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)