NASA Hubble Space Telescope Daily Report # 3545

HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE – Continuing to collect World Class Science

DAILY REPORT # 3545

PERIOD COVERED: DOY 35

OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED

ACS 9984

Cosmic Shear With ACS Pure Parallels

Small distortions in the shapes of background galaxies by foreground mass
provide a powerful method of directly measuring the amount and distribution
of
dark matter. Several groups have recently detected this weak lensing by
large-scale structure, also called cosmic shear. The high resolution and
sensitivity of HST/ACS provide a unique opportunity to measure cosmic shear
accurately on small scales. Using 260 parallel orbits in Sloan textiti
{F775W}
we will measure for the first time: beginlistosetlength sep0cm
setlengthemsep0cm
setlength opsep0cm em the cosmic shear variance on scales <0.7 arcmin, em
the
skewness of the shear distribution, and em the magnification effect.
endlist Our
measurements will determine the amplitude of the mass power spectrum
sigma_8Omega_m^0.5, with signal-to-noise {s/n} ~ 20, and the mass density
Omega_m with s/n=4. They will be done at small angular scales where
non-linear
effects dominate the power spectrum, providing a test of the gravitational
instability paradigm for structure formation. Measurements on these scales
are
not possible from the ground, because of the systematic effects induced by
PSF
smearing from seeing. Having many independent lines of sight reduces the
uncertainty due to cosmic variance, making parallel observations ideal.

ACS/HRC/WFC 10059

CCD Daily Monitor

This program consists of basic tests to monitor, the read noise, the
development
of hot pixels and test for any source of noise in ACS CCD detectors. This
programme will be executed once a day for the entire lifetime of ACS.

ACS/HRC/WFC 9919

The Morphological, Photometric, and Spectroscopic Properties of Intermediate
Redshift Cluster Galaxies:

New and fundamental constraints on the evolutionary state of high redshift
clusters will be made by obtaining deep, multiband images {SDSS r, i, z}
over
the central 1.5 Mpc regions of seven distant clusters in the range 0.76 < z
<
1.27. The ACS data will allow us to {1} definitively establish the
morphological
composition and star formation rates as functions of clustercentric radius,
local density, x-ray luminosity {obtained from accompanying Chandra, and XMM
data}, {2} explore the relationship between substructure, kinematics, and
morphology, {3} strongly constrain the galaxy merger frequency and the
origins
of elliptical and S0 galaxies, {4} measure the mass distribution
independently
from the light {via gravitational lensing} enabling comparisons with
kinematically derived masses, and {5} study the evolution of the structure
of
the brightest cluster members. The clusters selected for this program
already
have extensive spectroscopic observations and NIR imaging is either in hand
or
underway from approved ground based programs. To date, the lower part of
this
redshift range has only been marginally studied with HST. Our sample
includes
the two most distant, spectroscopically confirmed superclusters and will
significantly increase the baseline over which evolutionary effects can be
studied. The data will also be used to identify very high-z galaxies via
their
unique spectral properties.

HST 9382

A Large Targeted Survey for z < 1.6 Damped Lyman Alpha Lines in SDSS QSO
MgII-FeII Systems.

We have searched the first public release of SDSS QSO spectra for low-z
{z<1.65}
metal absorption lines and found over 200 large rest equivalent width
MgII-FeII
systems. Previously, we empirically showed that such systems are good
tracers of
large neutral gas columns, with ~50% being classical damped Lyman alpha
{DLA}
systems {N_HI>=2*10^20 cm^-2}. Here we propose to follow up a well-defined
subset of 79 of them to search for DLAs with 0.47<z<1.60. Only QSOs brighter
than g’=19 were selected. The QSO emission and DLA absorption redshifts were
constrained to virtually eliminate data loss due to intervening Lyman limit
absorption. Consequently, we expect to discover ~40 new DLAs, which is a
three-fold increase in this redshift interval. This will significantly
improve
our earlier low-z DLA statistical results on their incidence, cosmological
mass
density, and N_HI distribution. The results will also allow us to better
quantify the empirical DLA — metal-line correlation. With this improved
understanding, the need for follow-up UV spectroscopy will lessen and, with
the
release of the final database of SDSS QSO spectra {an ~25-fold increase},
the
number of low-z DLAs could be increased arbitrarily. Thus, the power of the
large and statistically-sound SDSS database in combination with a proven
technique for finding low-z DLAs will, over the next few years, essentially
solve the problem of making an accurate determination of the cosmic
evolution of
the neutral gas component down to z~0.4.

NIC/NIC3 9865

The NICMOS Parallel Observing Program

We propose to continue managing the NICMOS pure parallel program. Based on
our
experience, we are well prepared to make optimal use of the parallel
opportunities. The improved sensitivity and efficiency of our observations
will
substantially increase the number of line-emitting galaxies detected. As our
previous work has demonstrated, the most frequently detected line is Halpha
at
0.7<z<1.9, which provides an excellent measure of current star formation
rate.
We will also detect star-forming and active galaxies in other redshift
ranges
using other emission lines. The grism observations will produce by far the
best
available Halpha luminosity functions over the crucial–but poorly
observed–redshift range where galaxies appear to have assembled most of
their
stellar mass. This key process of galaxy evolution needs to be studied with
IR
data; we found that observations at shorter wavelengths appear to have
missed a
large fraction of the star-formation in galaxies, due to dust reddening. We
will
also obtain deep F110W and F160W images, to examine the space densities and
morphologies of faint red galaxies. In addition to carrying out the public
parallels, we will make the fully reduced and calibrated images and spectra
available on-line, with some ground-based data for the deepest parallel
fields
included.

NICMOS 8791

NICMOS Post-SAA calibration – CR Persistence Part 2

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 DARKSs. 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.

NICMOS 9375

The Host Galaxies of Time Delay Lenses: , An Independent Route to the Hubble
Constant

Because of its importance in setting the distance scale, the time scale and
in
estimating cosmological parameters from the CMB, astronomy needs an estimate
of
the Hubble constant independent of the local distance scale and its
systematic
problems. This can be achieved using gravitational lenses with time delay
measurements given enough constraints on the gravitational potential of the
lens. We will use deep NICMOS observations of the lensed quasar host
galaxies in
7 gravitational lenses with time delay measurements to obtain the necessary
constraints, determine the dark matter distribution and estimate H_0.
Analysis
of the existing images and the well-developed theory for analyzing Einstein
ring
images of host galaxies suggest the new data will break the familiar
degeneracies between lens mass distributions and the Hubble constant. We
also
request 30 ksec Chandra ACIS images for each of the 2 systems lacking them
{B1608+656 and B1600+434} to measure the mass in nearby or surrounding
groups
and clusters.

STIS/CCD 10017

CCD Dark Monitor-Part 1

Monitor the darks for the STIS CCD.

STIS/CCD 10019

CCD Bias Monitor – Part 1

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.

STIS/CCD 10085

STIS Pure Parallel Imaging Program: Cycle 12

This is the default archival pure parallel program for STIS during cycle 12.

STIS/CCD/MA1 9759

Confirmation of New Candidates for the Study of Intergalactic Helium

The reionization of intergalactic helium is believed to take place between
redshift 3 and 4. The study of HeII Lyman-alpha absorption in four quasars
at
2.7<z<3.3 demonstrates the great potential of such an intergalactic-medium
{IGM}
probe and suggests that the reionization epoch is at higher redshifts. Clean
quasar sightlines may be found only from massive pre-selection processes in
the
optical and UV, because of random, severe absorption by intervening
Lyman-limit
systems. The SDSS has discovered approximately 36000 quasars, and we propose
to
verify the UV detectability in 70 top candidates for helium studies
extending to
even higher redshift. Our proposed approach has already proven successful,
and
additional positive confirmations will allow follow-up observations, with
STIS
or COS, to pinpoint the epoch of reionization of the IGM, and the evolution
of
its properties near that period.

STIS/MA1 9790

Separating Activity and Accretion in T Tauri Stars

Due to their unique evolutionary state, the naked {non-accreting} T Tauri
stars
{NTTS} are the only real proxies for what the underlying magnetically active
star of a classical TTS {CTTS} system looks like. Comparative analysis then
allows us to separate stellar properties from accretion properties in CTTS.
In
addition, the late-type NTTS are excellent candidates for studying
rotation-activity relationships in fully convective stars and probing the
properties of turbulent dynamos. With the limited data currently available,
NTTS
appear to be very magnetically active stars with higher than expected
H-alpha/X-ray flux ratios but lower transition region fluxes relative to
other
active stars. However, the data are very incomplete. We will use HST-STIS
observations of transition region line fluxes on 11 fully convective NTTS to
establish the level and structure of dynamo generated emission in these
young
stars. In principal, these far ultraviolet emission lines are sensitive
diagnostics of mass accretion onto CTTS, since accretion shocks on the
stellar
surface should produce substantial emission measure at 10^5 – 10^6 K.
However,
it is imperative that we first understand the emissions from NTTS before we
can
use these lines to study accretion onto CTTS.

WFPC2 10070

WFPC2 CYCLE 12 Supplemental Darks Part 2/3

This dark calibration program obtains 3 dark frames every day to provide
data
for monitoring and characterizing the evolution of hot pixels.

WFPC2 10082

POMS Test Proposal: WFII backup parallel archive proposal

This is a POMS test proposal designed to simulate scientific plans

WFPC2 10084

WFII parallel archive proposal

This is the generic target version of the WFPC2 Archival Pure Parallel
program.
The program will be used to take parallel images of random areas of the sky,
following the recommendations of the 2002 Parallels Working Group.

FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:

Significant Spacecraft Anomalies: (The following are preliminary reports of
potential non-nominal performance that will be investigated.)

HSTAR 9315: GS Acquisition (3,2,3) @ 035/21:08:54Z resulted in FL backup
using
FGS 2 due to SSLEX on FGS 3. Prior FHST FM Updates
@ 035/21:02Z and
21:05Z showed good attitude error vector. No FHST
Maps scheduled to
follow the GS acquisition. A FAD could not be
generated due to
slewing and TERM EXP. Under investigation.

COMPLETED OPS REQs: NONE

OPS NOTES EXECUTED:
1195-0 FSW SOC Ground System Limits @ 035/16:50z

                            SCHEDULED     SUCCESSFUL    FAILURE TIMES
FGS GSacq                07                        07
FGS REacq                09                        09
FHST Update              15                        15
LOSS of LOCK

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS:

HST Command Timing testing scheduled 036/12:00Z – 22:00Z with GDOC, SOC,
HITT, and
CCS using CCS "F" String with CCS Release 5.0.3.1 and PRD O06300ST. The
purpose
of this testing is to check the command timing for CCS Release 5.0.3.1 with
historical, base-lined numbers.