1,079 research outputs found
SPICA:Revealing the Hearts of Galaxies and Forming Planetary Systems; Overview and US Contributions
SPICA is a cryogenic space observatory studied by ESA and JAXA. The 2.5-m telescope is cooled to T<8 K. Among the 3 instruments is a far- IR spectrometer SAFARI led by SRON, Holland to which the US will make key detector/instrument contributions. <p/
Probing the Interstellar Medium using HI absorption and emission towards the W3 HII region
HI spectra towards the W3 HII complex are presented and used to probe the
Galactic structure and interstellar medium conditions between us and this
region. The overall shape of the spectra is consistent with the predictions of
the Two-Arm Spiral Shock model wherein the gas found in the -40 km/s to -50
km/s range has been accelerated by some 20 km/s from its rotation curve
velocity. Spin temperatures of ~100 K are derived for the Local Arm gas, lower
than found in a previous, similar study towards DR 7. For the interarm region,
values on the order of 300 K are found, implying a negligible filling factor
for the Cold Neutral Medium (<< 1%). Some of the absorbing gas at velocities
near -40 km/s is confirmed to be associated with the HII regions.Comment: 23 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in the Astronomical
Journa
The role of integrated information acquisition and management in the analysis of coastal ecosystem change
This book chapter represents a synthesis of the work which started in my PhD and which has been the conceptual basis for all of my research since 1993. The chapter presents a method for scientists and managers to use for selecting the type of remotely sensed data to use to meet their information needs associated with a mapping, monitoring or modelling application. The work draws on results from several of my ARC projects, CRC Rainforest and Coastal projects and theses of P.Scarth , K.Joyce and C.Roelfsema
ISO spectroscopy of compact HII regions in the Galaxy. II Ionization and elemental abundances
Based on the ISO spectral catalogue of compact HII regions by Peeters et al.
(2001), we present a first analysis of the hydrogen recombination and atomic
fine-structure lines originated in the ionized gas. The sample consists of 34
HII regions located at galactocentric distances between Rgal = 0 and 15 kpc.
The SWS HI recombination lines between 2 and 8 mum are used to estimate the
extinction law at these wavelengths for 14 HII regions. An extinction in the K
band between 0 and 3 mag. has been derived. The fine-structure lines of
N, O, Ne, S and Ar are detected in most of the sources. Most of these elements
are observed in two different ionization stages probing a range in ionization
potential up to 41 eV. The ISO data, by itself or combined with radio data
taken from the literature, is used to derive the elemental abundances relative
to hydrogen. The present data thus allow us to describe for each source its
elemental abundance, its state of ionization and to constrain the properties of
the ionizing star(s).Comment: Accepted in Astronomy and Astrophysics, 22 pages, 20 figures, 9
table
SPICA:revealing the hearts of galaxies and forming planetary systems : approach and US contributions
How did the diversity of galaxies we see in the modern Universe come to be? When and where did stars within them forge the heavy elements that give rise to the complex chemistry of life? How do planetary systems, the Universe's home for life, emerge from interstellar material? Answering these questions requires techniques that penetrate dust to reveal the detailed contents and processes in obscured regions. The ESA-JAXA Space Infrared Telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics (SPICA) mission is designed for this, with a focus on sensitive spectroscopy in the 12 to 230 micron range. SPICA offers massive sensitivity improvements with its 2.5-meter primary mirror actively cooled to below 8 K. SPICA one of 3 candidates for the ESA's Cosmic Visions M5 mission, and JAXA has is committed to their portion of the collaboration. ESA will provide the silicon-carbide telescope, science instrument assembly, satellite integration and testing, and the spacecraft bus. JAXA will provide the passive and active cooling system (supporting the
SPICA:revealing the hearts of galaxies and forming planetary systems : approach and US contributions
Safari:Instrument design of the far-infrared imaging spectrometer for spica
The next great leap forward in space-based far-infrared astronomy will be made by the Japanese-led SPICA mission, which is anticipated to be launched late 2020's as the next large astrophysics mission of JAXA, in partnership with ESA and with key European contributions. Filling in the gap between JWST and ALMA, the SPICA mission will study the evolution of galaxies, stars and planetary systems. SPICA will utilize a deeply cooled 3m-class telescope, provided by European industry, to realize zodiacal background limited performance, high spatial resolution and large collecting area. Making full advantage of the deeply cooled telescope (<6K), the SAFARI instrument on SPICA is a highly sensitive wide-field imaging photometer and spectrometer operating in the 34-210 μm wavelength range. Utilizing Nyquist-sampled focal-plane arrays of very sensitive Transition Edge Sensors (TES), SAFARI will offer a photometric imaging (R ≈ 2), and a low (R = 100) and medium resolution (R = 2000 at 100 μm) imaging spectroscopy mode in three photometric bands within a 2'x2' instantaneous FoV by means of a cryogenic Mach-Zehnder Fourier Transform Spectrometer. In this paper we will provide an overview of the SAFARI instrument design and system architecture. We will describe the reference design of the SAFARI focal- plane unit, the implementation of the various optical instrument functions designed around the central large-stroke FTS system, the photometric band definition and out-of-band filtering by quasioptical elements, the control of straylight, diffraction and thermal emission in the long-wavelength limit, and how we interface to the large-format FPA arrays at one end and the SPICA telescope assembly at the other end. We will briefly discuss the key performance drivers with special emphasis on the optical techniques adopted to overcome issues related to very low background operation of SAFARI. A summary and discussion of the expected instrument performance and an overview of the astronomical capabilities finally conclude the paper.</p
A monocular, unconscious form of visual attention
Sudden changes in our visual field capture our attention so that we are faster and more accurate in our responses to that region of space. The underlying mechanisms by which these behavioral improvements occur are unknown. Here we investigate the level of the visual system at which attentional capture first occurs by presenting cues to one eye and then a target to either the same or the opposite eye. We show that monocular cues initially only shorten response time if the target is presented in the same eye as the cue suggesting that the initial capture of attention occurs at monocular levels of the visual system. We use dual-cues that cannot be distinguished by binocular parts of the visual system but are detectable at monocular levels to show that performance enhancements occur entirely unconsciously and are not due to local sensory interactions. Furthermore, we show that the spatial and temporal properties of the new monocular cueing effect differ from standard binocular cueing. Our results inspire a monocular competition model where visual stimuli compete to generate a salience map at monocular levels of representation
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