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ExoPAG Report

This report provides an overview of the ExoPAG activities since the February meeting, including joint COPAG/ExoPAG meetings, discussions on future space telescopes, and updates on technology development programs.

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ExoPAG Report

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  1. ExoPAG Report APS Meeting, Washington DC July 14, 2011 James Kasting, ExoPAG Chair

  2. ExoPAG activities since February meeting • Joint COPAG/ExoPAG steering committee meeting, Apr. 26, STScI • Ken Sembach (COPAG) was the chief organizer • Approximately 20 attendees • Discussed plans for a future optical/UV/near-IR space telescope (see next slide) • ExoPAG4 meeting, June 1-2, Alexandria, VA • Approximately 60 attendees • Various agenda items, discussed below

  3. Joint COPAG/ExoPAG meeting, Apr. 26 • Recommendation: Both groups should pursue the study of two different types of representative missions: • A 4-m aperture monolithic telescope with an internal coronagraph of some sort. The coronagraph must be capable of achieving a contrast ratio of 1010 or better in order to find exoEarths. It would need to operate at an inner working angle of ~2 /D in order to satisfy the exoplanet science requirements. • An 8-m aperture segmented telescope that relies on an external occulter to achieve the high contrast needed to find an exoEarth • 4-m occulter designs will be studied as well • Combined coronagraph/occulter concepts are possible • The size of the mission will ultimately be determined by factors such as Earth (from Kepler), exozodi brightnesses (from LBTI?), and the desires of the COPAG science community

  4. ExoPAG4 meeting, June 1-2 • Discussion of proposed Imaging Performance Study (IPS) to be carried out by the Exoplanet Exploration Program office at JPL • This is a non-binding, practice run for a funded mission concept study currently scheduled to begin in January, 2013 • Discussion of science requirements for a direct imaging mission • Proposal is to use a Kepner-Tregoe table in which some requirements are considered as absolute, while others are evaluated on a point-scoring basis • Preliminary requirements list to be generated by September, 2011, for use in the IPS study • Update on the exozodi problem • Discussion of New Worlds Technology Development Program (NWTDP)--Web Cash

  5. New Worlds Technology Development Program • Cash argued that the level of technology funding for the NWTDP is insufficient to enable a direct imaging mission to be selected in 2020 • Wants the ExoPAG to play a role in advising how technology money should be spent • The plan should include demo missions for the various technology concepts (i.e., occulters and coronagraphs) • Request to APS: That the ExoPAG be allowed to set up a new study analysis group (SAG) to examine how the NWTDP could be most effectively implemented. Web Cash would be the chair. A report would be presented at the ExoPAG meeting in January, 2012, and then forwarded to the APS committee if approved by the ExoPAG.

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