Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Lay, O..
The interferometer will operate in both a single spacecraft mode and a formation flying mode using two spacecraft. The primary goal is to validate interferometer and formation flying technology for future missions.
We report near-simultaneous interferometric measurements of the spectrum of Sgr A(sup *) over the 5 to 354 GHz range, and single-dish observations which have yielded the first detection of Sgr A(sup *) at 850 GHz. We confirm that Sgr A(sup *)'s spectrum rises more steeply at short mm wavelengths than at cm wavelengths, leading to a near-millimeter/submillimeter excess which dominates its luminosity. Below 900 GHz, Sgr A(sup *)'s observed luminosity is 70 +/- 30 solar luminosity). A new upper limit to Sgr A(sup *)'s 24.3 microns flux, together with a compilation of other extant IR data, imply a FIR spectral turnover, which can result either from an intrinsic synchrotron cutoff, or excess extinction near Sgr A(sup *). If the former applies, Sgr A(sup *)'s total synchrotron luminosity is less than 10(exp 3) solar luminosity, while in the latter case it is less than 3 x 10(exp 4) solar luminosity if spherical symmetry also applies.