HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE<br /><br />DAILY REPORT # 3158<br /><br />PERIOD COVERED: DOY 197<br /><br />OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED [see HSTARS below for possible observation problems]<br /><br />NICMOS 8790<br /><br />NICMOS Post-SAA calibration - CR Persistence Part 1.<br /><br />A new procedure proposed to alleviate the CR-persistence problem of NICMOS. Dark<br />frames will be obtained immediately upon exiting the SAA contour 23, and every<br />time a NICMOS exposure is scheduled within 50 minutes of coming out of the SAA.<br />The darks will be obtained in parallel in all three NICMOS Cameras. The POST-SAA<br />darks will be non-standard reference files available to users with a USEAFTER<br />date/time mark.<br /><br />STIS/CCD 8902<br /><br />Dark Monitor-Part 2.<br /><br />The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph [CCD] was used to monitor the darks.<br /><br />STIS/CCD 8904<br /><br />Bias Monitor-Part 2.<br /><br />The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph [CCD] was used to monitor the bias in<br />the 1x1, 1x2, 2x1, and 2x2 bin settings at gain=1, and 1x1 at gain = 4 in order<br />to build up high-S/N superbiases and track the evolution of hot columns.<br /><br />STIS/MA1/MA2 8920<br /><br />Cycle 10 MAMA Dark Measurements.<br /><br />the MAMA detector dark noise, and is the primary means of checking on health of<br />the MAMA detectors systems through frequent monitoring of the background count<br />rate.<br /><br />WFPC2 8938<br /><br />WFPC2 CYCLE 9 SUPPLEMENTAL DARKS pt3/3.<br /><br />This dark calibration program obtains 3 dark frames every day to provide data<br />for monitoring and characterizing the evolution of hot pixels.<br /><br />STIS/CCD 9066<br /><br />Closing in on the Hydrogen Reionization Edge of the Universe.<br /><br />The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph [CCD] was used in parallel constrain<br />the Hydrogen reionization edge in emission that marks the transition from a<br />neutral to a fully ionized IGM at a predicted redshifts.<br /><br />STIS/MA1/MA2 9120<br /><br />Planetary Nebulae In The LMC: A Study On Stellar Evolution And Populations.<br /><br />The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph [MA1 and MA2] was used to investigate<br />the final phase of the evolution of low- and intermediate-mass stars, the<br />Planetary Nebula {PN} ejection that is thought to provide the main source of<br />carbon and nitrogen enrichment in galaxies.<br /><br />STIS/CCD/MA2 9166<br /><br />Fossil Gaseous Halos of Massive Galaxies at z~1.<br /><br />The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph [CCD and MA2] was used to observe host<br />galaxies of high-redshift, powerful radio sources that are likely the<br />progenitors of present-day gE and cD galaxies, and therefore provide important<br />laboratories in which to investigate the formation of massive galaxies in the<br />early Universe. Many high-redshift radio galaxies exhibit giant, Ly-alpha halos.<br />Similar nebulae without associated radio sources have recently been discovered<br />in a galaxy overdensity at z = 3.09. The LyAlpha luminosity of these halos is<br />comparable to the total X-ray luminosities of low--z X--ray clusters, and may<br />reflect the hot, cooling gas reservoir from which the galaxy/cluster is forming.<br /><br />STIS/CCD 9317<br /><br />Pure Parallel Imaging Program: Cycle 10.<br /><br />The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph [CCD] was used to perform the default<br />archival pure parallel program for STIS during cycle 10.<br /><br />WF/PC-2 9318<br /><br />POMS Test Proposal: WFII Parallel Archive Proposal Continuation.<br /><br />The WF/PC-2 was used to perform the generic target version of the WFPC2 Archival<br />Pure Parallel program. The program was used to take parallel images of random<br />areas of the sky, following the recommendations of the Parallels Working Group.<br /><br />NICMOS 9326<br /><br />NICMOS Cycle 10 Early Calibration Monitor<br /><br />observations will be obtain to monitor the stability and health of the NICMOS<br />detectors.<br /><br />SNAP 9356<br /><br />SNAPSHOT survey of the Planetary Nebulae population of the Galactic Bulge<br /><br />originating from hydrodynamical interactions between stellar winds: the<br />interacting-stellar wind model {ISW}. Traditionally, the shaping is thought to<br />occur after the star becomes hot enough to ionize the PN. But recent HST images<br />indicate that the shaping may occur earlier, and the newer GISW model puts the<br />shaping during the pre-planetary nebula evolution. The relative importance of<br />both models is not known: GISW shaping will account for some fraction of PNe,<br />but estimates range from 15--100 during the PN phase, especially for the<br />youngest PNe. We here propose an HST SNAPshot survey of compact PNe in the<br />Galactic Bulge, to test these predictions. The Bulge provides the only PNe<br />population for which progenitor masses are known and nebular ages can be<br />measured. In support of these HST measurements we have already measured velocity<br />fields and emission line fluxes. The survey will give an unbiassed sampling of<br />morphologies, and allow evolutionary sequences to be determined to test the ISW<br />versus the GISW model. By-products of the survey will be the determination of<br />nebular masses, diameters and filling factors. We will also obtain the White<br />Dwarf mass distribution in the Bulge, and the initial-final mass function for<br />low-mass stars.<br /><br />NICMOS 9360<br /><br />Paschen-alpha Imaging of a SIRTF-Selected Nearby Galaxy Sample<br /><br />We propose to carry out a NICMOS snapshot survey in the Paschen-alpha {PAlpha}<br />emission line and H-band of the sample of galaxies being observed at 3.5 -- 160<br />microns as part of SIRTF Nearby Galaxies Survey {SINGS} and a related guaranteed<br />time survey of starburst galaxies. The PAlpha images, accessible only from HST,<br />will be combined with groundbased HAlpha imaging to measure the extinction in<br />the star-forming centers of these galaxies, and obtain robust, extinction-<br />corrected maps of the massive star formation rate {SFR}. The PAlpha data by<br />themselves will provide reliable `extinction- free' SFRs, and a<br />cross-calibration of the {dust--affected} HAlpha-- and UV--based SFRs. The<br />PAlpha--based SFR measurements will extend the SFR-vs.-gas density law<br />{Schmidt--law} to surface densities at least 30 times higher than what is<br />accessible using HAlpha--based SFR measurements alone, bridging the gap between<br />normal galaxies and IR--luminous starbursts. Furthermore, the combination of the<br />HST PAlpha images with the SIRTF images and spectra, as well as ancillary<br />ground--based UBVRIJHK images and GALEX UV images being obtained as part of the<br />SINGS project, will provide a definitive study of the radiative transfer of<br />starlight and dust heating in star--forming galaxies. The processed NICMOS<br />images will be incorporated into the public SINGS Legacy Data Archive, to enable<br />scores of follow-up studies by the astronomical community at large.<br /><br />GO 9376<br /><br />A Powerful Double Radio Source from a Spiral Galaxy<br /><br />We have identified a powerful double radio source whose host galaxy is clearly a<br />disk system, and probably a spiral. This violates a very general pattern among<br />radio-loud AGN, and understanding this object may thus shed light on the<br />differences among expressions of nuclear activity between spiral and elliptical<br />hosts. We propose a set of images to verify the spiral morphology, seek evidence<br />of a nuclear ionization cone and jet/ISM interactions via narrow-band imaging,<br />and search for optical synchrotron emission from the radio jet. These data would<br />show whether indeed this {already strong} case indeed represents a spiral galaxy<br />producing a powerful double source, what kind of spiral, and how both the<br />nuclear and extended activity compare to those in typical elliptical host<br />systems.<br /><br />ACS/HRC 9379<br /><br />Near Ultraviolet Imaging of Seyfert Galaxies: Understanding the Starburst-AGN<br />Connection<br /><br />configuration which is optimal to detect faint star forming regions around their<br />nuclei. These images will complement optical and near-IR images available in the<br />HST archive, thus providing a panchromatic atlas of the inner regions of active<br />galaxies, which we will use to study the starburst-AGN connection. The main<br />goals of this proposal are: {1} Determine the frequency of circumnuclear<br />starbursts in Seyferts, down to levels which cannot be observed from the ground;<br />{2} characterize the observational {fluxes, colors, structure, sizes} and<br />intrinsic {luminosities, masses, ages, global star-formation rate} properties of<br />these clusters; {3} derive the luminosity functions of young star clusters<br />around the nucleus of Seyferts and compare these results with those from normal<br />and starburst galaxies to determine their survival rate close to the AGN; {4}<br />address questions about the relation between AGNs and starbursts, like the<br />possible connection between the masses and luminosities of black holes and<br />starbursts, and the implications for the evolution of the black holes and their<br />host galaxy bulges. By adding UV images to the existing optical and near-IR<br />ones, this project will create an extremely valuable database for astronomers<br />with a broad range of scientific interests, from the properties of the AGN to<br />the properties of their host galaxies.<br /><br />HST 9382<br /><br />A Large Targeted Survey for z < 1.6 Damped Lyman Alpha Lines in SDSS QSO<br />MgII-FeII Systems.<br /><br />We have searched the first public release of SDSS QSO spectra for low-z {z<1.65}<br />metal absorption lines and found over 200 large rest equivalent width MgII-FeII<br />systems. Previously, we empirically showed that such systems are good tracers of<br />large neutral gas columns, with ~50% being classical damped Lyman alpha {DLA}<br />systems {N_HI>=2*10^20 cm^-2}. Here we propose to follow up a well-defined<br />subset of 79 of them to search for DLAs with 0.47<z<1.60. Only QSOs brighter<br />than g'=19 were selected. The QSO emission and DLA absorption redshifts were<br />constrained to virtually eliminate data loss due to intervening Lyman limit<br />absorption. Consequently, we expect to discover ~40 new DLAs, which is a<br />three-fold increase in this redshift interval. This will significantly improve<br />our earlier low-z DLA statistical results on their incidence, cosmological mass<br />density, and N_HI distribution. The results will also allow us to better<br />quantify the empirical DLA -- metal-line correlation. With this improved<br />understanding, the need for follow-up UV spectroscopy will lessen and, with the<br />release of the final database of SDSS QSO spectra {an ~25-fold increase}, the<br />number of low-z DLAs could be increased arbitrarily. Thus, the power of the<br />large and statistically-sound SDSS database in combination with a proven<br />technique for finding low-z DLAs will, over the next few years, essentially<br />solve the problem of making an accurate determination of the cosmic evolution of<br />the neutral gas component down to z~0.4.<br /><br />ACS 9468<br /><br />ACS Grism Parallel Survey of Emission- line Galaxies at Redshift z pl 7<br /><br />We propose an ACS grism parallel survey to search for emission-line galaxies<br />toward 50 random lines of sight over the redshift interval 0 < zpl 7. We<br />request ACS parallel observations of duration more than one orbit at high<br />galactic latitude to identify ~ 300 HAlpha emission-line galaxies at 0.2pl zpl<br />0.5, ~ 720 O IILambda3727 emission-line galaxies at 0.3pl zpl 1.68, and pg<br />1000 Ly-alpha emission-line galaxies at 3pl zpl 7 with total emission line<br />flux fpg 2* 10^-17 ergs s^-1 cm^-2 over 578 arcmin^2. We will obtain direct<br />images with the F814W and F606W filters and dispersed images with the WFC/G800L<br />grism at each position. The direct images will serve to provide a zeroth order<br />model both for wavelength calibration of the extracted 1D spectra and for<br />determining extraction apertures of the corresponding dispersed images. The<br />primary scientific objectives are as follows: {1} We will establish a uniform<br />sample of HAlpha and O II emission-line galaxies at z<1.7 in order to obtain<br />accurate measurements of co-moving star formation rate density versus redshift<br />over this redshift range. {2} We will study the spatial and statistical<br />distribution of star formation rate intensity in individual galaxies using the<br />spatially resolved emission-line morphology in the grism images. And {3} we will<br />study high-redshift universe using Ly-alpha emitting galaxies identified at z<br />pl 7 in the survey. The data will be available to the community immediately as<br />they are obtained.<br /><br />ACS 9480<br /><br />Cosmic Shear With ACS Pure Parallels<br /><br />Small distortions in the shapes of background galaxies by foreground mass<br />provide a powerful method of directly measuring the amount and distribution of<br />dark matter. Several groups have recently detected this weak lensing by<br />large-scale structure, also called cosmic shear. The high resolution and<br />sensitivity of HST/ACS provide a unique opportunity to measure cosmic shear<br />accurately on small scales. Using 260 parallel orbits in Sloan textiti {F775W}<br />we will measure for the first time: beginlistosetlength sep0cm setlengthemsep0cm<br />setlength opsep0cm em the cosmic shear variance on scales <0.7 arcmin, em the<br />skewness of the shear distribution, and em the magnification effect. endlist Our<br />measurements will determine the amplitude of the mass power spectrum<br />sigma_8Omega_m^0.5, with signal-to-noise {s/n} ~ 20, and the mass density<br />Omega_m with s/n=4. They will be done at small angular scales where non-linear<br />effects dominate the power spectrum, providing a test of the gravitational<br />instability paradigm for structure formation. Measurements on these scales are<br />not possible from the ground, because of the systematic effects induced by PSF<br />smearing from seeing. Having many independent lines of sight reduces the<br />uncertainty due to cosmic variance, making parallel observations ideal.<br /><br />ACS/CAL 9558<br /><br />ACS weekly Test<br /><br />This program consists of basic tests to monitor, the read noise, the development<br />of hot pixels and test for any source of noise in ACS CCD detectors. This<br />programme will be executed once a day for the entire lifetime of ACS.<br /><br />STIS 9618<br /><br />STIS MAMA Dispersion Solutions<br /><br />Obtain wavecals just deep enough to constrain wavelength and spatial distortion<br />maps without overusing the calibration lamp. For the first time on orbit, data<br />will be obtained at all available central wavelengths. This information will<br />help constrain global models of STIS optical performance being developed at ECF<br />and STScI. During the observations, MSM monthly offsets will be set to zero to<br />complement observations over the past couple of cycles, which occurred at extreme<br />monthly offsets. The echelle observations at zero offset will yield dispersion<br />solutions that are directly applicable to all echelle science data obtained<br />after monthly offsets are disabled.<br /><br />WFPC2 9634<br /><br />POMS Test Proposal: WFII targeted parallel archive proposal<br /><br />The parallel opportunities available with WFPC2 in the neighborhood of bright<br />galaxies are treated in a slightly different way from the normal pure parallels.<br />Local Group galaxies offer the opportunity for a closer look at young stellar<br />populations. Narrow-band images in F656N can be used both to identify young<br />stars via their emission lines, and to map the gas distribution in star-forming<br />regions. Thus, the filter F656N is added to the four standard filters. Near more<br />distant galaxies, up to about 10 Mpc, we can map the population of globular<br />clusters; for this purpose, F300W is less useful, and only F450W, F606W, and<br />F814W will be used.<br /><br />FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:<br /><br />HSTARS: [For details see ]http://hst-sers.hst.nasa.gov/SERS/HST/HSTAR.nsf]<br /><br />8738 - FSIF Process on BackBone Data Server @ 197/1140z. CCS "G" String<br /> Backbone Data Server FSIF process count dropped to zero @ 197/11:40Z.<br /> Unable to connect via FTP. Under investigation.<br /><br />COMPLETED OPS REQs: None<br /><br />OPS NOTES EXECUTED:<br />1024-0 - Limit Adjustments for Solar Array 3 @ 197/2042z<br /><br /> SCHEDULED SUCCESSFUL FAILURE TIMES<br />FGS GSacq 7 7<br />FGS REacq 7 7<br />FHST Update 17 17<br />LOSS of LOCK None<br /><br />Operations Notes: None<br /><br />SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: HST CCS 4.01 Testing, Case 17, NSSC-1 and SI<br />Operations Regression Test scheduled 198/11:00Z - 20:00Z with GDOC,<br />IDOC, HITT, SE, and VEST using CCS "G" String with CCS Release D.4.0.1<br />and PRD D06100R2.