HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to Collect World Class Science

DAILY REPORT #5134

PERIOD COVERED: 5am July 8 - 5am July 9, 2010 (DOY 189/09:00z-190/09:00z)

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               5              5

FGS REAcq               7              7

OBAD with Maneuver 4              4

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None)

OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED:

COS/FUV/STIS/CCD/MA1 11592

Testing the Origin(s) of the Highly Ionized High-Velocity Clouds: A

Survey of Galactic Halo Stars at z>3 kpc

Cosmological simulation predicts that highly ionized gas plays an

important role in the formation and evolution of galaxies and their

interplay with the intergalactic medium. The NASA HST and FUSE missions

have revealed high-velocity CIV and OVI absorption along extragalactic

sightlines through the Galactic halo. These highly ionized high-velocity

clouds (HVCs) could cover 85% of the sky and have a detection rate

higher than the HI HVCs. Two competing, equally exciting, theories may

explain the origin of these highly ionized HVCs: 1) the "Galactic"

theory, where the HVCs are the result of feedback processes and trace

the disk-halo mass exchange, perhaps including the accretion of matter

condensing from an extended corona; 2) the "Local Group" theory, where

they are part of the local warm-hot intergalactic medium, representing

some of the missing baryonic matter of the Universe. Only direct

distance determinations can discriminate between these models. Our group

has found that some of these highly ionized HVCs have a Galactic origin,

based on STIS observations of one star at z<5.3 kpc. We propose an HST

FUV spectral survey to search for and characterize the high velocity NV,

CIV, and SiIV interstellar absorption toward 24 stars at much larger

distances than any previous searches (4<d<21 kpc, 3<|z|<13 kpc). COS

will provide atomic to highly ionized species (e.g.,OI, CII, CIV, SiIV)

that can be observed at sufficient resolution (R~22, 000) to not only

detect these highly ionized HVCs but also to model their properties and

understand their physics and origins. This survey is only possible

because of the high sensitivity of COS in the FUV spectral range.

COS/NUV/FUV 11598

How Galaxies Acquire their Gas: A Map of Multiphase Accretion and

Feedback in Gaseous Galaxy Halos

We propose to address two of the biggest open questions in galaxy

formation - how galaxies acquire their gas and how they return it to the

IGM - with a concentrated COS survey of diffuse multiphase gas in the

halos of SDSS galaxies at z = 0.15 - 0.35. Our chief science goal is to

establish a basic set of observational facts about the physical state,

metallicity, and kinematics of halo gas, including the sky covering

fraction of hot and cold material, the metallicity of infall and

outflow, and correlations with galaxy stellar mass, type, and color -

all as a function of impact parameter from 10 - 150 kpc. Theory suggests

that the bimodality of galaxy colors, the shape of the luminosity

function, and the mass-metallicity relation are all influenced at a

fundamental level by accretion and feedback, yet these gas processes are

poorly understood and cannot be predicted robustly from first

principles. We lack even a basic observational assessment of the

multiphase gaseous content of galaxy halos on 100 kpc scales, and we do

not know how these processes vary with galaxy properties. This ignorance

is presently one of the key impediments to understanding galaxy

formation in general. We propose to use the high-resolution gratings

G130M and G160M on the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph to obtain sensitive

column density measurements of a comprehensive suite of multiphase ions

in the spectra of 43 z < 1 QSOs lying behind 43 galaxies selected from

the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. In aggregate, these sightlines will

constitute a statistically sound map of the physical state and

metallicity of gaseous halos, and subsets of the data with cuts on

galaxy mass, color, and SFR will seek out predicted variations of gas

properties with galaxy properties. Our interpretation of these data will

be aided by state-of-the-art hydrodynamic simulations of accretion and

feedback, in turn providing information to refine and test such models.

We will also use Keck, MMT, and Magellan (as needed) to obtain optical

spectra of the QSOs to measure cold gas with Mg II, and optical spectra

of the galaxies to measure SFRs and to look for outflows. In addition to

our other science goals, these observations will help place

the Milky Way's population of multiphase, accreting High Velocity Clouds

(HVCs) into a global context by identifying analogous structures around

other galaxies. Our program is designed to make optimal use of the

unique capabilities of COS to address our science goals and also

generate a rich dataset of other absorption-line systems.

STIS/CC 11845

CCD Dark Monitor Part 2

Monitor the darks for the STIS CCD.

STIS/CC 11847

CCD Bias Monitor-Part 2

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 11694

Mapping the Interaction Between High-Redshift Galaxies and the

Intergalactic Environment

With the commissioning of the high-throughput large-area camera WFC3/IR,

it is possible for the first time to undertake an efficient survey of

the rest-frame optical morphologies of galaxies at the peak epoch of

star formation in the universe. We therefore propose deep WFC3/IR

imaging of over 320 spectroscopically confirmed galaxies between

redshift 1.6 < z < 3.4 in well-studied fields which lie along the line

of sight to bright background QSOs. The spectra of these bright QSOs

probe the IGM in the vicinity of each of the foreground galaxies along

the line of sight, providing detailed information on the physical state

of the gas at large galactocentric radii. In combination with our

densely sampled UV/IR spectroscopy, stellar population models, and

kinematic data in these fields, WFC3/IR imaging data will permit us to

construct a comprehensive picture of the structure, dynamics, and star

formation properties of a large population of galaxies in the early

universe and their effect upon their cosmological environment.

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/ACS/WFC 11663

Formation and Evolution of Massive Galaxies in the Richest Environments

at 1.5 < z < 2.0

We propose to image seven 1.5<z<2 clusters and groups from the IRAC

Shallow Cluster Survey with WFC3 and ACS in order to study the formation

and evolution of massive galaxies in the richest environments in the

Universe in this important redshift range. We will measure the evolution

of the sizes and morphologies of massive cluster galaxies, as a function

of redshift, richness, radius and local density. In combination with

allocated Keck spectroscopy, we will directly measure the dry merger

fraction in these clusters, as well as the evolution of Brightest

Cluster Galaxies (BCGs) over this redshift range where clear model

predictions can be confronted. Finally we will measure both the epoch of

formation of the stellar populations and the assembly history of that

stellar mass, the two key parameters in the modern galaxy formation

paradigm.

WFC3/UV/ACS/WFC 11710

The Extreme Globular Cluster System of Abell 1689: The Ultimate Test of

Universal Formation Efficiency

The stellar masses of the most luminous galaxies poorly represent the

masses of the halos in which they reside. However, recent studies of the

very rich globular cluster (GC) populations in the centers of galaxy

clusters point toward an apparently linear scaling of the number of GCs

with the total core mass of the galaxy cluster. Thus, unlike for the

stars in cD galaxies, GC formation in these systems appears to have

proceeded with a roughly universal mass conversion efficiency. GCs are

also distinct in that their spatial distributions are more extended than

the starlight, and recent simulations suggest that they follow the mass

density profile of the merged dark matter halos that formed stars at

high redshift. To provide a definitive test of the universal efficiency

hypothesis requires measuring the number of GCs in the most massive

galaxy clusters, where the number should be a factor of 5 or more

greater than seen in M87. Likewise, the relationship between GCs and

mass density can only be tested in systems where the total mass and mass

density are well-determined. Fortunately, the imaging power of HST

brings the GC population of Abell 1689, the most extreme high-mass

lensing cluster, into range. Estimates of the size of the A1689 GC

population from available data suggest an unprecedented 100, 000 GCs,

but this number is based on the tip of the iceberg and is extremely

uncertain. We propose to obtain the first accurate measurement of the

number of GCs and their density profile in this extraordinary system -

the most massive and most distant GC system ever studied - and thus make

the ultimate test of the universal GC formation hypothesis. Our deep

I-band image will also provide a stringent "null-detection" test of

several known z>7 galaxy candidates and improve the mass model of the

system by increasing the number of usable lensed background galaxies.

Finally, we will take deep multi-band parallel observations with WFC3/IR

to help in quantifying the abundance of rare faint red objects.

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).

WFC3/UVIS/IR 11644

A Dynamical-Compositional Survey of the Kuiper Belt: A New Window Into

the Formation of the Outer Solar System

The eight planets overwhelmingly dominate the solar system by mass, but

their small numbers, coupled with their stochastic pasts, make it

impossible to construct a unique formation history from the dynamical or

compositional characteristics of them alone. In contrast, the huge

numbers of small bodies scattered throughout and even beyond the

planets, while insignificant by mass, provide an almost unlimited number

of probes of the statistical conditions, history, and interactions in

the solar system. To date, attempts to understand the formation and

evolution of the Kuiper Belt have largely been dynamical simulations

where a hypothesized starting condition is evolved under the

gravitational influence of the early giant planets and an attempt is

made to reproduce the current observed populations. With little

compositional information known for the real Kuiper Belt, the test

particles in the simulation are free to have any formation location and

history as long as they end at the correct point. Allowing compositional

information to guide and constrain the formation, thermal, and

collisional histories of these objects would add an entire new dimension

to our understanding of the evolution of the outer solar system. While

ground based compositional studies have hit their flux limits already

with only a few objects sampled, we propose to exploit the new

capabilities of WFC3 to perform the first ever large-scale

dynamical-compositional study of Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs) and their

progeny to study the chemical, dynamical, and collisional history of the

region of the giant planets. The sensitivity of the WFC3 observations

will allow us to go up to two magnitudes deeper than our ground based

studies, allowing us the capability of optimally selecting a target list

for a large survey rather than simply taking the few objects that can be

measured, as we have had to do to date. We have carefully constructed a

sample of 120 objects which provides both overall breadth, for a general

understanding of these objects, plus a large enough number of objects in

the individual dynamical subclass to allow detailed comparison between

and within these groups. These objects will likely define the core

Kuiper Belt compositional sample for years to come. While we have many

specific results anticipated to come from this survey, as with any

project where the field is rich, our current knowledge level is low, and

a new instrument suddenly appears which can exploit vastly larger

segments of the population, the potential for discovery -- both

anticipated and not -- is extraordinary.