A Scientific Assessment of a New Technology Orbital Telescope (1995) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Pages 1-6
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 1... ...
Following the initiation of the study by the Task Group on BMDO New Technology Orbital Observatory, however, a combination of budgetary pressures and redirected defense priorities forced BMDO to defer the ATD mission. Nevertheless, BMDO reaffirmed that "planning advice and recommendations fabout the scientific aspects of the 4-meter mission]
|
From page 2... ...
The obvious deficiency in the instrument package is the absence of an optical framing camera of astronomical quality. The addition of such an instrument would have a very significant impact on the astronomical capabilities of the ATD/NTOT.
|
From page 3... ...
orbit; · Investigation of the stability of field distortions, particularly as the figure of the primary mirror responds to its control actuators and, also, as the fast-steering mirror stabilizes the telescope's line of sight; · Exploitation of the ATD/NTOT's agility and large fuel reserves to actively maneuver the spacecraft so that it is in the right place, at the right time, to observe ephemeral events such as occultations; · Exploration of the possibilities presented by the Molniya orbit to conduct very long integrations in a costeffective manner; and · Utilization of the facility as an experimental testbed for various modes of ground operations that may be needed for future space science missions. The implementation of some of the task group's suggested enhancements to the baseline ATD/NTOT would significantly improve the evaluation of both the technology and the astronomical significance of a program of technology demonstrations.
|
From page 4... ...
· Synoptic occultation observations of Pluto and Triton to monitor global atmospheric change due to seasonal variations in insolation. Although compatible with the baseline mission, this project may be expensive in terms of operations and use of spacecraft resources because it would involve extensive spacecraft maneuvering and orbital changes.
|
From page 5... ...
The task group briefly discussed other enhancements that could significantly improve the scientific return from an extended mission dedicated to astronomical observations. Unlike those discussed above, however, all of these modifications would add significantly to the cost of the mission and/or perhaps be incompatible with the national security objectives of the mission.
|
From page 6... ...
A complete adaptiveoptics system and examples of thin primary mirrors, for instance, currently sit gathering dust in testing chambers. Many of these subsystems are themselves interesting additions to the tools at the disposal of astronomers and may find scientific applications very different from those for which they were designed.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.