HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to Collect World Class Science

DAILY REPORT       #5036

PERIOD COVERED: 5am February 18 - 5am February 19, 2010 (DOY 049/10:00z-050/10:00z)

OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED

ACS/WFC3 11882

CCD Hot Pixel Annealing

All the data for this program is acquired using internal targets (lamps)

only, so all of the exposures should be taken during Earth occultation

time (but not during SAA passages). This program emulates the ACS

pre-flight ground calibration and post launch SMOV testing (program

8948), so that results from each epoch can be directly compared.

Extended Pixel Edge Response (EPER) and First Pixel Response (FPR) data

will be obtained over a range of signal levels for the Wide Field

Channel (WFC). The High Resolution Channel (HRC) visits have been

removed since it could not be repaired during SM4.

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.

COS/NUV/FUV 11727

UV Spectroscopy of Local Lyman Break Galaxy Analogs: New Clues to Galaxy

Formation in the Early Universe

Much of our information about galaxy evolution and the interaction

between galaxies and the IGM at high-z has been provided by the Lyman

Break Galaxies (LBGs). However, it is difficult to investigate these

faint and distant objects in detail. To address this, we have used the

GALEX All-Sky Imaging Survey and the SDSS to identify for the first time

a rare population of low- redshift galaxies with properties remarkably

similar to the high-redshift LBGs. These local "Lyman Break Analogs"

(LBAs) resemble LBGs in terms of morphology, size, UV luminosity, star

formation rate, UV surface brightness, stellar mass, velocity

dispersion, metallicity, and dust content. We are assembling a wide

range of data on these objects with the goal of using them as local

laboratories for better understanding the relevant astrophysical

processes in LBGs. These data include HST imaging (95 orbits in Cy15 and

16), Spitzer photometry and spectroscopy, Chandra and XMM X-ray imaging

and spectroscopy, and near-IR integral field spectroscopy (VLT, Keck,

and Gemini). In this proposal we are requesting the most important

missing puzzle piece: far-UV spectra with a signal-to-noise and spectral

resolution significantly better than available for typical LBGs. We will

use these spectra to study the LBA's galactic winds, probe the processes

that regulate the escape of Ly-a and Lyman continuum radiation,

determine chemical abundances for the stars and gas, and constrain the

form of the high-end of the Initial Mass Function. Adding these new COS

data will give us vital information about these extraordinary sites of

star formation in the local universe. In so-doing it will also shed new

light on the processes that led to the formation of stars, the building

of galaxies, and the enrichment and heating of the IGM in the early

universe.

S/C/STIS/CC/MA/FUV 11621

SDSS J1507: The First Halo CV or the First CV Born With a Brown Dwarf

Donor?

The eclipsing cataclysmic variable (CV) SDSS J1507 has an orbital period

well below the period minimum obeyed by other CVs. Furthermore, it

contains a cool, pulsating primary white dwarf (WD) and a sub-stellar

brown-dwarf (BD) companion. We have now discovered that J1507 is also a

high proper motion star, with a transverse velocity much higher than

other CVs. These characteristics can all be reconciled if the system is

the first Galactic halo CV to be discovered. However, there is one

possible alternative explanation, according to which the system formed

only recently from a detached WD-BD binary system. Here, we propose a

definitive test of these two scenarios by using time-resolved, FUV + NUV

spectroscopy to determine the metallicity of the system. The outcome of

this test will have an immediate impact on our understanding of the

Galactic CV population and of close binary evolution more generally. We

will also measure the wavelength-dependence of the WD pulsation

amplitudes in J1507 and determine high precision binary parameters based

on a combination of spectroscopic modeling and eclipse analysis. As a

result, J1507 will become the benchmark for theoretical studies of CV

evolution and the first proper calibrator for models of pulsations in

accreting WDs.

STIS/CCD 11844

CCD Dark Monitor Part 1

The purpose of this proposal is to monitor the darks for the STIS CCD.

STIS/CCD 11846

CCD Bias Monitor-Part 1

The purpose of this proposal is to 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/IR 11202

The Structure of Early-type Galaxies: 0.1-100 Effective Radii

The structure, formation and evolution of early-type galaxies is still

largely an open problem in cosmology: how does the Universe evolve from

large linear scales dominated by dark matter to the highly non-linear

scales of galaxies, where baryons and dark matter both play important,

interacting, roles? To understand the complex physical processes

involved in their formation scenario, and why they have the tight

scaling relations that we observe today (e.g. the Fundamental Plane), it

is critically important not only to understand their stellar structure,

but also their dark-matter distribution from the smallest to the largest

scales. Over the last three years the SLACS collaboration has developed

a toolbox to tackle these issues in a unique and encompassing way by

combining new non-parametric strong lensing techniques, stellar

dynamics, and most recently weak gravitational lensing, with

high-quality Hubble Space Telescope imaging and VLT/Keck spectroscopic

data of early-type lens systems. This allows us to break degeneracies

that are inherent to each of these techniques separately and probe the

mass structure of early-type galaxies from 0.1 to 100 effective radii.

The large dynamic range to which lensing is sensitive allows us both to

probe the clumpy substructure of these galaxies, as well as their

low-density outer haloes. These methods have convincingly been

demonstrated, by our team, using smaller pilot-samples of SLACS lens

systems with HST data. In this proposal, we request observing time with

WFC3 and NICMOS to observe 53 strong lens systems from SLACS, to obtain

complete multi-color imaging for each system. This would bring the total

number of SLACS lens systems to 87 with completed HST imaging and

effectively doubles the known number of galaxy-scale strong lenses. The

deep HST images enable us to fully exploit our new techniques, beat down

low-number statistics, and probe the structure and evolution of early-

type galaxies, not only with a uniform data-set an order of magnitude

larger than what is available now, but also with a fully-coherent and

self-consistent methodological approach!

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<z<1.8 to measure the evolution of the extinction-corrected

star formation density across the peak epoch of star formation. This is

over an order-of-magnitude improvement in the current statistics, from

the NICMOS Parallel grism survey. (5) Trace ``cosmic downsizing" from

0.5<z<2.2; and (6) Estimate the evolution in reddening and metallicty in

star- forming galaxies and measure the evolution of the Seyfert

population. For hundreds of spectra we will be able to measure one or

even two line pair ratios -- in particular, the Balmer decrement and

[OII]/[OIII] are sensitive to gas reddening and metallicity. As a bonus,

the G102 grism offers the possibility of detecting Lya emission at

z=7-8.8.

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 11915

IR Internal Flat Fields

This program is the same as 11433 (SMOV) and depends on the completion

of the IR initial alignment (Program 11425). This version contains three

instances of 37 internal orbits: to be scheduled early, middle, and near

the end of Cycle 17, in order to use the entire 110-orbit allocation.

In this test, we will study the stability and structure of the IR

channel flat field images through all filter elements in the WFC3-IR

channel. Flats will be monitored, i.e. to capture any temporal trends in

the flat fields and delta flats produced. High signal observations will

provide a map of the pixel-to-pixel flat field structure, as well as

identify the positions of any dust particles.

WFC3/IR 11926

IR Zero Points

We will measure and monitor the zeropoints through the IR filters using

observations of the white dwarf standard stars, GD153, GD71 and GD191B2B

and the solar analog standard star, P330E. Data will be taken monthly

during Cycle 17. Observations of the star cluster, NGC 104, are made

twice to check color transformations. We expect an accuracy of 2% in the

wide filter zeropoints relative to the HST photometric system, and 5% in

the medium- and narrow-band filters.

WFC3/IR 11930

IR Gain Measurement

The gain of the IR channel of WFC3 will be measured using a series of

internal flat fields. Using knowledge gained from ground testing, we

propose to collect flat field ramps which will be used to create photon

transfer curves and give a measure of the gain. By using two filters

centered at similar wavelengths but differing bandwidths, we will be

able to search for any flux- dependent changes in the the measure of the

gain.

WFC3/UVIS 11594

A WFC3 Grism Survey for Lyman Limit Absorption at z=2

We propose to conduct a spectroscopic survey of Lyman limit absorbers at

redshifts 1.8 < z < 2.5, using WFC3 and the G280 grism. This proposal

intends to complete an approved Cycle 15 SNAP program (10878), which was

cut short due to the ACS failure. We have selected 64 quasars at 2.3 < z

< 2.6 from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Spectroscopic Quasar Sample, for

which no BAL signature is found at the QSO redshift and no strong metal

absorption lines are present at z > 2.3 along the lines of sight. The

survey has three main observational goals. First, we will determine the

redshift frequency dn/dz of the LLS over the column density range 16.0 <

log(NHI) < 20.3 cm^-2. Second, we will measure the column density

frequency distribution f(N) for the partial Lyman limit systems (PLLS)

over the column density range 16.0 < log(NHI) < 17.5 cm^-2. Third, we

will identify those sightlines which could provide a measurement of the

primordial D/H ratio. By carrying out this survey, we can also help

place meaningful constraints on two key quantities of cosmological

relevance. First, we will estimate the amount of metals in the LLS using

the f(N), and ground based observations of metal line transitions.

Second, by determining f(N) of the PLLS, we can constrain the amplitude

of the ionizing UV background at z~2 to a greater precision. This survey

is ideal for a snapshot observing program, because the on-object

integration times are all well below 30 minutes, and follow-up

observations from the ground require minimal telescope time due to the

QSO sample being bright.

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).

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               8               8       

FGS REAcq               9               9       

OBAD with Maneuver 6               6       

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None)