[Previous] | [Session 58] | [Next]
B. R. Sandel, F. Herbert, A. L. Broadfoot, A. J. Dessler (U. Arizona)
Using the Ultraviolet Spectrograph Telescope for Astronomical Research (UVSTAR), we have obtained the first spectrally-resolved images of the Jovian system in the wavelength range 500--1250~Å, which includes most of the energy radiated by the Io plasma torus. During the 9-day STS-95 mission in November 1998, UVSTAR made 15 observations of Jupiter and the torus. UVSTAR consists of a pair of similar telescopes, each with its own spectrograph. UVSTAR's field of view encompasses Jupiter and the entire plasma torus in a single exposure. The spectral dispersion separates images of the system, forming distinct images of the torus and of Jupiter at each bright emission line within the wavelength range. To interpret the data we have developed techniques to extract photoevent-counting information from each frame. These data can then be summed while retaining full photon-counting statistical performance. The figure is a composite of 5 observations, and represents an integration time of ~48~minutes. The full vertical bars are mainly terrestrial airglow.
This work was supported by NASA grants NAG5-4158 and NAG5-637.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: sandel@arizona.edu