Daily # 4309

HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to collect World Class Science

DAILY REPORT # 4309

PERIOD COVERED: UT February 28, 2007 (DOY 059)

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 10918

Reducing Systematic Errors on the Hubble Constant: Metallicity
Calibration of the Cepheid PL Relation

Reducing the systematic errors on the Hubble constant is still of
significance and of immediate importance to modern cosmology. One of
the largest remaining uncertainties in the Cepheid-based distance
scale {which itself is at the foundation of the HST Key Project
determination of H_o} which can now be addressed directly by HST, is
the effect of metallicity on the Cepheid Period-Luminosity relation.
Three chemically distinct regions in M101 will be used to directly
measure and thereby calibrate the change in zero point of the Cepheid
PL relation over a range of metallicities that run from SMC-like,
through Solar, to metallicities as high as the most metal-enriched
galaxies in the pure Hubble flow. ACS for the first time offers the
opportunity to make a precise calibration of this effect which
currently accounts for at least a third of the total systematic
uncertainty on Ho. The calibration will be made in the V and I
bandpasses so as to be immediately and directly applicable to the
entire HST Cepheid-based distance scale sample, and most especially to
the highest-metallicity galaxies that were hosts to the Type Ia
supernovae, which were then used to extend the the distance scale
calibration out to cosmologically significant distances.

ACS/SBC 11052

Internal Flat Fields

FGS 10912

Trigonometric Calibration of the Distance Scale for Classical Novae

The distance scale for classical novae is important for understanding
the stellar physics of their thermonuclear runaways, their
contribution to Galactic nucleosynthesis, and their use as
extragalactic standard candles. Although it is known that there is a
relationship between their absolute magnitudes at maximum light and
their subsequent rates of decline--the well-known maximum-magnitude
rate-of-decline {MMRD} relation--it is difficult to set the zero-point
for the MMRD because of the very uncertain distances of Galactic
novae. We propose to measure precise trigonometric parallaxes for the
quiescent remnants of the four nearest classical novae. We will use
the Fine Guidance Sensors, which are proven to be capable of measuring
parallaxes with errors of ~0.2 mas, well below what is possible from
the ground.

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 10811

Morphology of a most spectactular Spitzer selected galaxy

By using ground based sub-millimeter observations to followup
Spitzer-selected galaxies, we have discovered a starburst dominated
hyperluminous infrared galaxy. A mid-infrared spectrum obtained with
Spitzer-IRS provides a redshift of z=1.325, which has been
subsequently confirmed using both NIR spectroscopy at Keck, and sub-mm
spectroscopy with IRAM and the CSO. By combining the Spitzer and
ground based sub-mm data, we measure an integrated IR luminosity of 4
x 10^13 Lsun. This is the only such object found in the 9 square
degree NDWFS survey, and hence is incredibly rare. The only other
dusty galaxies this bright show strong evidence of AGN activity, but
this source does not. One reason this object could be so bright is due
to lensing, and indeed a foreground source spectroscopically confirmed
at z=1.034 seems directly aligned with the target. However it is
unlikely that the geometry of this galaxy-galaxy lensing system could
support an amplification more than a factor of a few. Our IRAC images
reveal very faint and red satellite systems near our target, hence
another possibility is that the galaxy is so luminous because of
merging induced star-formation activity. Morphology is the best way to
discriminate between these hypotheses, and hence HST observations are
essential since the scales on which the merging or lensing are
occuring are much smaller than what can be resolved from the ground.

NIC2 10906

The Fundamental Plane of Massive Gas-Rich Mergers: II. The QUEST QSOs

We propose deep NICMOS H-band imaging of a carefully selected sample
of 23 local QSOs. This program is the last critical element of a
comprehensive investigation of the most luminous mergers in the nearby
universe, the ultraluminous infrared galaxies {ULIRGs} and the
quasars. This effort is called QUEST: Quasar / ULIRG Evolutionary
STudy. The high-resolution HST images of the QUEST QSOs will
complement an identical set of images on the ULIRG sample obtained
during Cycle 12, an extensive set of ground- based data that include
long-slit NIR spectra from a Large VLT Program, and a large set of
mid-infrared spectra from a Cycle 1 medium-size program with Spitzer.
This unique dataset will allow us to derive with unprecedented
precision structual, kinematic, and activity parameters for a large
unbiased sample of objects spanning the entire ULIRG/QSO luminosity
function. These data will refine the fundamental plane of massive
gas-rich mergers and enable us to answer the following quesitons: {1}
Do ultraluminous mergers form elliptical galaxies, and in particular,
giant ellipticals? {2} Do ULIRGs evolve into optical bright QSOs? The
results from this detailed study of massive mergers in the local
universe will be relevant to understanding the basic physical
processes involved in creating massive early-type host on the one
hand, and growing/feeding embedded massive black holes on the other,
in major galaxy mergers. This is an important question since 50% of
cosmic star formation at high-z and most of the big BHs appear to be
formed in this process.

NIC2 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 Type Ia supernovae at
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 Type Ia supernovae with NICMOS, reducing the
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 Type Ia supernovae at z 1. Together,
these 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 10792

Quasars at Redshift z=6 and Early Star Formation History

We propose to observe four high-redshift quasars {z=6} in the NIR in
order to estimate relative Fe/Mg abundances and the central black hole
mass. The results of this study will critically constrain models of
joint quasar and galaxy formation, early star formation, and the
growth of supermassive black holes. Different time scales and yields
for alpha-elements {like O or Mg} and for iron result into an iron
enrichment delay of ~0.3 to 0.6 Gyr. Hence, despite the well-known
complexity of the FeII emission line spectrum, the ratio iron/alpha -
element is a potentially useful cosmological clock. The central black
hole mass will be estimated based on a recently revised back hole mass
- luminosity relationship. The time delay of the iron enrichment and
the time required to form a supermassive black hole {logM8 Msol, tau
~0.5Gyr} as evidenced by quasar activity will be used to date the
beginning of the first intense star formation, marking the formation
of the first massive galaxies that host luminous quasars, and to
constrain the epoch when supermassive black holes start to grow by
accretion.

NIC3 10836

The Red Sequence at 1.3 z 1.4 in Galaxy Clusters

We propose to obtain NIC3/F160W imaging of three new IRAC-selected
galaxy clusters at 1.3 z 1.5. In combination with deep ACS/F850LP
images being obtained in Cycle 14, the resulting precision photometry
in a rest ~U - R color will allow us to construct color- magnitude
diagrams which can be used to measure the slope and scatter in the red
sequence galaxies, thereby constraining the history of star formation
in the early-type galaxies. The number of morphologically-selected
early-type galaxies more luminous than L* will allow us to test the
predictions of the hierarchical merging scenario for galaxy formation
in clusters at the highest available redshifts in galaxy clusters.

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 11096

Hubble Heritage imaging of Jupiter during the New Horizons encounter
HST Proposal 11096

WFPC2 images of Jupiter in Feb 2007 in support of New Horizons flyby
of Jupiter. This Hubble Heritage DD program is working in concert with
the existing GO programs by John Clarke {10862} and John Spencer
{10871}.

FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:

Significant Spacecraft Anomalies: (The following are preliminary
reports of potential non-nominal performance that will be
investigated.)

HSTARS:

10718 - OBAD Failed Identification (ESB 1902)

OBAD1 scheduled at 059/10:00:14 failed. At 10:03:03 OBAD1 had a RSS
value of 42159.69. OBAD2 and the GSacq were successful

10719 - GSACQ(2,1,2) fine lock backup on FGS 2

GSACQ(2,1,2) at 059/11:53:16 acquired in fine lock backup on FGS 2
only, with QF1STOPF and QSTOP flags set on FGS 1 at 11:57:56. No other
flags were seen.

GSACQ(2,1,2) at 059/13:29:11 also acquired in fine lock backup on FGS
2 only, with QF1STOPF and QSTOP flags set on FGS 1, same guide stars
as previous GSACQ.

10721 - GSAcq (1,0,1) failed to RGA Hold

GSAcq (1,0,1) scheduled from 059/21:30:02-21:35:42 failed to RGA Hold
(Gyro Control) due to QF1STOPF & QSTOP flaggs on FGS 1.
OBAD #1: V1 -338.20, V2 -3747.54, V3 1196.53, RSS 3948.43
OBAD #2: V1 2.42, V2 -0.67, V3 -17.09, RSS 17.28

COMPLETED OPS REQUEST: (None)

COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None)

SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL

FGS GSacq 12 11
FGS REacq 03 03
OBAD with Maneuver 31 30

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None)