NASA Hubble Space Telescope Daily Report #4076
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE – Continuing to collect World Class Science
DAILY REPORT # 4076
PERIOD COVERED: UT March 22, 2006 (DOY 081)
OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED
ACS/HRC/WFC 10729
ACS CCDs daily monitor
This program consists of a set of basic tests to monitor, the read noise, the development of hot pixels and test for any source of noise in ACS CCD detectors. The files, biases and dark will be used to create reference files for science calibration. This programme will be for the entire lifetime of ACS. Changes from cycle 13:- The default gain for WFC is 2 e-/DN. As before bias frames will be collected for both gain 1 and gain 2. Dark frames are acquired using the default gain {2}. This program cover the period Oct, 2 2005- May, 29-2006. The second half of the program has a different proposal number: 10758.
ACS/WFC 10475
An ACS H-alpha Survey of the Carina Nebula
We propose an H-alpha ACS imaging survey covering 540 square arcminutes of the Carina Nebula, including an unbiased survey of the bright core, and several prominent dust pillars in the rich southern region of the nebula. Carina provides an important link between well-studied nearby H II regions like Orion, and more distant mini-starbusts like 30 Doradus. CVZ orbits will allow extremely efficient use of HST to map a large area of this complex and important region — more than 95 percent of the proposed survey will be observed by HST for the first time. This survey will provide a complete census of microjets, proplyds, and silhouette disks with diameters as small as 200 AU, enough to spatially resolve disks like those in Orion, and will provide the first catalog of outflows {jets} from embedded low-mass stars, thin filamentary shocks, and wind-wind collisions in Carina. An accurate census of these phenomena is needed to characterize the star formation activity and gas dynamics as a function of position in the nebula, and to determine if models for protoplanetary disk evaporation from Orion are applicable in more extreme regions. Our previous ground-based optical and IR surveys have already revealed dozens of candidates for this type of activity — but this is just the tip of the iceberg. Our proposed HST/ACS survey promises to be a bonanza for understanding ongoing low-mass star formation influenced by extremely high-mass stars.
ACS/WFC 10592
An ACS Survey of a Complete Sample of Luminous Infrared Galaxies in the Local Universe
At luminosities above 10^11.4 L_sun, the space density of far-infrared selected galaxies exceeds that of optically selected galaxies. These `luminous infrared galaxies’ {LIRGs} are primarily interacting or merging disk galaxies undergoing enhanced star formation and Active Galactic Nuclei {AGN} activity, possibly triggered as the objects transform into massive S0 and elliptical merger remnants. We propose ACS/WFC imaging of a complete sample of 88 L_IR > 10^11.4 L_sun luminous infrared galaxies in the IRAS Revised Bright Galaxy Sample {RBGS: i.e., 60 micron flux density > 5.24 Jy}. This sample is ideal not only in its completeness and sample size, but also in the proximity and brightness of the galaxies. The superb sensitivity, resolution, and field of view of ACS/WFC on HST enables a unique opportunity to study the detailed structure of galaxies that sample all stages of the merger process. Imaging will be done with the F439W and F814W filters {B and I-band} to examine as a function of both luminosity and merger state {i} the evidence at optical wavelengths of star formation and AGN activity and the manner in which instabilities {bars and bridges} in the galaxies may funnel material to these active regions, {ii} the relationship between star formation and AGN activity, and {iii} the structural properties {AGN, bulge, and disk components} and fundamental parameters {effective radius and surface brightness} of LIRGs and their similarity with putative evolutionary byproducts {elliptical, S0 and classical AGN host galaxies}. This HST survey will also bridge the wavelength gap between a Spitzer imaging survey {covering seven bands in the 3.6-160 micron range} and a GALEX UV imaging survey of these galaxies, but will resolve complexes of star clusters and multiple nuclei at resolutions well beyond the capabilities of either Spitzer or GALEX. The combined datasets will result in the most comprehensive multiwavelength study of interacting and merging galaxies to date.
ACS/WFC 10605
Quantifying Star Formation and Feedback: The M81 Group Dwarf Galaxies
Studies of the impact of star formation via stellar winds and supernovae {‘feedback’} on the properties of a galaxy are of fundamental importance to understanding galaxy evolution. One crucial aspect in these studies is a precise census of the recent star formation in a galaxy. The aim of this proposal is to obtain spatially resolved star formation histories with a time resolution of roughly 30 Myr over the last 500 Myr in a carefully designed sample using the absolutely unique capabilities of the ACS. Our sample comprises 10 galaxies in the M81 group which is host to a wide diversity of dwarf star forming galaxies. They span ranges of 6 magnitudes in luminosity, 1000 in current star formation rate, and 0.5 dex in metallicity. The ACS observations will allow us to directly observe the strength and spatial relationships of all of the star formation in these galaxies in the last 500 Myr. We can then quantify the star formation and measure {1} the fraction of star formation that is triggered by feedback, {2} the fraction of star formation that occurs in clusters and associations, and {3} to what degree future star formation is governed by the feedback from previous star formation. The ACS observations will be complemented with high-quality ancillary data collected by our team for all galaxies {e.g., Spitzer, UV/optical/NIR, VLA HI}. We will calculate the energy created by star formation events and compare it to the estimated energy deposited into the local ISM. This will enable us to construct prescriptions of how star formation and feedback depend on metallicity, size, gas content, and current star formation rates in galaxies. Our resolved star formation maps will be compared with star formation rates inferred from H-alpha, UV, and IR observations – allowing an independent calibration of these techniques. Recent ACS imaging by us of one galaxy in the same group clearly demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed program. Most of the sample galaxies are located in the CVZ, making this an extremely efficient program.
ACS/WFC/WFPC2 10584
The link between X-ray source and stellar populations in M81
We propose to perform a deep v~26-27.0 HST-ACS survey of the nearby {3.6 Mpc} spiral galaxy M~81 in order to study the nature of its X-ray source populations detected with Chandra. For the first time in a galaxy other than the Milky-Way or the Magelanic Clouds, we will classify X-ray sources as High-Mass and Low-Mass X-ray binaries {HMXBs, LMXBs} and investigate how these populations depend on their galactic environment. The classification will be performed {a} by finding and classifying unique optical counterparts for the X-ray sources and {b} studying the stellar populations in their vicinity. Both tasks require the <0.1'' resolution of HST-ACS which matches well the positional accuracy of Chandra. Finally we will use these results together with X-ray binary evolution synthesis models in order to constrain X-ray binary {XRB} evolution channels. These data will also be a great resource for studies of the star-formation and star- cluster populations in one of the prototypical spiral galaxies.
FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:
Significant Spacecraft Anomalies: (The following are preliminary reports of potential non-nominal performance that will be investigated.)
HSTARS: (None)
COMPLETED OPS REQUEST: (None)
COMPLETED OPS NOTES: (None)
SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL
FGS GSacq 09 09
FGS REacq 03 03
OBAD with Maneuver 18 18
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: (None)
