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NASA NTRS2004

Spitzer Orbit Determination During In-orbit Checkout Phase

The Spitzer Space Telescope was injected into heliocentric orbit on August 25, 2003 to observe and study astrophysical phenomena in the infrared range of frequencies. The initial 60 days was dedicated to Spitzer's "In-Orbit Checkout (IOC)" efforts. During this time high levels of Helium venting were used to cool down the telescope. Attitude control was done using reaction wheels, which in turn were de-saturated using cold gas Nitrogen thrusting. Dense tracking data (nearly continuous) by the Deep Space network (DSN) were used to perform orbit determination and to assess any possible venting imbalance. Only Doppler data were available for navigation. This paper deals with navigation efforts during the IOC phase. It includes Dust Cover Ejection (DCE) monitoring, orbit determination strategy validation and results and assessment of non-gravitational accelerations acting on Spitzer including that due to possible imbalance in Helium venting.

helium venting↗

NASA NTRS2004

Execution of the Spitzer In-orbit Checkout and Science Verification Plan

The Spitzer Space Telescope is an 85-cm telescope with three cryogenically cooled instruments. Following launch, the observatory was initialized and commissioned for science operations during the in-orbit checkout (IOC) and science verification (SV) phases, carried out over a total of 98.3 days. The execution of the IOC/SV mission plan progressively established Spitzer capabilities taking into consideration thermal, cryogenic, optical, pointing, communications, and operational designs and constraints. The plan was carried out with high efficiency, making effective use of cryogen-limited flight time. One key component to the success of the plan was the pre-launch allocation of schedule reserve in the timeline of IOC/SV activities, and how it was used in flight both to cover activity redesign and growth due to continually improving spacecraft and instrument knowledge, and to recover from anomalies. This paper describes the adaptive system design and evolution, implementation, and lessons learned from IOC/SV operations. It is hoped that this information will provide guidance to future missions with similar engineering challenges

operations↗

NASA NTRS2006

Managing the On-Board Data Storage, Acknowledgement and Retransmission System for Spitzer

The Spitzer Space Telescope has a two-phase downlink system. Recorded data are transmitted during one telecom session. Then commands are sent during the next session to delete those data that were received on the ground and to retransmit those data that were missed. We must build science sequences that are as efficient as possible to make the best use of our supply of liquid helium. One way to improve efficiency is to use only the minimum time needed during telecom sessions to transmit the predicted volume of data. But, we must also not fill the on-board storage and must allow enough time margin to retransmit missed data. We describe tools and procedures that allow us to build science sequences that are single-fault tolerant in this regard and that allow us to recover quickly and safely from anomalies that affect the receipt or acknowledgment (i.e. deletion) of data.

on-board storage↗

NASA NTRS2004

A New Look at Stellar Outflows: Spitzer Observations of the HH 46/47 System

We present the Early Release Observations of the HH 46/47 system and HH 46 IRS 1 source, taken with the three instruments aboard the Spitzer Space Telescope. The optically invisible southwest lobe, driven by the HH 47C bow shock, is revealed in full detail by the Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) images and displays a 'loop'-like morphology. Both of the mid-infrared outflow lobes are narrower than those of CO flow. We believe that the combination of emission by H2 rotational lines [S(11)-S(4)] and some atomic lines, which fall within the IRAC passbands, are responsible for the bulk of the observed emission, although contributions from the 3.3, 6.2, and 7.7 micron polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon emission bands cannot be ruled out. Weak spectral features corresponding to these emitters are present in the Infrared Spectrograph spectrum of the HH 47A bow shock. The spectrum of HH 46 IRS 1 shows remarkable similarities to those of high-mass protostars, which include the presence of H2O, CO2, CH4, and possibly NH3, CH3OH, and ices. The high ice abundances and the lack of signs of thermal processing indicate that these ices in the envelope are well shielded from the powerful outflow and its cavity. Emission from the Bok globule at 24 micron is detected and displays a similar structure to that observed at 8 micron.

Herbig-Haro objects↗

NASA NTRS2011

Circumstellar Environments of Luminous Infrared Stellar Objects in the Magellanic Clouds

Young stars are formed out of the interstellar medium (ISM) which is replenished by mass loss rates from evolved stars. Circumstellar matter around young and evolved stellar objects usually emits energy in the infrared (IR) wavelength range as the matter is heated by the central star. Surveys of the Magellanic Clouds with the Spitzer Space Telescope in the 3.6-160 micron range have previously been completed. These surveys have led to catalogs of infrared sources: which include HII regions, young stars, super giants, asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, post-asymptotic giant branch (post-AGB) stars, and planetary nebulae. The utility of such surveys can be improved upon by using Hubble Space Telescope (HST) data. HST provides higher angular resolution than Spitzer and has allowed for more detailed investigation of these luminous IR objects. This project used previously obtained HST archival data to examine luminous IR objects at optical wavelengths. This allows for the reclassification of stellar objects previously thought as one type of object or in a particular stage of their stellar evolution. An overall objective of this project included looking for extended nebulosity around evolved stars to better understand the life cycle of such objects and classify these nebulae by shape.

large Magellanic clouds↗

NASA NTRS2005

Evolution of Galaxies and the Star Formation Rate in the Infrared

A central goal of extragalactic observational astronomy is to understand how normal galaxies evolve with redshift, and particularly when galaxies formed their stars. While optical and rest-frame UV observations have begun to address these issues, the interpretation of such data is particularly challenging because of the sensitivity to dust obscuration (at optical and UV wavelengths). The absorbed light is re-radiated at IR wavelengths, hence the optimal indicators of the star formation rate (SFR) is at a rest-frame wavelength of approx. 60 microns. The Spitzer Space Telescope mission is revolutionizing the study of the global properties and evolution of galaxies. Spitzer reaches nearly two orders of magnitude more sensitivity than previous IR space missions. This research program is to study the SFR using statistical samples of galaxies in the local universe, at intermediate redshifts, and set the stage for continuing studies up to z=5. The overall research program is divided into three main investigations: A Mid-IR Hubble Atlas and SFR estimators in the local universe, Evolution of the SFR at 0 < z < 1 using pencil beam redshift surveys, and Galaxy formation and evolution at 1 < z < 5. The first papers from Spitzer were published during the last year, including ten refereed journal papers where the PI was first or co-author.

Pahre, Michael A.↗

NASA NTRS2010

Extrasolar Planets Observed with JWST and the ELTs

The advent of cryogenic space-borne infrared observatories such as the Spitzer Space Telescope has lead to a revolution in the study of planets and planetary systems orbiting sun-like stars. Already Spitzer has characterized the emergent infrared spectra of close-in giant exoplanets using transit and eclipse techniques. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will be able to extend these studies to superEarth exoplanets orbiting in the habitable zones of M-dwarf stars in the near solar neighborhood. The forthcoming ground-based Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs) will playa key role in these studies, being especially valuable for spectroscopy at higher spectral resolving powers where large photon fluxes are needed. The culmination of this work within the next two decades will be the detection and spectral characterization of the major molecular constituents in the atmosphere of a habitable superEarth orbiting a nearby lower main sequence star.

Deming, L. Drake↗

NASA NTRS2006

Spitzer Spectroscopy of Low-Mass Dwarfs - Clouds and Chemistry at the Bottom of the IMF

Brown dwarfs and low-mass stars show evidence of complicated atmospheres, including a variety of molecular species and clouds. Infrared observations are one of the best probes of the physics of these objects, but up until recently these observations have been limited in studies from ground-based telescopes by atmospheric absorption and insufficient sensitivity. With the launch of the Spitzer Space Telescope with its Infrared Spectrograph (IRS) instrument we now have the capability to undertake a systematic study of the atmospheric structure and chemistry in these cool objects. The IRS Dim Suns team has compiled spectra from objects ranging from M1 dwarfs with effective temperatures 3,800K of down to T8 dwarfs with effective temperatures of 700. This talk will present these results and discuss their implications for our understanding of cool dwarf atmospheric physics and structure.

Roellig, Thomas L.↗

NASA NTRS2004

New Infrared Emission Features and Spectral Variations in Ngc 7023

We observed the reflection nebula NGC 7023, with the Short-High module and the long-slit Short-Low and Long-Low modules of the Infrared Spectrograph on the Spitzer Space Telescope. We also present Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) and Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS) images of NGC 7023 at 3.6, 4.5, 8.0, and 24 m. We observe the aromatic emission features (AEFs) at 6.2, 7.7, 8.6, 11.3, and 12.7 m, plus a wealth of weaker features. We find new unidentified interstellar emission features at 6.7, 10.1, 15.8, 17.4, and 19.0 m. Possible identifications include aromatic hydrocarbons or nanoparticles of unknown mineralogy. We see variations in relative feature strengths, central wavelengths, and feature widths, in the AEFs and weaker emission features, depending on both distance from the star and nebular position (southeast vs. northwest).

molecules↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Compositional Analysis of Titan’s Atmosphere Using Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph Data

We present, for the first time, infrared spectra from the Spitzer Space Telescope’s Infrared Spectrograph (IRS) (2004-2008) of Titan in both the short wavelength-low resolution(SL, R=60~127,5.13-14.29 μm) and short wavelength-high resolution channels (SH, R=600, 9.89-19.51 μm) showing the emissions of CH4, C2H4, C2H2, C2H6, HCN, CO2, HC3N, C3H4, C4H2, and C3H8. Spitzer IRS data has been used to measure atmospheric composition of various Solar System bodies, including Neptune [1] and Uranus [2],[3]. Although Spitzer took multiple dedicated observations of Titan, none of the results have been modeled before. We conduct our own investigation of these datasets and search for new results. We retrieve temperature and gas composition profiles and compare the results obtained for Titan to those of the Cassini Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) and the Infrared Space Observatory Short Wavelength Spectrometer [4], and comment on the effect of spectral resolution on retrieved information content. We conclude by recommending gaps in current spectroscopic knowledge of molecular bands that could be addressed by theoretical and laboratory study to aid future astronomical studies of Titan, for example the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Acknowledgments: Data analyzed in this project is public available online on the Spitzer Heritage Archive (sha.ipac.caltech.edu). This research has made use of the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive, which is funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and operated by the California Institute of Technology.

Titan↗

NASA NTRS2004

Mission Concept for the Single Aperture Far-Infrared (SAFIR) Observatory

We have developed a preliminary but comprehensive mission concept for SAFIR, as a 10 m-class far-infrared and submillimeter observatory that would begin development later in this decade to meet the needs outlined above. Its operating temperature (< or = 4K) and instrument complement would be optimized to reach the natural sky confusion limit in the far-infrared with diffraction-limited performance down to at least the atmospheric cutoff, lambda > or approx. 40 microns. This would provide a point source sensitivity improvement of several orders of magnitude over that of the Spitzer Space Telescope (previously SIRTF) or the Herschel Space Observatory. Additionally, it would have an angular resolution 12 times finer than that of Spitzer and three times finer than Herschel. This sensitivity and angular resolution are necessary to perform imaging and spectroscopic studies of individual galaxies in the early universe. We have considered many aspects of the SAFIR mission, including the telescope technology (optical design, materials, and packaging), detector needs and technologies, cooling method and required technology developments, attitude and pointing, power systems, launch vehicle, and mission operations. The most challenging requirements for this mission are operating temperature and aperture size of the telescope, and the development of detector arrays. SAFIR can take advantage of much of the technology under development for JWST, but with much less stringent requirements on optical accuracy.

Benford, Dominic J.↗

NASA NTRS2021

The Origins Space Telescope: Trades and Decisions Leading to the Baseline Mission Concept

The Origins Space Telescope will trace the history of our origins from the time dust and heavy elements permanently altered the cosmic landscape to present-day life. How did galaxies evolve from the earliest galactic systems to those found in the universe today? How do habitable planets form? How common are life-bearing worlds? We describe how Origins was designed to answer these alluring questions. We discuss the key decisions taken by the Origins mission concept study team, the rationale for those choices, and how they led through an exploratory design process to the Origins baseline mission concept. To understand the concept solution space, we studied two distinct mission concepts and descoped the second concept, aiming to maximize science per dollar and hit a self-imposed cost target. We report on the study approach and describe the concept evolution. The resulting baseline design includes a 5.9-m diameter telescope cryocooled to 4.5 K and equipped with three scientific instruments. The chosen architecture is similar to that of the Spitzer Space Telescope and requires very few deployments after launch. The cryo-thermal system design leverages JamesWebb Space Telescope technology and experience.

Infrared↗

NASA NTRS2011

Science with the James Webb Space Telescope

The scientific capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) fall into four themes. The End of the Dark Ages: First Light and Reionization theme seeks to identify the first luminous sources to form and to determine the ionization history of the universe. The Assembly of Galaxies theme seeks to determine how galaxies and the dark matter, gas, stars, metals, morphological structures, and active nuclei within them evolved from the epoch of reionization to the present. The Birth of Stars and Protoplanetary Systems theme seeks to unravel the birth and early evolution of stars, from infall onto dust-enshrouded protostars, to the genesis of planetary systems. The Planetary Systems and the Origins of Life theme seeks to determine the physical and chemical properties of planetary systems around nearby stars and of our own, and investigate the potential for life in those systems. To enable these for science themes, JWST will be a large (6.6m) cold (50K) telescope in orbit around the second Earth-Sun Lagrange point. It is the successor to the Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes, and is a partnership of NASA, ESA and CSA. JWST will have four instruments: The Near-Infrared Camera, the Near-Infrared multi-object Spectrograph, and the Tunable Filter Imager will cover the wavelength range 0.6 to 5 microns, while the Mid-Infrared Instrument will do both imaging and spectroscopy from 5 to 28.5 microns. I will conclude the talk with a description of recent technical progress in the construction of the observatory.

Gardner, Jonathan P.↗

NASA NTRS2018

Confirming Variability in the Secondary Eclipse Depth of the Super-Earth 55 Cancri e

We present a reanalysis of five transit and eight eclipse observations of the ultrashort-period super-Earth 55 Cancri e observed using the Spitzer Space Telescope during 2011-2013. We use pixel-level decorrelation to derive accurate transit and eclipse depths from the Spitzer data, and we perform an extensive error analysis. We focus on determining possible variability in the eclipse data, as was reported in Demory et al. From the transit data, we determine updated orbital parameters, yielding T (sub 0) = 2,455,733.0037 +/- 0.0002, P = 0.7365454 +/- 0.0000003 days, i = 83.5 +/- 1fdg3, and R p = 1.89 +/- 0.05 R ⊕. Our transit results are consistent with a constant depth, and we conclude that they are not variable. We find a significant amount of variability between the eight eclipse observations and confirm agreement with Demory et al. through a correlation analysis. We convert the eclipse measurements to brightness temperatures, and generate and discuss several heuristic models that explain the evolution of the planet's eclipse depth versus time. The eclipses are best modeled by a year-to-year variability model, but variability on shorter timescales cannot be ruled out. The derived range of brightness temperatures can be achieved by a dark planet with inefficient heat redistribution intermittently covered over a large fraction of the substellar hemisphere by reflective grains, possibly indicating volcanic activity or cloud variability. This time-variable system should be observable with future space missions, both planned (JWST) and proposed (i.e., ARIEL).

Tamburo, P.↗

NASA NTRS2012

Carnegie Hubble Program: A Mid-Infrared Calibration of the Hubble Constant

Using a mid-infrared calibration of the Cepheid distance scale based on recent observations at 3.6 micrometers with the Spitzer Space Telescope, we have obtained a new, high-accuracy calibration of the Hubble constant. We have established the mid-IR zero point of the Leavitt law (the Cepheid period-luminosity relation) using time-averaged 3.6 micrometers data for 10 high-metallicity, MilkyWay Cepheids having independently measured trigonometric parallaxes. We have adopted the slope of the PL relation using time-averaged 3.6micrometers data for 80 long-period Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) Cepheids falling in the period range 0.8 < log(P) < 1.8.We find a new reddening-corrected distance to the LMC of 18.477 +/- 0.033 (systematic) mag. We re-examine the systematic uncertainties in H(sub 0), also taking into account new data over the past decade. In combination with the new Spitzer calibration, the systematic uncertainty in H(sub 0) over that obtained by the Hubble Space Telescope Key Project has decreased by over a factor of three. Applying the Spitzer calibration to the Key Project sample, we find a value of H(sub 0) = 74.3 with a systematic uncertainty of +/-2.1 (systematic) kilometers per second Mpc(sup −1), corresponding to a 2.8% systematic uncertainty in the Hubble constant. This result, in combination with WMAP7measurements of the cosmic microwave background anisotropies and assuming a flat universe, yields a value of the equation of state for dark energy, w(sub 0) = −1.09 +/- 0.10. Alternatively, relaxing the constraints on flatness and the numbers of relativistic species, and combining our results with those of WMAP7, Type Ia supernovae and baryon acoustic oscillations yield w(sub 0) = −1.08 +/- 0.10 and a value of N(sub eff) = 4.13 +/- 0.67, mildly consistent with the existence of a fourth neutrino species.

Program↗

NASA NTRS2004

Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV: Outer Solar System

The session 'Outer Solar System" inlcuded:Monte Carlo Modeling of [O I] 630 nm Auroral Emission on Io; The Detection of Iron Sulfide on Io; Io and Loki in 2003 as Seen from the Infrared Telescope Facility Using Mutual Satellite and Jupiter Occultations; Mapping of the Zamama-Thor Region of Io; First Solar System Results of the Spitzer Space Telescope; Mapping the Surface of Pluto with the Hubble Space Telescope; Experimental Study on Fischer-Tropsch Catalysis in the Circum-Saturnian Subnebula; New High-Pressure Phases of Ammonia Dihydrate; Gas Hydrate Stability at Low Temperatures and High Pressures with Applications to Mars and Europa; Laboratory UV Photolysis of Planetary Ice Analogs Containing H2O + CO2 (1:1); The OH Stretch Infrared Band of Water Ice and Its Temperature and Radiation Dependence; Band Position Variations in Reflectance Spectra of the Jovian Satellite Ganymede; Comparison of Porosity and Radar Models for Europa s Near Surface; Combined Effects of Diurnal and Nonsynchronous Surface Stresses on Europa; Europa s Northern Trailing Hemisphere: Lineament Stratigraphic Framework; Europa at the Highest Resolution: Implications for Surface Processes and Landing Sites; Comparison of Methods to Determine Furrow System Centers on Ganymede and Callisto; Resurfacing of Ganymede by Liquid-Water Volcanism; Layered Ejecta Craters on Ganymede: Comparisons with Martian Analogs; Evaluation of the Possible Presence of CO2-Clathrates in Europa s Icy Shell or Seafloor; Geosciences at Jupiter s Icy Moons: The Midas Touch; Planetary Remote Sensing Science Enabled by MIDAS (Multiple Instrument Distributed Aperture Sensor); and In Situ Surveying of Saturn s Rings.

Source record↗

NASA NTRS2007

A Spitzer Infrared Radius for the Transiting Extrasolar Planet HD 209458 b

We have measured the infrared transit of the extrasolar planet HD 209458 b using the Spitzer Space Telescope. We observed two primary eclipse events (one partial and one complete transit) using the 24 micrometer array of the Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS). We analyzed a total of 2392 individual images (10-second integrations) of the planetary system, recorded before, during, and after transit. We perform optimal photometry on the images and use the local zodiacal light as a short-term flux reference. At this long wavelength, the transit curve has a simple box-like shape, allowing robust solutions for the stellar and planetary radii independent of stellar limb darkening, which is negligible at 24 micrometers. We derive a stellar radius of R(sub *) = 1.06 plus or minus 0.07 solar radius, a planetary radius of R(sub p) = 1.26 plus or minus 0.08 R(sub J), and a stellar mass of 1.17 solar mass. Within the errors, our results agree with the measurements at visible wavelengths. The 24 micrometer radius of the planet therefore does not differ significantly compared to the visible result. We point out the potential for deriving extrasolar transiting planet radii to high accuracy using transit photometry at slightly shorter IR wavelengths where greater photometric precision is possible.

Richardson, L. Jeremy↗

NASA NTRS2004

Spitzer 24 Micron Observations of Optical/Near-Infrared-Selected Extremely Red Galaxies: Evidence for Assembly of Massive Galaxies at Z approximately equal to 1-2?

We carried out direct measurement of the fraction of dusty sources in a sample of extremely red galaxies with (R - Ks) >= 5.3 mag and Ks < 20:2 mag, using 24 micron data from the Spitzer Space Telescope. Combining deep 24 micron Ks- and R-band data over an area of ~64 arcmin(sup 2) in ELAIS N1 of the Spitzer First Look Survey (FLS), we find that 50% +/- 6% of our extremely red object (ERO) sample have measurable 24 micron flux above the 3 (sigma) flux limit of 40 (micro)Jy. This flux limit corresponds to a star formation rate (SFR) of 12 solar masses per year ~1, much more sensitive than any previous long-wavelength measurement. The 24 micron-detected EROs have 24 micron/2.2 micron and 24 micron/0.7 micron flux ratios consistent with infrared luminous, dusty sources at z >= 1, and are an order of magnitude too red to be explained by an infrared quiescent spiral or a pure old stellar population at any redshift. Some of these 24 micron-detected EROs could be active galactic nuclei; however, the fraction among the whole ERO sample is probably small, 10%-20%, as suggested by deep X-ray observations as well as optical spectroscopy. Keck optical spectroscopy of a sample of similarly selected EROs in the FLS field suggests that most of the EROs in ELAIS N1 are probably at z ~1. The mean 24 micron flux (167 (micro)Jy) of the 24 micron-detected ERO sample roughly corresponds to the rest-frame 12 micron luminosity, (nu)L(nu)(12 micron, of 3x10(exp 10)(deg) solar luminosities at z ~1. Using the c IRAS (nu)L(nu)(12 (micron) and infrared luminosity LIR(8-1000 (micron), we infer that the (LIR) of the 24 micron- detected EROs is 3 x 10(exp 11) and 1 x 10(exp 12) solar luminosities at z = 1.0 and similar to that of local luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs) and ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs). The corresponding SFR would be roughly 50-170 solar masses per year. If the timescale of this starbursting phase is on the order of 108 yr as inferred for the local LIRGs and ULIRGs, the lower limit on the masses of these 24 micron-detected EROs is 5 x 10(exp 9) to 2 x 10(exp 10) solar masses. It is plausible that some of the starburst EROs are in the midst of a violent transformation to become massive early type galaxies at the epoch of z ~1-2.

high redshift↗