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Daily Report #4519



 
 
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Old January 4th 08, 03:48 PM posted to sci.astro.hubble
Cooper, Joe
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Default Daily Report #4519

HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Continuing to collect World Class Science

DAILY REPORT***** # 4519

PERIOD COVERED: UT January 03, 2008 (DOY 003)

OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED

ACS/SBC 11145

Probing the Planet Forming Region of T Tauri Stars in Chamaeleon

By studying the inner, planet-forming regions of circumstellar disks
around low-mass pre- main sequence stars we can refine theories of
giant planet formation and develop timescales for the evolution of
disks and their planets. Spitzer infrared observations of T Tauri
stars in the Chamaeleon star-forming region have given us an
unprecedented look at dust evolution in young objects. However,
despite this ground breaking progress in studying the dust in young
disks, the gas properties of the inner disk remain essentially
unknown. Using ACS on HST, we propose to measure the H_2 emission
originating in the innermost disk regions of classical T Tauri stars
in different stages of evolution with the objective of revealing the
timescales of gas dissipation and its relationship to dust evolution.
This proposal is part of a comprehensive effort with approved programs
on Spitzer, Gemini, and Magellan that aim to characterize the state of
gas and dust in disks where planets may already have formed.

ACS/SBC 11158

HST Imaging of UV emission in Quiescent Early-type Galaxies

We have constructed a sample of early type galaxies at z~0.1 that have
blue UV-optical colors, yet also show no signs of optical emission, or
extended blue light. We have cross- correlated the SDSS catalog and
the Galaxy Evolution Explorer Medium Imaging Survey to select a sample
of galaxies where this UV emission is strongest. The origin of the UV
rising flux in these galaxies continues to be debated, and the
possibility that some fraction of these galaxies may be experiencing
low levels of star formation cannot be excluded. There is also a
possibility that low level AGN activity {as evidenced by a point
source} is responsbile We propose to image the UV emission using the
HST/SBC and to explore the morphology of the UV emission relative to
the optical light.

WFPC2 10583

Resolving the LMC Microlensing Puzzle: Where Are the Lensing Objects ?

We are requesting 32 HST orbits to help ascertain the nature of the
population that gives rise to the observed set of microlensing events
towards the LMC. The SuperMACHO project is an ongoing ground-based
survey on the CTIO 4m that has demonstrated the ability to detect LMC
microlensing events in real-time via frame subtraction. The
improvement in angular resolution and photometric accuracy available
from HST will allow us to 1} confirm that the detected flux excursions
arise from LMC source stars rather than extended objects {such as for
background supernovae or AGN}, and 2} obtain reliable baseline flux
measurements for the objects in their unlensed state. The latter
measurement is important to resolve degeneracies between the event
timescale and baseline flux, which will yield a tighter constraint on
the microlensing optical depth.

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 11142

Revealing the Physical Nature of Infrared Luminous Galaxies at 0.3

We aim to determine physical properties of IR luminous galaxies at
0.3z2.7 by requesting coordinated HST/NIC2 and MIPS 70um observations
of a unique, 24um flux- limited sample with complete Spitzer mid-IR
spectroscopy. The 150 sources investigated in this program have S{24um}
0.8mJy and their mid-IR spectra have already provided the majority

targets with spectroscopic redshifts {0.3z2.7}. The proposed
150~orbits of NIC2 and 66~hours of MIPS 70um will provide the physical
measurements of the light distribution at the rest-frame ~8000A and
better estimates of the bolometric luminosity. Combining these
parameters together with the rich suite of spectral diagnostics from
the mid-IR spectra, we will {1} measure how common mergers are among
LIRGs and ULIRGs at 0.3z2.7, and establish if major mergers are the
drivers of z1 ULIRGs, as in the local Universe. {2} study the
co-evolution of star formation and blackhole accretion by
investigating the relations between the fraction of starburst/AGN
measured from mid-IR spectra vs. HST morphologies, L{bol} and z. {3}
obtain the current best estimates of the far- IR emission, thus L{bol}
for this sample, and establish if the relative contribution of mid-to-
far IR dust emission is correlated with morphology {resolved vs.
unresolved}.

NIC2 11166

The Mass-dependent Evolution of the Black Hole-Bulge Relations

In the local universe, the masses of giant black holes are correlated
with the luminosities, masses and velocity dispersions of their host
galaxy bulges. This indicates a surprisingly close connection between
the evolution of galactic nuclei (on parsec scales) and of stars on
kpc scales. A key observational test of proposed explanations for
these correlations is to measure how they have evolved over cosmic
time. Our ACS imaging of 20 Seyfert 1 galaxies at z=0.37 showed them
to have smaller bulges (by a factor of 3) for a given central black
hole mass than is found in galaxies in the present-day universe.
However, since all our sample galaxies had black hole masses in the
range 10^8.0--8.5 Msun, we could only measure the OFFSET in black hole
mass to bulge luminosity ratios from the present epoch. By extending
this study to black hole masses another factor of 10 lower, we propose
to determine the full CORRELATION of black hole mass with host galaxy
properties at a lookback time of 4 Gyrs and to test mass-dependency of
the evolution. We have selected 14 Seyfert galaxies from SDSS DR5
whose narrow Hbeta emission lines (and estimated nuclear luminosities)
imply that they have black hole masses around 10^7 Msuns. We will soon
complete our Keck spectroscopic measures of their bulge velocity
dispersions. We need a 1-orbit NICMOS image of each galaxy to separate
its nonstellar luminosity from its bulge and disk. This will allow us
to make the first determination of the full black hole/bulge relations
at z=0.37 (e.g. M-L and M-sigma), as well as a test of whether active
galaxies obey the Fundamental Plane relation at that epoch.

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/NIC1 11083

The Structure, Formation and Evolution of Galactic Cores and Nuclei

A surprising result has emerged from the ACS Virgo Cluster Survey
{ACSVCS}, a program to obtain ACS/WFC gz imaging for a large, unbiased
sample of 100 early-type galaxies in the Virgo Cluster. On
subarcsecond scales {i.e., 0.1"-1"}, the HST brightness profiles vary
systematically from the brightest giants {which have nearly constant
surface brightness cores} to the faintest dwarfs {which have compact
stellar nuclei}. Remarkably, the fraction of galaxy mass contributed
by the nuclei in the faint galaxies is identical to that contributed
by supermassive black holes in the bright galaxies {0.2%}. These
findings strongly suggest that a single mechanism is responsible for
both types of Central Massive Object: most likely internally or
externally modulated gas inflows that feed central black holes or lead
to the formation of "nuclear star clusters". Understanding the history
of gas accretion, star formation and chemical enrichment on
subarcsecond scales has thus emerged as the single most pressing
question in the study of nearby galactic nuclei, either active or
quiescent. We propose an ambitious HST program {199 orbits} that
constitutes the next, obvious step forward: high-resolution,
ultraviolet {WFPC2/F255W} and infrared {NIC1/F160W} imaging for the
complete ACSVCS sample. By capitalizing on HST's unique ability to
provide high-resolution images with a sharp and stable PSF at UV and
IR wavelengths, we will leverage the existing optical HST data to
obtain the most complete picture currently possible for the history of
star formation and chemical enrichment on these small scales. Equally
important, this program will lead to a significant improvement in the
measured structural parameters and density distributions for the
stellar nuclei and the underlying galaxies, and provide a sensitive
measure of "frosting" by young stars in the galaxy cores. By virtue of
its superb image quality and stable PSF, NICMOS is the sole instrument
capable of the IR observations proposed here. In the case of the WFPC2
observations, high-resolution UV imaging { 0.1"} is a capability
unique to HST, yet one that could be lost at anytime.

WFPC2 11289

SL2S: The Strong Lensing Legacy Survey

Recent systematic surveys of strong galaxy-galaxy lenses {CLASS,
SLACS, GOODS, etc.} are producing spectacular results for galaxy
masses roughly below a transition mass M~10^13 Mo. The observed lens
properties and their evolution up to z~0.2, consistent with numerical
simulations, can be described by isothermal elliptical potentials. In
contrast, modeling of giant arcs in X-ray luminous clusters {halo
masses M ~10^13 Mo} favors NFW mass profiles, suggesting that dark
matter halos are not significantly affected by baryon cooling. Until
recently, lensing surveys were neither deep nor extended enough to
probe the intermediate mass density regime, which is fundamental for
understanding the assembly of structures. The CFHT Legacy Survey now
covers 125 square degrees, and thus offers a large reservoir of strong
lenses probing a large range of mass densities up to z~1. We have
extracted a list of 150 strong lenses using the most recent CFHTLS
data release via automated procedures. Following our first SNAPSHOT
proposal in cycle 15, we propose to continue the Hubble follow-up
targeting a larger list of 130 lensing candidates. These are
intermediate mass range candidates {between galaxies and clusters}
that are selected in the redshift range of 0.2-1 with no a priori
X-ray selection. The HST resolution is necessary for confirming the
lensing candidates, accurate modeling of the lenses, and probing the
total mass concentration in galaxy groups up to z~1 with the largest
unbiased sample available to date.

WFPC2 11290

Dynamical Masses and Third Bodies in the Sirius System

Sirius B is the nearest and brightest of all white dwarfs (WDs), but
it is fiendishly difficult to observe from the ground because of the
overwhelming brightness of Sirius A. We propose a continuation of our
program of imaging observations of the Sirius system with WFPC2, which
has been underway since 2001. The resulting astrometric data will not
only greatly improve the precision of the binary orbit and the
dynamical mass measurements for both the main-sequence and WD
components, but will also test definitively for the claimed presence
of a third body in this famous system, down to planetary masses. At
present, there is a tantalizing suggestion in our data that there
indeed may exist a substellar or planetary third body in the system.
Our team has also obtained superb spectra of Sirius B using STIS, and
we have achieved an excellent fit to the spectrum using model stellar
atmospheres. However, the implied mass of the WD disagrees
significantly with the dynamical mass implied by the existing
visual-binary orbit (which still has to be based on a combination of
low-accuracy ground-based astrometry plus the small number of existing
HST astrometric observations). This is another critical motivation for
improving the astrometry.

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**************** 13**************** 13
FGS REacq**************** 01**************** 01
OBAD with Maneuver** ** * 28**************** 28

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None)


 




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