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SIM Newsletter
" F R I N G E S "
Space Interferometry Mission Newsletter
Number 47, February 9, 2009
CONTENTS
1. The new SIM Lite book – now available
2. Missions for Exoplanets: 2010-2020 - April 21-23, 2009
3. Astrometry meeting at AAS in Pasadena - June 9-10, 2009
4. NASA Keck 2009B Call for Proposals, due March 6, 2009
5. 2009 Sagan Exoplanet Summer Workshop, July 20 – 24, 2009
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1. The new SIM Lite book – now available
Want to find out more about the science of SIM Lite, including plans for a General Observer Program? The new SIM Lite Book, written for astronomers, but not presuming much familiarity with astrometry, is ideal. We published the first SIM book back in 2000, when the project was first getting underway. This second edition is a complete re-working, and it brings the science story and the success of the technology development program fully up to date.
We are very pleased to announce that the new SIM Lite Book has been printed, and we are now shipping it to a large distribution list. Each package includes a cover letter, the book, the executive summary, and a copy of the 2008 PASP paper. Most should arrive during this week.
Over the past several months, the SIM Science Team wrote the science chapters of this book. They've engaged a wider set of community contributors who are experts in their science area, or in astrometry. The result is a book that shows a fresh assessment of the relevance of SIM Lite astrometry in the next decade. Also completely updated is the instrument description of SIM Lite (which is simpler and cheaper than the original SIM, but almost as capable; Newsletter 42). There is a section on the SIM technology program, which was well underway in 2000, and was completed in 2005 following a series of external peer reviews.
The book has turned out really well! It is attractively produced, easy to read, is comprehensive, and makes the case for SIM Lite very effectively. Everyone involved - 72 authors, the SIM Lite project editorial team at JPL, and JPL Design Services - deserves credit for the success of this enterprise.
How can you get a copy? Daryl Victor <Daryl.Victor@jpl.nasa.gov> has our master mailing list, and can tell you if one has been sent already. You can also download it from the SIM Lite website, at <sim.jpl.nasa.gov>.
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2. Missions for Exoplanets: 2010-2020 - April 21-23, 2009
From the Second Announcement, Feb 8, 2009:
You are cordially invited to attend and participate in Missions for Exoplanets: 2010-2020. It will be held at the Hilton Hotel in Pasadena, April 21-23, 2009. This meeting is oriented toward discussion of missions in the field of extrasolar planets which may be implemented in the 2010-2020 timeframe. Potential investigators as well as co-investigators are encouraged to attend. We anticipate that the output from this meeting will be provided to the Astronomy & Astrophysics Decadal Survey (Astro2010), which will in turn inform the strategic plans developed by NASA and other agencies.
Community contributions are encouraged. There are a few slots on the meeting agenda still available. We wish to encourage advocates of exoplanet mission concepts, with either short or long-term horizons, to present and discuss their missions. That includes talks on innovative technologies that may be enabling for future missions. We welcome contributions from individuals and teams already preparing materials to submit to the Astro2010 Decadal Survey. Exoplanets concepts selected by NASA via its recent Astrophysics Strategic Mission Concepts Study (ASMCS) program will of course be on the agenda.
You can read the full announcement, and find more details on the meeting, including registration and abstract submission, and info on hotels, on the meeting website. The meeting hotel is conveniently close to Old Town restaurants, shops and entertainment.
http://exep.jpl.nasa.gov/exep_workshop.cfm
This website will be updated frequently and will be your best source of information on the meeting. For questions on meeting objectives, presentations etc., contact Wesley Traub <Wesley.A.Traub@jpl.nasa.gov> or Stephen Unwin <Stephen.C.Unwin@jpl.nasa.gov>; for organizational matters, contact Ozhen Pananyan <Ozhen.Pananyan@jpl.nasa.gov>.
"Missions for Exoplanets: 2010-2020" is sponsored by NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Program and jointly organized with the NASA Exoplanet Science Institute (NExScI), the Center for Exoplanet Studies at NASA's Ames Research Center, the Laboratory for Exoplanets and Stellar Astrophysics at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and the Center for Exoplanet Science at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology.
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3. Astrometry meeting at AAS in Pasadena - June 9-10, 2009
This Meeting-in-a-Meeting "2010-2020: The Decade of Astrometry" at the summer AAS meeting will celebrate the tremendous renaissance in astrometry in the last 20 years as a key technique in astronomy. Huge improvements in precision have transformed astrometry from limited, albeit fundamental, applications into a powerful tool that is used to study exoplanets, stellar populations, maser sources, neutron stars and black holes, galactic structure, dark matter, and quasar astrophysics.
The agenda will include invited and contributed talks on the state of the art in astrometry and prospects for future instruments – on the ground and in space. The meeting organizers, Stephen Unwin (JPL, chair), William van Altena (Yale U), Todd Henry (Georgia State), Shri Kulkarni (Caltech), and Dawn Gelino (NExScI), invite you to participate. We encourage papers that show recent results from current instruments and also the opportunities from new instruments, both short term and long term, ground and space.
The deadline for contribute papers is coming up very soon: March 1, 2009. When you submit an abstract via the AAS website, be sure to select Preplanned Session: '01. 2010-2020: The Decade of Astrometry.' You can request either a contributed talk or a poster, but we reserve the right to convert talks to posters if necessary.
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4. NASA Keck 2009B Call for Proposals, due March 6, 2009
NASA is soliciting proposals using the Keck Telescopes for the 2009B observing semester (Aug 2009 - Jan 2010). NASA intends the use of the Keck telescopes to be highly strategic in support of on-going missions and/or high priority, long term science goals. Thus, starting with the 2009A semester, NASA Headquarters has opened up the NASA Keck call to a wider range of disciplines. These disciplines include studies of exoplanets and our own solar system, as well as galactic and extragalactic studies in support of NASA's Cosmic Origins science goals and missions. In addition, an identified Key Science project for 2009B is in support of the CoRoT mission.
This 2009B call includes proposals for CoRoT Key Science as well as proposals in the following
discipline areas: 1) Investigations in support of Exoplanet Exploration science goals and missions; 2) Investigations in support of Cosmic Origins science goals and missions; 3) Investigations of our own solar system; and 4) Direct mission support.
The proposal process is being handled by the NASA Exoplanet Science Institute (NExScI) at Caltech and all proposals are due March 6, 2009 at 4 pm PST. Please see the website at http://nexsci.caltech.edu for further information on both the Key Science and general science telescope proposals. Questions not answered on these pages can be directed to KeckCFP@ipac.caltech.edu.
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5. 2009 Sagan Exoplanet Summer Workshop, July 20 – 24, 2009
The 2009 Sagan Exoplanet Summer Workshop: "Exoplanetary Atmospheres," will take place on the Caltech campus July 20 - 24. The workshop will consist of a series of tutorial and scientific lectures covering planetary atmosphere theory, what we have learned about exoplanetary atmospheres thus far, observational techniques, connecting exoplanets to planetary science, observational opportunities and challenges, and future prospects.
More information, including a draft agenda and instructions on applying for financial assistance to attend the workshop (applications due March 13), can be found on the workshop website: http://nexsci.caltech.edu/workshop/2009/. All attendees must register for the workshop at the above URL. Register before June 5 to take advantage of the early registration fee!
Registration Fee includes:
conference attendance and materials
transportation between Pasadena Hilton and Workshop on Workshop Dates
box lunches on Monday, Wednesday and Friday
light breakfast each day of the workshop
snacks and drinks during morning and afternoon breaks each day of the workshop
opening reception
1 ticket to attend workshop dinner on Thursday (extra tickets will be available for purchase)
1 ticket to attend tour on Wednesday afternoon (extra tickets will be available for purchase)
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Steve Unwin, Editor stephen.unwin'at'jpl.nasa.gov
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