Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite

Volker Tolls; Gary J. Melnick; Alexander Dalgarno; Giovanni G. Fazio; John R. Stauffer; Patrick Thaddeus; Neal R. Erickson; Ron L. Snell; Paul F. Goldsmith; Martin Harwit; David J. Hollenbach; David G. Koch; David A. Neufeld; Rudolf T. Schieder; Gisbert F. Winnewisser

doi:10.1117/12.185853

14 September 1994 Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite

Volker Tolls, Gary J. Melnick, Alexander Dalgarno, Giovanni G. Fazio, John R. Stauffer, Patrick Thaddeus, Neal R. Erickson, Ron L. Snell, Paul F. Goldsmith, Martin Harwit, David J. Hollenbach, David G. Koch, David A. Neufeld, Rudolf T. Schieder, Gisbert F. Winnewisser

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 2268, Infrared Spaceborne Remote Sensing II; (1994) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.185853
Event: SPIE's 1994 International Symposium on Optics, Imaging, and Instrumentation, 1994, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

The Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite (SWAS) mission will study galactic star formation and interstellar chemistry. To carry out this mission, SWAS will survey dense (n_H2 > 10³ cm^-3) molecular clouds within our galaxy in either the ground-state or a low- lying transition of five astrophysically important species: H₂O, H₂¹⁸O, O₂, CI, and ¹³CO. By observing these lines SWAS will: (1) test long-standing theories that predict that these species are the dominate coolants of molecular clouds during the early stages of their collapse to form stars and planets and (2) supply heretofore missing information about the abundance of key species central to the chemical models of dense interstellar gas. During its two-year mission, SWAS will observe giant and dark cloud cores with the goal of detecting to setting an upper limit on the water abundance of 3 X 10^-6 (relative to H₂) and on the molecular oxygen abundance of 2 X 10^-6 (relative to H₂). SWAS is designed to carry all elements of a ground based radiotelescope. The telescope is a highly efficient 54 X 68-cm off-axis Cassegrain antenna with an aggregate surface error less than or equal to 11 micrometers rms. The receiver system consists of two independent heterodyne receivers with second harmonic Schottky diode mixers, passively cooled to approximately equals 150 K. The spectrometer is a single acousto-optical spectrometer (AOS) with 1400 1-MHz channels enabling simultaneous observations of the H₂O, O₂, CI, and ¹³CO lines.

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Volker Tolls, Gary J. Melnick, Alexander Dalgarno, Giovanni G. Fazio, John R. Stauffer, Patrick Thaddeus, Neal R. Erickson, Ron L. Snell, Paul F. Goldsmith, Martin Harwit, David J. Hollenbach, David G. Koch, David A. Neufeld, Rudolf T. Schieder, and Gisbert F. Winnewisser "Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite", Proc. SPIE 2268, Infrared Spaceborne Remote Sensing II, (14 September 1994); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.185853

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