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 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
images. Each observation will need its own CRMAP, as
different SAA
passages leave different imprints on the NICMOS detectors.
NIC2, ACS/WFC 10802
SHOES-Supernovae, HO, for the Equation of State of Dark
energy
The present uncertainty in the value of the Hubble
constant {resulting
in an uncertainty in Omega_M} and the paucity of
redshifts exceeding 1 are now the leading obstacles to
determining the
nature of dark energy. We propose a single, integrated set
of
observations for Cycle 15 that will provide a 40%
improvement in
constraints on dark energy. This program will observe
known Cepheids in
six reliable hosts of
uncertainty in H_0 by a factor of two because of the
smaller dispersion
along the instability strip, the diminished extinction,
and the weaker
metallicity dependence in the infrared. In parallel with
ACS, at the
same time the NICMOS observations are underway, we will
discover and
follow a sample of
measurements, along with prior constraints from WMAP, will
provide a
great improvement in HST's ability to distinguish between
a static,
cosmological constant and dynamical dark energy. The
Hubble Space
Telescope is the only instrument in the world that can
make these IR
measurements of Cepheids beyond the Local Group, and it is
the only
telescope in the world that can be used to find and follow
supernovae at
z > 1. Our program exploits both of these unique
capabilities of HST to
learn more about one of the greatest mysteries in science.
NIC3 10899
Identifying z>7 galaxies from J-dropouts
NICMOS Parallel Imaging campaigns covered enough sky {250
pointings}
with enough sensitivity in the 110W and 160W filters to
identify 6
extremely red resolved sources which are prime candidates
for J-band
dropouts. Their complete absence of detectable J band flux
can be caused
by an opaque Lyman cut-off at z=8-10. We propose to
followup these
candidates with NICMOS imaging and jointly propose Spitzer
IRAC
photometry. Deep F110W and Spitzer/IRAC 3.5/4.8 micron
imaging will
confirm if any of these candidates are indeed Lyman Break
galaxies
observed less than 500 Myrs after the Big Bang. Genuine
LBGs will remain
undetected in F110W, while being detected with flat
spectra in the IRAC
bands. The combined SED will provide information about the
stellar mass
of these galaxies, and the possible presence of evolved
stars or dust
reddening. The proposed observations will be sensitive
enough to detect
the F110W flux from galaxies as red as {J- H}=2.8 {AB
mags, 5 sigma}. If
any of the candidates are detected with bluer colors, they
will most
likely be exceptional "Distant Red Galaxies" at
z of 4 to 6. The
proposed data will constrain the stellar populations of
these
extraordinarily red galaxies, which would be candidates
for the
earliest, most massive galaxies which formed.
WFPC2 10871
Observations of the Galilean Satellites in Support of the
New Horizons
Flyby
On February 28 2007 the New Horizons {NH} spacecraft will
fly by Jupiter
on its way to Pluto, and will conduct an extensive series
of
observations of the Jupiter system, including the Galilean
satellites.
We propose HST observations to support and complement the
New Horizons
observations in four ways: 1} Determine the distribution
and variability
of Io's plumes in the two weeks before NH closest
approach, to look for
correlations with Io- derived dust streams that may be
detected by New
Horizons, to understand the origin of the dust streams; 2}
Imaging of
SO2 and S2 gas absorption in Io's plumes in Jupiter
transit, which
cannot be done by NH; 3} Color imaging of Io's surface to
determine the
effects of the plumes and volcanos seen by New Horizons on
the surface-
New Horizons cannot image the sunlit surface in color due
to saturation;
4} Imaging of far-UV auroral emissions from the
atmospheres of Io,
Europa, and Ganymede in Jupiter eclipse, near-
simultaneously with
disk-integrated NH UV spectra, to locate the source of the
UV emissions
seen by NH and use the response of the satellite
atmospheres to the
eclipse to constrain production mechanisms.
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 11092
Hubble Heritage Observations of Arp 87
The Hubble Heritage team will use a single pointing of
WFPC2 to obtain
F450W, F555W, F656N, and F814W images of Arp 87 as part of
a public
release image.
FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:
Significant Spacecraft Anomalies: (The following are
preliminary reports
of potential non-nominal performance that will be
investigated.)
HSTARS:
10703 - GSAcq (1,2,2) failed due to Search Radius Limit
Exceeded on FGS 2
At 051/10:12:54 GSAcq (1,2,2)
scheduled from 051/10:09:22-10:16:41
failed due to search radius
limit exceeded on FGS 2. Received one (1)
486 ESB 1808 (TxG FHST Sanity
Check Failed) and one (1) a05 (Exceeded
SRL).
OBAD #1 RSS: 1422.72 a-s
OBAD #2 RSS: 7.12 a-s
OBAD MAP RSS: 16.08 a-s
10704 - REAcqs(1,2,2) failed to RGA Hold (Gyro Control)
Upon acquisition of signal, the
REAcq(1,2,2) scheduled at 051/11:43:48
had failed to RGA Hold due to
search radius limit exceeded on FGS2.
Pre-reacq OBADs (RSS) values
not available due to LOS.
COMPLETED OPS REQUEST: (None)
COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None)
SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL
FGS GSacq 09 08
FGS REacq 05 03
OBAD with Maneuver 27 27
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS:
Flash Report: SBC - preliminary results
The first SBC images (science and calibration) were
acquired today (Day
051). All the telemetry indicates normal conditions. The
first internal
flats and dark frames are consistent with those pre-dating
the ACS Side
2 failure. There may be a small degradation in sensitivity
(on the order
of 1% or less at the shortest wavelengths). More
sensitivity data will
be acquired in the coming week.