Hostname: page-component-7bb8b95d7b-dtkg6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-09-13T00:36:38.638Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The ST3 Mission, and its Capabilities for Be Star Observations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 April 2016

R. P. Linfield*
Affiliation:
Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

The ST3 mission will launch a space optical interferometer into heliocentric orbit, for observation of 50–100 sources on baselines of 40–200 m, during a time span of 3–4.5 months. The angular resolution in the 450–900 nm passband will be ≈ 500 microarcseconds. For Be stars, a velocity resolution of 50–100 km/s can be achieved by operating the interferometer in a Fourier Transform Spectrometer mode. This should allow spectrally resolved measurements of the brightness distribution in circumstellar disks, but will be limited to stars brighter than a visual magnitude of ≈ 5.

Type
2. New Missions
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of the Pacific 2000

References

Abbott, D.C., & Conti, P.S. 1987, AR&A, 25, 113 Google Scholar