the stratospheric observatory for infrared astronomy (sofia) b-g andersson sofia science operations...

The Stratospheric Observatory forInfrared Astronomy (SOFIA)

B-G AnderssonSOFIA Science Operations Manager

Universities Space Research Association (USRA)

Dust and Ice, March 30, 2010

March 30, 2010 B-G Andersson2

Outline

• This is SOFIA• SOFIA Capabilities• Science Highlights• SOFIA for the professional Astronomer• SOFIA Instrument Development/Asilomar 2010 workshop


SOFIA OverviewStratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy

• 2.5 (2.7)m telescope in a modified Boeing 747SP aircraft– Imaging and spectroscopy from 0.3 m to 1.6 mm– Emphasizes the obscured IR (30-300 m)

• Operational Altitude– 39,000 to 45,000 feet (12 to 14 km)– Above > 99.8% of obscuring water vapor

• Joint Program between the US (80%) and Germany (20%)– First Light in 2010– 20 year design lifetime –can respond to changing technology– Ops: Science at NASA-Ames; Flight at Dryden FRC (Palmdale- Site 9)– Deployments to the Southern Hemisphere and elsewhere– >120 8-10 hour flights per year

• As is standard for NASA observatories – proposals open to US and non-US observers

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Primary Mirror M1

M2

M3-1

M3-2

f/19.6 Focal Plane

Focal Plane Imager

Pressure bulkhead

Nasmyth tube

Spherical Hydraulic Bearing

Observers in pressurized cabin have ready access to the focal plane

Nasmyth: Optical Layout


Back End of the SOFIA Telescope

SOFIA Science Vision Blue Ribbon Panel Review October 24, 2008


The SOFIA Observatory

open cavity (door not shown)

TELESCOPE

pressure bulkhead

scientific instrument (1 of 9)

scientist stations, telescope and instrument control, etc.

Educators work station


SOFIA Overview, cont.

• “Great Observatory” - like operations – User support– Data Analysis and Archive Usage grants (US based investigators)– Planning and observing tools– Comprehensive, on-line archive– Pipeline processing (being developed)

• Integrated Education and Public Outreach program– EPO staff to support users and educators– Airborne Ambassador program (flying with specific astronomers)– Planet Partners


Why Air(Space)-borne Observatories for the IR?

• Even at the very best ground-based sites, the transmission in the mid- to far- infrared is poor or nonexistent

• Cool dust, light molecule rotation lines, atomic fine-structure lines etc., in this range provide unique tracers


• SOFIA• Above 99.8% of the water vapor

• Transmission at 14 km >80% from 1 to 800 µm; emphasis on the obscured IR regions from 30 to 300 µm

• Instrumentation: wide variety, rapidly interchangeable, state-of-the art - Instrument suite to be regularly updated/upgraded

• Platform for testing technology and training observers

• Mobility: for transient events

• Twenty year design lifetime: enables long-term temporal studies

Why SOFIA? Space vs. sub-orbital• Aircraft+ Replenish consumables+ Technology upgrades+ Cutting edge applications+ Training of instrumentalistsBut:– “Human rated”– Fuel cost

• Spacecraft+ Above all the atmosphere+ Low stable background+ More observing time per year

But:– Launch cost– Mass and volume limitations– “Space qualified” technology– No “second chances”

• WIRE• HST (-COSTAR/SM 1-4)• ASTRO-E


SOFIA Capabilities


Already in 1:st gen.: wide complement of instruments


SOFIA Photometric Sensitivity


SOFIA Angular Resolution

• So, SOFIA is about as sensitive as ISO, and will increase effective sensitivity through future large-area arrays

• Easier mapping than Herschel

• SOFIA is diffraction limited beyond 25 µm and can produce sharper images than Spitzer


Science Highlights

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SOFIA Highlights

• Dust photometry• Refractory and Ice Spectroscopy• Polarimetry (second generation)

– Magnetic fields of cores– Spectropolarimetry

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Thermal Emission from ISM Gas and Dust• SOFIA is the only mission in

the next decade that is sensitive to the entire Far-IR SED of a galaxy that is dominated by emission from the ISM excited by radiation from massive stars and supernova shock waves

• The SED is dominated by PAH emission, thermal emission from dust grains, and by the main cooling lines of the neutral and ionized ISM

NGC2024

Kandori, R., et al. 2007, PASJ, 59, 487Spectral Energy Distribution (SED) of the

entire LMC (courtesy of F. Galliano)


The Diversity of Stardust

Kandori, R., et al. 2007, PASJ, 59, 487

• ISO SWS Spectra: stardust is spectrally diverse in the regime covered by SOFIA• Studies of stardust mineralogy• Evaluation of stardust contributions from various stellar populations• Implications for the lifecycle of gas and dust in galaxies

Herbig AeBe

Post-AGB and PNe

Mixed chemistry post-AGB

C-rich AGB

O-rich AGB

Mixed chemistry AGB

Deeply embedded YSO

HII region refection nebulae

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Interstellar Ices

• Interstellar ices may – Contain significant

reservoirs of some elements/species (O)

– Allow for chemical evolution not possible in gas-phase reactions

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Resolving Power: Gas Phase vs. Solid State

Examples of observed IR

features: vibration-rotation

bands of gaseous CO and

pure vibrational features of

solid CO and CO2. [ISO SWS

data; van Dishoeck et al.]

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RESOLVING POWERS NEEDED TOEXTRACT ALL INHERENT INFORMATION

Feature R = l/Dl

Broad solidFeatures

~ 100 – 500

Narrow solidfeatures + subfeatures

~ 500 – 2000

Gaseous vibration-rotationbands

≥ 104

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FIR Polarimetry (Instr. Gen. “1.5”): What’s the Role of Magnetic fields in Star Formation?

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SHARP

SMA

straight part of thehourglass seen by SHARP(Attard et al. ‘09)

“waist” of the hourglass seen bySMA(Girart et al. ‘06)

“…at [the Class 0 phase] magnetic fields dominate over turbulence as the key parameter to control the star formation process.”

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FIR multi-band Polarimetry – Grain Alignment

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TA > TB, pA < pB, A ~ B

OR

TA ~ TB, pA < pB, A > B

TenuousCloud2.0

Radiative grain alignment model in starless clouds:• Nearly all grains exposed to same ISRF• Large grains are more efficiently• Large grains cool more efficiently

Colder grains better aligned than warm grains

Radiative torques in cores with embedded stars:• Grains near stars aligned• Grains far from stars not well-aligned

Warm grains better aligned than cool grains

Vaillancourt et al.

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Ices sublimate at characteristic depthsH2O: AV~3.5 mag.CO: AV~5.5 mag.

Measuring the polarization in the ice lines allow us to probe the magnetic field selectively “inside” these depths.Comparing opacity and polarization spectra can provide information on the refractory-to-ice volume ratio

Whittet et al. 1989

Probing 3D Magnetic Fields Though Ice Line Polarimetry(2:nd Gen. Inst.)


Nebulae and PDRs

Fine structure lines from

• C II

• O I

• N II

High-J lines of CO

PAH lines


PDR diagnostics

adapted from Kaufman et al. 1999, ApJ, 527, 795


Comets: Mineral GrainsWhat can SOFIA observations of comets tell

us about the origin of the Solar System?

• Comet dust mineralogy: amorphous, crystalline, and organic constituents

• Comparisons with IDPs and meteorites

• Comparisons with Stardust

• Only SOFIA can make these observations near perihelion

The vertical lines mark features of crystalline

Mg-rich crystalline olivine (forsterite)

ISO Data

Spitzer Data

SOFIA Occultation Studies of Objects in our Solar System

SOFIA can probe the sizes, structures (rings), and atmospheres of solar system bodies by measuring how they occult background stars

TowardOcculted Star

Motion of Occulting Object

Shadow of Occulting Object

Earth

Object

SOFIA is uniquely suited for this because it can deploy over most of the Earth to be in the right place at

the right time:Can pick from hundreds of

events each year


SOFIA Science

Plus:

All the great, smart, applications that we didn’t think of, but that YOU will!


Early General Investigator Opportunities

• Open Door Flights began at Palmdale in late 2009

• First light images are planned for April 2010

• Short Science in 2010 with FORCAST (5-40 μm imager) and

GREAT (Heterodyne 60 to 200 μm Spectrometer)– Proposals are in and teams have been selected – Very limited number of flights (~3)– GI’s will not fly

• Basic Science for GIs in 2011 with FORCAST and GREAT– Draft call was released in Jan 2009– Final call to be released in April 2010, proposals due July 2– Longer period (~15 Flights)

• Full science operations begin in 2014


Instrument Development

• Second Generation Instruments are about to be solicited.– AO from NASA HQ likely to be issued in early 2011– Open to all applications

• Watch for AO or contact Paul Hertz at NASA HQ.• Workshop to discuss the community’s view to be held at

Asilomar (Monterey peninsula, CA), June 6-8, 2010• Invited review talks• Contributed posters

– Large amounts of poster viewing time scheduled


Please join us at Asilomar

this June 6-8!


Summary

• SOFIA is an airborne, major IR observatory• Close to first light and first science• Exciting Science, also in the Herschel/post-Spitzer era• Many opportunities for involvement both for observers,

instrument builders and educators.

March 30, 2010

• Backup slides

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Asilomar 2010 Logistics

• Asilomar is a former YMCA/YWCA retreat built in “Arts & Crafts” style

• Now a California state park• Registration deadline April 2• No Registration Fee• Lodging and Food (booked via the Asilomar web page):

– Three meals a day included in – Several different lodging options available at Asilomar

• Asilomar is easily reached from the San Jose or San Francisco airports

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Target features by instrument

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SOFIAInstrument

Useful lrange

R= /l Dl Target features

FLITECAMgrism mode

2 – 5 mm 2000 N-bearing ices (ammonia, nitriles, cyanates)C–H stretch region (ices, organics)CO-bearing ices; 13CO/CO ratio

FORECASTgrism mode

5 – 40 mm 200 Water-ice bending modeCarbonyl features in kerogens and icesOther key ice features (CH3OH, NH3, etc.)Silicate dust

FIFI-LS 40 – 80 mm

3000 Water-ice

EXES 5 – 28 mm 103 – 105 Fine structure in solid state featuresGas phase abundances; gaseous CO surveyof targets with solid CO detections


• Venus has not been thoroughly explored with broadband, high resolution spectroscopy

-- Venus off-limits to Herschel• D/H ratio indicates Venus lost an ocean-- Missing piece of evidence: where’s the O? -- Basic atmospheric chemical network not understood.• Observations of atmospheric composition variability (esp. SO2, SO)

can constrain possibility of ongoing intermittent volcanic(?) activity• Stratospheric super-rotation not understood

GREAT

Venus; Earth’s poorly understood “sister”


SOFIA Observing for the community

• SOFIA Instruments come in three flavors:– Facility Class Science Instruments (FSI)

• Fully supported • Based at the Science Center• FLITECAM, FORCAST, HAWC (FIFI LS)

– Principle Investigator Science Instruments (PSI)• Based at builder’s institution• Supported by PI• Generally available without pre-proposal• CASIMIR, EXES (GREAT)

– Special Science Instruments (SSI)• Requires collaboration with the instrument PI• HIPO

• Full pipeline processing for FSI & PSI being developed


SOFIA User Support

• Science Center at NASA Ames• Tools for proposal development & preparation• User Support scientists• Part of the Edwin Hubble Fellowship program• http://www.sofia.usra.edu

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Example SOFIA Coverage: Orion

contour: pointings where s(P) < 0.3% in 4 minutes

with SOFIA

KAO polarization map: Schleuning (1998)


The Galactic Center

• Extremely high opacity region

• Opaque in Visual and NIR

• Harbors Super Massive Black Hole

• AGN?

green 3.6 μm, blue 8.0 μm (IRAC) & red 24 μm (MIPS)


Stellar of non-thermal heating in the GC?

from Spaans & Meijerink 2008, ApJL, 678, L5


SOFIA: First Generation Instruments

Instrument Descriptionλ range (μm)

resolution (λ/Δλ)Institution

PI

FORCAST Mid-IR camera and grism 5 - 40R ~ 200

CornellT. Herter

GREAT Heterodyne spectrometer 60 - 200R = 106 - 108

MPIfR, KosmaR. Güsten

FIFI LS Imaging grating spectrometer 42 - 210R = 1000 - 3750

MPE GarchingA. Poglitsch

HIPO Photometer for occultation 0.3 - 1.1 Lowell Obs.E. Dunham

FLITECAM Near-IR camera and grism 1 - 5R ~ 2000

UCLAI. McLean

CASIMIR Heterodyne spectrometer 200 - 600R = 3x104 - 6x106

CaltechJ. Zmuidzinas

HAWC Far-IR bolometer camera 50 - 240 U. ChicagoD. Harper

EXES Echelon spectrometer 5 - 28R = 105, 104, 3000

UT/UC Davis/AmesM. Richter


Asilomar 2010 Topics and Invited SpeakersScience Topics

ISM Energetics & Magnetic Fields Eli Dwek (NASA GSFC)

Dust, including PAH, Ices & Mineralogy Xander Tielens (Leiden U.)

Molecular Astrophysics David Neufeld (Johns Hopkins U.)

The Galactic Center Paul Ho (CfA)

Extragalactic Star Formation/Starbursts Eva Schinnerer (MPA)

Line Diagnostics of the Intermediate-z Universe George Helou (IPAC)

High-mass Star Formation John Bally (U. Colorado)

Post-Main Sequence Stars, CSEs Sun Kwok (U Hong Kong)

ExoPlanets Drake Deming (NASA GSFC)

Solar System Astronomy Dale Cruikshank (NASA ARC)

Workshop Summary Steven Beckwith (U. California)

Programmatic Topics

NASA’s View Jon Morse (NASA HQ)

NASA 2nd Gen. SOFIA Inst. AO Paul Hertz (NASA HQ)

Title TBD Alios Himmes (DLR)

Welcome and SOFIA Status Erick Young (USRA)

SOFIA 1st Generation Instruments Eric Becklin (USRA)


Orion regionleft: view at visual wavelengths

right: far-infrared view

An object can look radically different depending on the type of light collected from it:


Stellar Birth and Death

Star Formation

Late Stages of Stellar evolution


Education Programs

AAA = Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors

Teams of formal & informal educators & select amateur astronomers • Partnered by E&PO with consenting researcher teams,• Involved in flight series w/ research partners• Supported by E&PO after flights to enhance local education

PP = Planet Partners

Individuals or teams of educators• Partnered by E&PO with SOFIA scientists in their local areas• Not trained for flights

SFW = Summer Faculty Workshops• For college and university educators not involved in research• Aimed especially at participants from institutions of under-served populations• Can be coupled with REU program (below)

REU = Research Experience for Undergraduates• Summer fellowships at Ames (NSF-sponsored program)• For select undergraduates• Exposure to front-line science and engineering research


SOFIA E&PO Components

“Built in” to observatory from the very beginning

Support for “Formal” (classroom) educationEnrichment for educators

• Training and flights• Partnerships with local SOFIA scientists• summer workshops

Production and dissemination of curricula

Support for “Informal” education (museums, etc.)Science centers, Planetaria, etc.

Public OutreachPublic displays (e.g. air shows), conference displays, etc.


It’s 3 AM onboard the KAO ...ScientistsTeachersReporterMission DirectorFOSTER Flight Staff

Based/modeled on the KAO FOSTER flight programFOSTER = Flight Opportunities for Science Teacher EnRichment

the stratospheric observatory for infrared astronomy (sofia) b-g andersson sofia science operations...

Documents

workshop slide

optical layout slide

focal plane nasmyth

nonus observers

great observatory

instrument control

year design lifetime

training observers mobility