THERMAP: a mid-infrared spectro-imager for space missions to small bodies in the inner solar system

We present THERMAP, a mid-infrared spectro-imager for space missions to small bodies in the inner solar system, developed in the framework of the MarcoPolo-R asteroid sample return mission. THERMAP is very well suited to characterize the surface thermal environment of a NEO and to map its surface composition. The instrument has two channels, one for imaging and one for spectroscopy: it is both a thermal camera with full 2D imaging capabilities and a slit spectrometer. THERMAP takes advantage of the recent technological developments of uncooled microbolometer arrays, sensitive in the mid-infrared spectral range. THERMAP can acquire thermal images (8–18 μm) of the surface and perform absolute temperature measurements with a precision better than 3.5 K above 200 K. THERMAP can acquire mid-infrared spectra (8–16 μm) of the surface with a spectral resolution Δλ of 0.3 μm. For surface temperatures above 350 K, spectra have a signal-to-noise ratio >60 in the spectral range 9–13 μm where most emission features occur.     

WSO/UV spectrographs: the expected performance of HIRDES

The World Space Observatory Ultraviolet (WSO/UV) is a multi-national project grown out of the needs of the astronomical community to have future access to the UV range. WSO/UV consists of a single UV telescope with a primary mirror of 1.7 m diameter feeding the UV spectrometer and UV imagers. The spectrometer comprises three different spectrographs, two high-resolution echelle spectrographs (the High-Resolution Double-Echelle Spectrograph, HIRDES) and a low-dispersion long-slit instrument. Within HIRDES the 102–310 nm spectral band is split to feed two echelle spectrographs covering the UV range 174–310 nm and the vacuum-UV range 102–176 nm with high spectral resolution (R>55000). The technical concept is based on the heritage of two previous ORFEUS SPAS missions. The phase-B1 development activities are described in this paper considering the performance of the instruments.     

COCHISE: the first light of the Italian millimetre telescope at Concordia (Dome C, Antarctica)

COCHISE (Cosmological Observations at Concordia with High-sensitivity Instrument for Source Extraction) is a 2.6 m telescope located on the high Antarctic Plateau near the Italian–French Concordia Base. The telescope is mainly devoted to Cosmological observations, able to operate between 200 μm and 3 mm of wavelength. In this paper we describe the main characteristics of the instrument. We also report on the first light, obtained during summer 2010–2011: this result marks the beginning of millimetre astrophysical observations at Concordia. Responsivity, noise equivalent temperature and field of view of the instrument are reported. At present COCHISE is the largest telescope located at Concordia. Beside the scientific expectations, the use of this kind of instrument in the Antarctic environment poses technological aspects of relevant interest: thus COCHISE can be considered as a pathfinder for future Antarctic telescopes.     

Accurate Determination of the TOA Solar Spectral NIR Irradiance Using a Primary Standard Source and the Bouguer–Langley Technique

We describe an instrument dedicated to measuring the top of atmosphere (TOA) solar spectral irradiance (SSI) in the near-infrared (NIR) between 600 nm and 2300 nm at a resolution of 10 nm. Ground-based measurements are performed through atmospheric NIR windows and the TOA SSI values are extrapolated using the Bouguer–Langley technique. The interest in this spectral range arises because it plays a main role in the Earth’s radiative budget and also because it is employed to validate models used in solar physics. Moreover, some differences were observed between recent ground-based and space-based instruments that take measurements in the NIR and the reference SOLSPEC(ATLAS3) spectrum. In the 1.6 μm region, the deviations vary from 6 % to 10 %. Our measuring system named IRSPERAD has been designed by Bentham (UK) and has been radiometrically characterized and absolutely calibrated against a blackbody at the Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy and at the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (Germany), respectively. A four-month measurement campaign was carried out at the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (Canary Islands, 2367 m a.s.l.). A set of top-quality solar measurements was processed to obtain the TOA SSI in the NIR windows. We obtained an average standard uncertainty of 1 % for 0.8 μm<λ<2.3 μm. At 1.6 μm, corresponding to the minimum opacity of the solar photosphere, we obtained an irradiance of 234.31±1.29 mWm^?2?nm^?1. Between 1.6 μm and 2.3 μm, our measurements show a disagreement varying from 6 % to 8 % relative to ATLAS3, which is not explained by the declared standard uncertainties of the two experiments.     

Apparent magnitudes of high redshift Type 1a supernovae and intergalactic graphite whiskers

The concept of a Universe undergoing an acceleration in its expansion rate and predicating the existence of dark energy is based on observed deficits in brightness of Type 1a supernovae at high redshifts, amounting to Δ m～0.3–0.5. We show that the effect of intergalactic graphite whiskers of radii in the general range 0.03–0.07 μm and lengths in excess of ～5 μm will be to mimic the effects of dark energy in the redshift magnitude relation for Type 1a supernovae. The mean intergalactic density of whiskers required for such an effect is ～3×10^?34 g cm^?3, about 10^?5 of the critical closure density.     

The Quest to Understand Supergranulation and Large-Scale Convection in the Sun

Surface granulation of the Sun is primarily a consequence of thermal transport in the outer 1 % of the radius. Its typical scale of about 1?–?2 Mm?is set by the balance between convection, free-streaming radiation, and the strong density stratification in the surface layers. The physics of granulation is well understood, as demonstrated by the close agreement between numerical simulation, theory, and observation. Superimposed on the energetic granular structure comprising high-speed flows, are larger-scale long-lived flow systems (≈?300 m?s^?1) called supergranules. Supergranulation has a typical scale of 24?–?36 Mm. It is not clear if supergranulation results from the interaction of granules or is causally linked to deep convection or a consequence of magneto–convection. Other outstanding questions remain: how deep are supergranules? How do they participate in global dynamics of the Sun? Further challenges are posed by our lack of insight into the dynamics of larger scales in the deep convection region. Recent helioseismic constraints have suggested that convective-velocity amplitudes on large scales may be overestimated by an order of magnitude or more, implying that Reynolds stresses associated with large-scale convection, thought to play a significant role in the sustenance of differential rotation and meridional circulation, might be two orders of magnitude weaker than theory and computation predict. While basic understanding on the nature of convection on global scales and the maintenance of global circulations is incomplete, progress is imminent, given substantial improvements in computation, theory, and helioseismic inferences.     

I S L A An Astronomical World Space Observatory for The First Century of the 3 rd Millenium

ISLA will be an astronomical observatory, operating at the upper limit of our planet Earth atmosphere, offering space like observing conditions in most aspects. ISLA can be maintained easily, modified easily if necessary, always kept at the state of the art and operated for very extended periods without polluting the stratosphere. ISLA is ideally suited to become the first world space observatory as the observing conditions are very much space-like – diffraction limited angular resolution, very low ambient temperature, remote control – however ISLA is easily accessible, telescopes and instruments can be continuously improved and ISLA's costs corresponds only to those of ground-based modern astronomical installations like the ESO-VLT-, KECK- and GEMINI-observatories. The cost of observing and experimenting on ISLA will be orders of magnitudes lower than those of building and operating any space telescope, allowing the astronomers of developing nations to participate in the ISLA observatory within their limited financial possibilities as competent and full partners. ISLA's 4-m and 2-m telescopes will operate diffraction limited from 0.3 μm in the optical, over the infrared, far-infrared to the sub-mm spectral range. ISLA's individual telescopes will permit imaging with 20 milli-arcsec spatial resolution in the optical, 5 times better than the Hubble Space Telescope. ISLA's telescopes can be combined to form an interferometer with a maximum baseline of 250 m with nearly complete coverage of the u,v plane. Interferometric resolution will be of the order of 20 micro-arcsec for the optical. ISLA will thus offer spatial resolution comparable or better than the intercontinental VLBI radio interferometers. ISLA's telescope efficiency will be many orders of magnitude better than comparable ground-based telescopes. The light collecting power of ISLA's interferometric telescopes will be orders of magnitudes greater than the future space interferometers under discussion. ISLA, being an aviation project and not a space project, can be realised in the typical time scale for the development of aviation: about 5 years. ISLA's cost for the whole observatory, including its movable ground station etc. will be of the order of a typical medium size ESA space mission. ISLA's lifetime will be in excess of many decades, as it can easily be maintained, modernised, repaired and improved. ISLA will become the origin of a new astronomical international organisation with worldwide participation. ISLA's telescopes will be of the greatest importance to all astronomical fields, as it will permit to study much fainter, much more distant objects with microscopic spatial resolution in wavelength regions inaccessible from ground. ISLA's many telescopes permit easily simultaneous observations at many wavelengths for rapidly varying objects, from continuously monitoring the surfaces of the planets in our solar system, surfaces of close-by stars, nuclei of galaxies to QSO's. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

“Beautiful and cantankerous instruments”: telescopes, technology, and astronomy’s changing practice

Between the dedication of the 200” Hale Telescope in 1948 and the completion of today’s 8–10 m behemoths, astronomers’ most iconic symbol, the telescope itself—its design, its technology, and its use—was transformed as a research tool. The importance of this is deceptively simple: in astronomy, technological innovations have often led to new discoveries. Driven by the need to get as much observing time as possible and the desire to take advantage of the best observing conditions, modern observatories have experimented with new technologies and modes of collecting images and spectra. This entailed a re-casting of the telescope by astronomers and science managers as a factory of scientific data. At the same time, contemporary astronomers express considerable unease and apprehension about how these technological changes have altered, in ways subtle and profound, the nature of astronomical observing and what it meant to be an astronomer. This short essay addresses the issues associated with these recent changes in astronomical practice and their connections to astronomers’ desire for ever larger and more complex telescopes.     

Near-infrared sky background fluctuations at mid- and low latitudes

The emission of the upper atmosphere introduces an additional variable component into observations of astronomical objects in the NIR 700–3,000 nm range. The subtraction of this component is not easy because it varies during the night by as much as 100% and it is not homogeneous over the sky. A program aimed at measuring and understanding the main characteristics of the atmospheric NIR emission was undertaken. A 512?×?512 CCD camera equipped with a RG780/2 mm filter is used to obtain images of the sky in a 36°?×?36° field of view. The intensities of a given star and of the nearby region devoid of star in a 439 arcmin² area are monitored during periods of time of several hours. The sky intensity measured in the 754–900 nm bandpass, reduced to zenith and zero airmass is comprised between mag20 and mag18.5 per arcsecond². A diminution by a factor of two during the night is frequently observed. Intensity fluctuations having an amplitude of 15% and periods of 5–40 min are present in the images with a structure of regularly spaced stripes. The fluctuations of the NIR sky background intensity are due to (1) the chemical evolution of the upper atmosphere composition during the night and (2) dynamical processes such as tides with periods of 3–6 h or gravity waves with periods of several tens of minutes. We suggest that a monitoring of the sky background intensity could be set up when quantitative observations of astronomical objects require exposure times longer than ~10 min. The publication is illustrated with several video films accessible on the web site http://www.obs-besancon.fr/nirsky/. Enter username: nirsky and password: skynir.     

Measurements of charge diffusion in deep-depletion CCDs by optical diffraction

The charge diffusion is measured in back illuminated, fully depleted, 250 μm thick CCDs by imaging the diffraction pattern of a double slit. The CCDs studied are the focal plane detectors for the dark energy camera (DECam) instrument currently under construction for the dark energy survey (DES). The results presented here indicate that the dispersion of charge due to diffusion can be kept below the DES specification ( σ _d ?<?7.0 μm ).     

The first multi-wavelength campaign of AXP 4U 0142+61 from radio to hard X-rays

For the first time a quasi-simultaneous multi-wavelength campaign has been performed on an Anomalous X-ray Pulsar from the radio to the hard X-ray band. 4U 0142+61 was an INTEGRAL target for 1 Ms in July 2005. During these observations it was also observed in the X-ray band with Swift and RXTE, in the optical and NIR with Gemini North and in the radio with the WSRT. In this paper we present the source-energy distribution. The spectral results obtained in the individual wave bands do not connect smoothly; apparently components of different origin contribute to the total spectrum. Remarkable is that the INTEGRAL hard X-ray spectrum (power-law index 0.79±0.10) is now measured up to an energy of ～230 keV with no indication of a spectral break. Extrapolation of the INTEGRAL power-law spectrum to lower energies passes orders of magnitude underneath the NIR and optical fluxes, as well as the low ～30 μJy (2σ) upper limit in the radio band.     

GESE: a small UV space telescope to conduct a large spectroscopic survey of z∼1 Galaxies

One of the key goals of NASA’s astrophysics program is to answer the question: How did galaxies evolve into the spirals and elliptical galaxies that we see today? We describe a space mission concept called Galaxy Evolution Spectroscopic Explorer (GESE) to address this question by making a large spectroscopic survey of galaxies at a redshift, z～1 (look-back time of ～8 billion years). GESE is a 1.5-m space telescope with an ultraviolet (UV) multi-object slit spectrograph that can obtain spectra of hundreds of galaxies per exposure. The spectrograph covers the spectral range, 0.2–0.4 μm at a spectral resolving power, R～500. This observed spectral range corresponds to 0.1–0.2 μm as emitted by a galaxy at a redshift, z=1. The mission concept takes advantage of two new technological advances: (1) light-weighted, wide-field telescope mirrors, and (2) the Next-Generation MicroShutter Array (NG-MSA) to be used as a slit generator in the multi-object slit spectrograph.     

The fraction and mid-infrared properties of broad absorption line quasars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

We present the results of a study which uses a sample of 1822 Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) quasars with reliable Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) detections in the redshift range 1.7≤z≤4.38 to investigate the mid-infrared fraction of broad absorption line (BAL) quasars. The BAL quasars in the sample include both high-ionization BAL (HiBAL) quasars that show broad absorption from C?iv and low-ionization BAL (LoBAL) quasars that show additional broad absorption from Mg?ii. The fraction of C?iv BAL quasars with nonzero absorption index (AI) is found to be 38.7±1.2 %, in good agreement with that derived for the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS) sample. The C?iv BAL quasar fractions remain constant with magnitude in the WISE 3.4 μm (W1) and 4.6 μm (W2) bands, and increase rapidly with decreasing magnitude in the WISE 12 μm (W3) and 22 μm (W4) bands. The nonzero AI fraction of 44.5±2.1 % determined in the WISE W4 band is more likely to represent the intrinsic BAL quasar fraction. No evidence that the fraction is a strong function of redshift is found. At 1.7≤z≤2.15, the overall mid-infrared LoBAL fraction is $3.3^{+0.6}_{-0.5}~\%$ and the fractions increase significantly with decreasing magnitude in all four of WISE bands. Moreover, it is found that the mean optical-to-WISE colors of BAL quasars are ?0.2 mag redder than that of non-BAL quasars, while the traditional (nonzero balnicity) BAL quasars are redder than the nontraditional BAL quasars by ?0.15 mag, which suggest a continuum of more reddening from non-BAL to nontraditional BAL to traditional BAL. No evidence that nontraditional BALs are a distinct class from traditional BALs is found. Finally, it is shown that the mean optical-to-WISE colors of LoBALs are ?0.4 mag redder than that of HiBALs at 1.7≤z≤2.15.     

Analysis of QCD ghost F(\tilde{R}) gravity

Flux variability is a common feature of Young Stellar Objects (YSOs), which is often related to intermittent events of disk accretion (EXors events in case of 3–4 magnitudes variations). Recently, thanks to the surveys carried out by the space missions Spitzer and WISE, it has become possible to perform statistical studies on the mid-IR variability on large samples of YSOs. As a follow-up of our recent statistical study on five star forming regions (Antoniucci et al., Astrophys. J. 782:51, 2014), we present the 3–5 μm variability study of the YSOs population of the Vela-D star forming region. We have compared the 3.6 μm and 4.5 μm Spitzer-IRAC fluxes of 181 YSOs in Vela-D with their WISE fluxes at 3.4 μm and 4.6 μm and selected those objects simultaneously varying in both bands. We have identified a robust sample of 34 variables. On the base of the infrared excess of the Spectral Energy Distribution (SED) and the magnitude vs. color variations, we select 5 EXors candidates, which will be systematically monitored to firmly ascertain their nature. The selected 34 variables represent ～18 % of the YSOs detected with Spitzer and WISE, a percentage higher than that of other young star forming regions. Conversely, the percentage of candidate EXors (2.7 %) is quite similar to that measured in Perseus, Ophiuchus and Serpens, and also equals that found in Vela-D on the base of Spitzer variability (Giannini et al., Astrophys. J. 704:606, 2009). Consistently with our finding presented in Antoniucci et al. (2014), this fraction equals the probability of observing the source once in burst and once in quiescence, under the hypothesis that the time elapsed between the two events is of about 0.5–1 year. Of the 5 selected EXors candidates, 3 are Class I sources, and 2 are flat-spectrum sources, a circumstance that suggests that accretion-driven variability is a common phenomenon during the earlier phases of the protostellar evolution. In the light of the new WISE data, we also re-examine a sample of 10 variables, which we had already selected in Giannini et al. (2009). From the inspection of their light curves, we select two flat-spectrum sources as the best EXors candidates.     

30m级光学/红外望远镜的宽视场多目标光谱仪

宽视场多目标光谱仪具有宽波段、多分辨率模式和高通光效率的特点,是极大望远镜终端仪器使用率最高的通用型仪器. 30 m级望远镜的宽视场多目标光谱仪因体量和成本急剧增加而面临重要挑战,同时天文学的不断发展对天文新技术的发展提出了更高的要求,尤其是多个巡天项目对于多目标光谱后随观测的迫切需求.综述了几类宽视场多目标光谱仪的发展现状,介绍了国际3架30 m望远镜宽视场多目标光谱仪概念设计的最新进展和仪器特点,着重介绍了中国参与研制的30 m望远镜(TMT)中的宽视场多目标光谱仪的相关进展.     

Evolutionary studies of the young star clusters: NGC 1960, NGC 2453 and NGC 2384

We report the analysis of the young star clusters NGC 1960, NGC 2453 and NGC 2384 observed in the J (1.12 μm), H (1.65 μm) and K′ (2.2 μm) bands. Estimates of reddening, distance and age as E(B?V)=0.25, d=1380 pc and t=31.6 to 125 Myr for NGC 1960, E(B?V)=0.47, d=3311 pc and t=40 to 200 Myr for NGC 2453 and E(B?V)=0.25, d=3162 pc and t=55 to 125 Myr for NGC 2384 have been obtained. Also, we have extended the color–magnitude diagrams of these clusters to the fainter end and thus extended the luminosity functions to fainter magnitudes. The evolution of the main sequence and luminosity functions of these clusters have been compared with themselves as well as Lyngå 2 and NGC 1582.     

The visible and near infrared module of EChO

The Visible and Near Infrared (VNIR) is one of the modules of EChO, the Exoplanets Characterization Observatory proposed to ESA for an M-class mission. EChO is aimed to observe planets while transiting by their suns. Then the instrument had to be designed to assure a high efficiency over the whole spectral range. In fact, it has to be able to observe stars with an apparent magnitude M_v?=?9–12 and to see contrasts of the order of 10^?4–10^?5 necessary to reveal the characteristics of the atmospheres of the exoplanets under investigation. VNIR is a spectrometer in a cross-dispersed configuration, covering the 0.4–2.5 μm spectral range with a resolving power of about 330 and a field of view of 2 arcsec. It is functionally split into two channels respectively working in the 0.4–1.0 μm and 1.0–2.5 μm spectral ranges. Such a solution is imposed by the fact the light at short wavelengths has to be shared with the EChO Fine Guiding System (FGS) devoted to the pointing of the stars under observation. The spectrometer makes use of a HgCdTe detector of 512 by 512 pixels, 18 μm pitch and working at a temperature of 45 K as the entire VNIR optical bench. The instrument has been interfaced to the telescope optics by two optical fibers, one per channel, to assure an easier coupling and an easier colocation of the instrument inside the EChO optical bench.     

Mid- and far-infrared variability of PV Cep

We present the collection of all the mid- and far-IR observations (λ=3–170 μm) of the young eruptive variable PV Cep available so far in the literature. These data allow us to confirm that flux variability is a prominent feature at mid-IR wavelength (λ=3–25 μm). Color-magnitude plots clearly indicate that the observed variability is not extinction-driven, but mainly influenced by fluctuations of the mass accretion rate. We interpret such variability as due to a hot spot created onto the stellar surface by the column of accreting matter, which heats the inner parts of the disk and determines the observed increase of the near- mid-IR luminosity. A quantitative characterization is given for both the spot itself and the additional thermal component created by it. Far-IR data (λ=60–170 μm) are consistent with the presence of a temperature stratification in a massive and quite un-evolved circumstellar disk.