Workshop Planned For Future Submillimeter Space Astronomy
Contact:
Christopher Wanjek
wanjek@gsfc.nasa.gov
301-286-4453February 1, 1999
Greenbelt, Md. -- Astronomers in the early stages of designing a far-infrared telescope that would be comparable to the optical Hubble Space Telescope in angular resolution and sensitivity are holding a workshop at the University of Maryland, College Park, on February 8 and 9, 1999 in order to elicit community input and formulate an outline for technology development.
The proposed telescope would concentrate on far-infrared and submillimeter wavelengths, a band of radiation between the microwave and near-infrared. This band contributes to about half of the light in the Universe and would enable the study galaxy formation, dust-enshrouded star-forming regions in nearby galaxies, Active Galactic Nuclei, protostars and pre-planetary systems in the MilkyWay.
"We hope to inspire the astronomical community to think about the tremendous science opportunities created when we get our first sharp pictures of the sky in this wavelength region," said Dr. DavidLeisawitz, a NASA astronomer at Goddard Space Flight Center who is organizing the workshop. "The best submillimeter telescopes now available see only slightly better than the unaided human eye."
The workshop, entitled "Submillimeter Space Astronomy in the next Millennium," will include presentations and panel discussions on topics such as science requirements, mission concepts, instrumentation, thermal control, imaging techniques, possible international participation and NASA funding. Presenters and panelists include NASA and university-based astronomers from around the world.
NASA is currently considering for study a proposed submillimeter mission, called the Submillimeter Probe of the Evolution of Cosmic Structure (SPECS), the study team for which is led by Dr. Leisawitz and two veteran NASA Goddard space experimenters: Drs. John Mather and Harvey Moseley. The idea for SPECS originated with Drs. Moseley and Mather.
As currently conceived, SPECS will be a cold, spatial and spectral Michelson interferometer spacecraft to be deployed within the next 20 years. The instrument will be used to address fundamental cosmological questions such as: How did the first stars form from primordial material, and the first galaxies from pre-galactic structures? How did galaxies evolve over time? And what is the cosmic history of energy release, heavy element synthesis and dust formation?
An executive summary of the workshop findings will be delivered to the National Academy of Sciences Astronomy and Astrophysics Survey Committee, which has solicited ideas from the astronomical community.
For more information about SPECS or the workshop, to be held at The Inn and Conference Center UMUC, contact Dr. Leisawitz at leisawitz@stars.gsfc.nasa.gov or refer to the workshop web site at
http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/astro/smm_workshop. (Expired Link -- Noted 3/26/03)-30-