Strategic technology development to support future ExEP projects.

A survey of serendipitous source performed in the very soft X-ray band (0.05-2.0 keV) using the EXOSAT imaging telescopes is presented. The survey covers 783 square degrees of high galactic latitude sky and includes 210 serendipitous sources which define a complete (flux-limited) sample. An extensive program of optical and radio observatories together with cross-correlations with catalogs of known objects lead to the identification of 200 of the 210 detected sources. The 10 remaining objects have been preliminarily classified on the basis of their X-ray to optical flux ratios, thus making the sample essentially fully identified. Twenty-three additional serendipitous sources which did not satisfy the requirements for inclusion in the complete sample were also identified during the optical observations program. The complete sample has been used to study the logN-logS relation and the average spectral slope of AGN. It is found that the logN-logS slope is consistent with that of the Einstein Extended Medium Sensitivity Survey (EMSS) and with the "Euclidean" value of 1.5. The normalization of the logN-logS is a strong function of the assumed spectral slope of AGN. Consistency with the results of the EMSS implies that the average (energy) slope of extragalactic sources in the soft X-ray band is very steep (alpha ~ 1.5). An analysis of the association between AGN detection and Galactic NH also shows that alpha is steep and inconsistent with the canonical value of 0.7. The survey was particularly successful in detecting nearby Galactic soft X-ray emitters and includes a significantly higher percentage of stars than the Einstein EMSS, five White Dwarfs, and three previously unknown AM Her type systems. The sample of sources in this catalog has been selected from the CMA database, which it has been generated using a standard processing on the LE data. The source detection algorithm used a sliding cell method. The size of the search cell is such as to maximize the sensitivity across the field of view. For more information about the LE processing see the documentation in the CMA database. This is a service provided by NASA HEASARC .

We propose a three-year effort to upgrade our existing sub-arcsecond Lyman-alpha telescope payload to improve the observing cadence by a factor of 2, increase the signal-to-ratio by a factor of 4, and launch the payload twice. With this upgraded performance, we will be able to investigate a number of scientific questions regarding the structure and heating of the solar atmosphere that address NASA’s Strategic Goal to understand the Sun and its effects on Earth and the Solar System. Specifically, the ultra-high resolution and high-temporal cadence VAULT2.0 science program and associated launch campaigns will answer the following five questions:

? What is the role of Type-II spicules in the transfer of energy and mass across the chromosphere-corona interface?

? Does neutral plasma absorption of the EUV emission from active region moss explain the discrepancies in the models of coronal loop heating?

? Where are the photospheric footpoints of coronal loops?

? What is the structure of coronal holes in the Lyman-alpha temperature range?

? What is the absolute abundance of H I at the base of the solar wind?

Despite decades of ground-based observations, the chromosphere remains one of the least understood layers of the solar atmosphere because of our limited understanding of the physical processes that govern it. In the last few years, the chromosphere has been propelled to the forefront of solar physics research thanks to spectacular new observations from space (Hinode/SOT and VAULT), and ground (e.g., SOUP, IBIS, DOT, SST), and the advent of sophisticated numerical simulations which are beginning to address the complex physics of the optically thick chromospheric plasmas and are opening up the interpretation of the observations. With these new capabilities come exciting new ideas regarding the role of the chromosphere in supplying the mass and energy to heat the corona, the nature of filaments, and the contribution of chromospheric jets to the solar wind. These ideas are challenging our traditional views of coronal heating (a long-standing mystery of solar physics), the existence of the ‘transition region’, the role of neutral plasmas in coronal emission and even the dominance of magnetic fields at coronal heights. The recent SMEX selection of a chromosphere-oriented mission, IRIS, is further evidence for the renewed importance of chromospheric physics. Observational limitations, however, are impeding further development and validation of these ideas. Both theoretical and observational considerations point to the importance of tracing the mass and energy on small spatial scales through the upper chromosphere and transition region (e.g., De Pontieu et al. 2007a, 2009, 2011; Vourlidas et al. 2010). This layer corresponds roughly to the temperature range from 10,000K (ground-based Hα) to 80,000K (space-based HeI). The requirement for high spatial- and temporal-resolution observations in this temperature range cannot be met fully by current instrumentation. Narrow-band, high-resolution images from TRACE, Hinode, STEREO and SOHO have inadequate temperature coverage or poor resolution. The SDO/AIA observations are skewed towards higher temperature plasmas. The SOHO spectrometers CDS and SUMER have good temperature coverage and fidelity, but limited spatial and temporal resolution and more importantly, limited operational lifetime. Hinode/EIS observations are mostly confined to the upper solar atmosphere while SOT observations are confined to the lower chromosphere (≤ 10,000K). The forthcoming IRIS satellite will partially cover the gap between chromosphere and transition region by obtaini

This data set set contains calibrated images of eight known transiting extrasolar planetary systems (hot Jupiters) acquired by the Deep Impact High Resolution Visible CCD during the EPOCh phase of the EPOXI mission. From 22 January through 31 August 2008 the HRIV CCD collected over 172,000 usable, photometric-quality visible light images of these transiting planet systems: HAT-P-4, HAT-P-7, GJ 436, TrES-2, TrES-3, XO-2, XO-3, and WASP-3. Time series of continuous 50-second integrations were used with the clear filter (#6) to observe each system for about three weeks, typically covering five or more transits as well as secondary eclipses. An exception was XO-3 which was only observed briefly due to the spacecraft entering safe mode. The transiting planet systems were observed in the integrated light of the planet and star; no spatially resolved image of the planet was possible.

"We are developing rotating-baseline nulling-interferometry techniques and algorithms on the single-aperture Hale and Keck telescopes at near-infrared wavelengths, aimed at the detection of faint emission close to bright stars. Our experiments are aimed at developing simple and robust nulling interferometer systems, that will be useful in the short term for unique observations of faint exozodiacal emission and exoplanets very close to nearby stars, and in the long term for refining and simplifying potential nulling-interferometer-based space missions. Here we propose significant sensitivity, stability, dispersion-reduction and statistical-analysis upgrades to our nulling interferometer systems so as to take our nulling work from the earlier ""basic physics demonstration"" phase to the ""ultimate limiting performance"" stage. Several planned upgrades to our nulling systems will enable forefront nulling capabilities at very low cost. First, we plan to improve the sensitivity of our Palomar Fiber Nuller by two orders of magnitude by replacing our current very modest detector with a much more sensitive IR camera inherited from the Palomar Testbed Interferometer. Second, we plan to improve our fringe stability through a series of upgrades. We will make use of the P3K extreme adaptive optics capability to come on line at Palomar mid-2011 to enable ~ 70 -100 nm stability between subapertures, and also extremely good fiber-coupling stability, together allowing very deep nulls to be measured. We will also upgrade our own post-adaptive optics fringe tracker and implement a novel fluctuation-tolerant fringe tracker algorithm. Third, we will further develop and test novel data reduction algorithms based on the statistics of the null-depth fluctuations to measure accurate astrophysical nulls to levels much deeper than our stabilization level would otherwise allow. Finally, we will also implement a number of dispersion reduction techniques to improve broadband operation an

This catalog is based on information contained in Warwick et al (1988), MNRAS, 232, 551. The distribution of 2-6 keV x-ray emission in the galactic plane in the first and fourth galactic quadrants has been measured in a series of scanning observations with the medium-energy progportional counters on EXOSAT. The results are presented as contour maps and in the form of a catalogue of 70 discrete sources. Additional references can be found under the reference parameter. Additional information can be obtained upon request from the HEASARC. This is a service provided by NASA HEASARC .

Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) was launched on April 28, 2006 to study the impact of clouds and aerosols on the Earth’s radiation budget and climate. It flies in formation with five other satellites in the international “A-Train” (PDF) constellation for coincident Earth observations. The CALIPSO satellite comprises three instruments, the Cloud-Aerosol LIdar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP), the Imaging Infrared Radiometer (IIR), and the Wide Field Camera (WFC). CALIPSO is a joint satellite mission between NASA and the French Agency, CNES. These data consist 5 km aerosol layer data.

Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) was launched on April 28, 2006 to study the impact of clouds and aerosols on the Earth’s radiation budget and climate. It flies in formation with five other satellites in the international “A-Train” (PDF) constellation for coincident Earth observations. The CALIPSO satellite comprises three instruments, the Cloud-Aerosol LIdar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP), the Imaging Infrared Radiometer (IIR), and the Wide Field Camera (WFC). CALIPSO is a joint satellite mission between NASA and the French Agency, CNES. These data consist 5 km aerosol layer data.

Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) was launched on April 28, 2006 to study the impact of clouds and aerosols on the Earth’s radiation budget and climate. It flies in formation with five other satellites in the international “A-Train” (PDF) constellation for coincident Earth observations. The CALIPSO satellite comprises three instruments, the Cloud-Aerosol LIdar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP), the Imaging Infrared Radiometer (IIR), and the Wide Field Camera (WFC). CALIPSO is a joint satellite mission between NASA and the French Agency, CNES. These data consist 5 km aerosol layer data.

Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) was launched on April 28, 2006 to study the impact of clouds and aerosols on the Earth’s radiation budget and climate. It flies in formation with five other satellites in the international “A-Train” (PDF) constellation for coincident Earth observations. The CALIPSO satellite comprises three instruments, the Cloud-Aerosol LIdar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP), the Imaging Infrared Radiometer (IIR), and the Wide Field Camera (WFC). CALIPSO is a joint satellite mission between NASA and the French Agency, CNES. These data consist 5 km aerosol layer data.