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NRO Telescopes

NRO Telescopes. David Spergel. History. 2 2.4 meter telescopes + 1 2.4 meter mirror “Residual space hardware” from Future Imagery Architecture, failed program cancelled in 2005 Been in storage ~10 years NASA HQ learned of their availability about 18 months ago. .

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NRO Telescopes

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  1. NRO Telescopes • David Spergel

  2. History • 2 2.4 meter telescopes + 1 2.4 meter mirror • “Residual space hardware” from Future Imagery Architecture, failed program cancelled in 2005 • Been in storage ~10 years • NASA HQ learned of their availability about 18 months ago.

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  4. Looking forward: Astronomy in 2020 • LSST is about to succeed DES and HSC • Three 20-40 meter class telescopes are close to first light • LIGO is regularly detected neutron star mergers • JWST, EVLA and ALMA are now successful “workhorse instruments” • HST is near its “end of life” • Euclid is scheduled for launch

  5. Looking backward: Key Results of the Last Decade • 96% of the universe is in the form of dark matter and dark energy • Extrasolar planets are ubiquitous and show a remarkable diversity of properties • Significant progress in understanding planet, star and galaxy formation but many gaps in our understanding

  6. NWNH and WFIRST • NWNH recognized that the development of large format IR detectors enabled a new class of mission that could address several science goals simultaneously: • dark energy • “equally important outcome will be to open an new frontier of exoplanet studies...This census, combined with that made by the Kepler mission will determine how common Earth-like planets are over a wide range of parameters” • “WFIRST will survey large areas of sky to address a broad rage of Astro2010 science questions ranging from understanding the assembly of galaxies to the structure of the Milky Way.” • “GI program” • WFIrst will also ffer a GI program

  7. WFIRST STDT Report • Two mission concepts: • DRM1: 1.3 m off-axis telescope with 0.375 sq deg fov launched on an Atlas V with a 5 year mission and a cost of 1.6 B • DRM2: 1.1 m off-axis telescope with 0.585 sq deg fov launched on a Falcon 9 with a 3 year mission at a cost of slightly less than 1 B.

  8. Political Context • Between JWST and the core program, NASA astronomy budget has almost no “free energy” over the next 5 years. More broadly, NASA’s science budget is not able to match our ambitions for Mars and other important goals. • National politics: 2012 election will likely lead to changes regardless of outcome. Taxamagedon lurks at the end of the year!

  9. Questions • NRO telescope at WFIRST: Faster? Better? Cheaper? • What can we do without modifying the telescope? • Funding possibilities? • What are the costs and benefits of a coronagraph (or occulter)? Can this be a precursor for TPF? • What are potential uses of the second telescope? What steps should be taken in this decade to use this in the next decade? Should we use it? • GOAL: To have a public meeting to start community discussion and inform the upcoming STDT

  10. More immediate questions • Coffee? • Bathrooms? • Lunch? Dinner? • Wifi: puvisitor

  11. Thanks to Keren, Mindy and Susan for organizational work!

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