CISTO Scientist is
Co-investigator on Successful
TPF-C Concept Studies
CISTO scientist Richard Lyon is a co-investigator
on three of five successfully competed instrument
concept studies for the Terrestrial Planet
Finder-Coronagraph (TPF-C). The Terrestrial
Planet Finder (TPF) is a suite of two complementary
observatories that will study all aspects of
planets outside our solar system. TPF
observatories will measure the size, temperature,
and placement of planets as small as the Earth
in the habitable zones of distant solar systems.
The TPF-C will use visible light coronagraphy
and occulting techniques in conjunction with
active optical control to suppress the stellar
light with respect to the planetary light,
increasing the contrast and enabling planetary
detection and characterization. Lyon
contributed to three awarded studies for the
GSFC-led coronagraphic camera (CoreCAM), the
JPL-led general astrophysics instrument, and
the University of Arizona-led imaging spectrometer
study.
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Image
above: The Coronagraphic
Exploration Camera (CorECam)
study was recently awarded
as a science instrument for
the Terrestrial Planet Finder
Instrument Concept Study.
CorECam collects light from
the output of the coronagraphic
starlight suppression system
of NASA’s
Terrestrial Planet Finder,
which uses a series of specialized
optical occulting masks (far
left). A mask is placed
over the image of the bright
central source (2nd from
left), and the telescope’s
primary mirror is re-imaged
(PSF = point-spread function).
The resulting intensity pattern
is shown in the center figure. A
Lyot mask is applied to block
the cat’s eye-shaped
bright regions, and the light
is brought back to focus
thereby collecting the planetary
image within CorECam. This
has the net effect of suppressing
the starlight but not the
planetary light (4th figure
from left).The residual pattern,
known as speckle, is due
to optical errors, misalignments,and
scatter (far right) (Image
credit: Richard Lyon). |
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