Hubble Space Telescope Daily Report #2750 11/15/00
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE
DAILY REPORT #2750
PERIOD COVERED: 0000Z (UTC) 11/14/00 – 0000Z (UTC) 11/15/00
Daily Status Report as of 320/0000Z
1.0 OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED AND ACCOMPLISHED:
1.1 Completed Four Sets of WF/PC-2 8826 (Cycle 9 Supplemental Darks pt 1)
The WF/PC-2 was used to perform a T dark calibration program that obtains three dark frames every day in order to provide data for monitoring and characterizing the evolution of hot pixels. There were no reported anomalies.
1.2 Completed STIS/CCD/MA1 8171 (HST Far-UV Imaging and Spectra of Jupiter’s Aurora During the Galileo Extended Mission)
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD and MA1) was used to make far-ultraviolet spectrographic observations of the aurora on the planet Jupiter as part of the extended Galileo Mission. Observations were also made of the moon Europa. This is to study the nature of the satellite auroral footprints in Jupiter’s atmosphere. The observations were completed as planned, and no problems were reported.
1.3 Completed WF/PC-2 8811 (Cycle 9 Standard Darks)
The WF/PC-2 was used to obtain dark frames every week in order to provide data for the ongoing calibration of the CCD dark current rate, and to monitor and characterize the evolution of hot pixels. Over an extended period these data will also provide a monitor of radiation damage to the CCDs. The proposal completed with no reported problems.
1.4 Completed Two Sets of WF/PC-2 8815 (Cycle 9 Earth Flats)
The WF/PC-2 was used to monitor flatfield stability. This proposal obtains sequences of Earth streak flats to construct high quality flat fields for the WF/PC-2 filter set. These flat fields will allow mapping of the OTA illumination pattern and will be used in conjunction with previous internal and external flats to generate new pipeline superflats. The proposal completed nominally.
1.5 Completed Four Sets of STIS/CCD 8837 (CCD Dark Monitor-Part 1)
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to monitor the darks. The losses of lock mentioned in HSTAR 7967 and 2.1 occurred during the final iteration of this proposal, possibly affecting an observation. Otherwise, the proposal completed with no further reported problems.
1.6 Completed WF/PC-2 8701 (Multiplicity among Very-Low Mass Stars and Brown Dwarfs in Alpha Persei and the Pleiades)
The WF/PC-2 was used to observe open clusters which provide excellent hunting grounds for brown dwarf {BD} searches. The AlphaPer and Pleiades clusters are young, nearby and have low extinction. They are considered to be the best-suited places to study the Substellar Mass. A dozen of cool faint AlphaPer and Pleiades members have been confirmed as “bona-fide” BDs with the lithium test. By comparison with those, about 60 very good cluster BD candidates are currently known. The Pleiades SMF obtained using the most recent deep large CCD surveys indicates that BDs are quite numerous but do not make a significant contribution to the total cluster mass. The observations completed with no reported problems.
1.7 Completed Two Sets of STIS/CCD 8562 (Probing the Large Scale Structure: Cosmic Shear Observations)
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to probe the distortion of light bundles from distant galaxies, looking at the statistical properties of the intervening inhomogeneous {dark} matter distribution. The proposal completed nominally.
1.8 Completed STIS/CCD 8187 (STIS Imaging of the Deep NICMOS Parallel Fields: Building on the NICMOS Legacy)
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to make observations of field #2220 that was previously observed using deep images from the NICMOS camera. The STIS images will yield visual morphologies to magnitudes of 24.5 and quantitative measures of image structure to 26.5 or fainter in two orbits. The observations were completed as planned, and no problems were reported.
1.9 Completed STIS/CCD 8631 (Bright Quasar Close Lensing Search II)
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to expand the Cycle 8 second generation HST snapshot survey of bright quasars, optimized to find lenses with component image separations < 1". The observations completed nominally.
1.10 Completed WF/PC-2 8290 (Weather, Moons, and Orbit of the Brown Dwarf Gl 229B)
The WF/PC-2 was used to make observations of the brown dwarf star HD42581 (a.k.a., GI 229B). Gl 229B is the only unambiguous brown dwarf. It can be imaged with high astrometric and photometric accuracy only by HST. The observations were executed as scheduled, and no anomalies were noted.
1.11 Completed WF/PC-2/STIS/CCD 8323 (Herbig-Haro Jets Irradiated by Massive OB Stars)
The WF/PC-2 and the Space Telescope Imaging Telescope (CCD) were used to observe Herbig-Haro jets powered by young stars. Among the hoped for results are the precise determination of the mass loss rate through a jet, and the nature of the flow behavior in the jet launch and collimation region. The proposal completed nominally.
1.12 Completed Two Sets of STIS/CCD 8838 (Bias Monitor – Part 1)
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to monitor the bias in the 1×1, 1×2, 2×1, and 2×2 bin settings at gain=1, and 1×1 at gain = 4, to build up high-S/N superbiases and track the evolution of hot columns. The proposal completed nominally.
1.13 Completed STIS/CCD/MA2 8569 (A New Survey for Low-Redshift Damped Lyman-Alpha Lines in QSO MgII Systems)
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD and MA2) was used to support studies which have shown that most of the observable neutral gas mass in the Universe resides in QSO damped LyAlpha {DLA} systems. However, at low redshift , DLA can only be found by searching in the UV with HST. By boot-strapping from the MgII statistics, we will be able to further improve the determination of the low- redshift statistical properties of DLA {their incidence and cosmological mass density} and open up new opportunities for studies at low redshift. The observations completed nominally.
1.14 Completed WF/PC-2 7407 (Continuation of Temporal Monitoring of the Crab Synchrotron Nebula)
The WF/PC-2 was used to observe the synchrotron nebula surrounding the Crab pulsar that has been the subject of intensive study for decades. It is generally accepted that the structure and activity in this region are due to wave phenomena near the termination shock of the pulsar wind, observations of which hold unique promise of leading to more complete models of the pulsar and its magnetosphere. Unfortunately, this promise has not been fulfilled, largely because of the low spatial resolution and uneven temporal coverage of existing studies. Recent WF/PC-2 observations of the Crab synchrotron nebula offer new hope in this quest. These data, which reach the natural size scale defined by the Larmor radius of energetic electrons, resolve the majority of the the known features in the Crab. For the first time it is possible to reliably establish the physical conditions {e.g., emissivities, equipartition fields, and pressures} of features associated with the wind and its termination shock. The losses of lock mentioned in HSTAR 7967 and 2.1 occurred during this proposal, possibly affecting an observation. Otherwise, the observations completed as planned.
2.0 FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:
2.1 Guide Star Acquisitions:
Scheduled Acquisitions: 9
Successful: 9
Per HSTAR 7967, following a successful acquisition at 320/005204Z, there were three losses of lock beginning at 320/010001Z. The proposals detailed in 1.5 and 1.14 may have been affected.
Scheduled Re-acquisitions: 7
Successful: 7
2.2 FHST Updates:
Scheduled: 21
Successful: 19
The roll maneuver updates scheduled for 319/151249Z and at 319/151534Z both failed due to tracker #1. The subsequent acquisition was successful with minimum errors.
2.3 Operations Notes:
Using ROP SR-1A, correctable SSR EDAC errors were cleared three times.
Per ROP NS-3, the 486 status buffer was dumped and reset at 319/1100Z.
At 319/1551Z, per ROP DF-18A, the engineering status buffer limits were adjusted.
The ephemeris table was uplinked at 319/1925Z as directed by ROP DF-07A.
3.0 SIGNIFICANT FORTHCOMING EVENTS:
The FSW 1.4A RAM and EEPROM installation is scheduled tomorrow.
Continuation of normal science observations and calibrations.
