[Previous] | [Session 45] | [Next]
A.B. Schultz, H.M. Hart (CSC/STScI), F.C. Bruhweiler, M.A. DiSanti, C.L. Miskey (IACS/CUA), K.P. Cheng (Cal State Fullerton), K. Reinhard (Ne. Wesleyan Univ.), G. Schneider (Univ.\ of Az.), D.C. Taylor (STScI)
HST Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC-2) images were obtained for seven nearby stars for which disks have been identified in the infrared but not yet observed in the visible: \beta~Leo, 51~Oph, \iota~Cen, \eta~Eri, \alpha~CrB, 98~Aqr, and Fomalhaut. Each star was acquired in the Planetary Camera (PC1). Short dithered exposures with the F850LP or F1042M filter were obtained to search for faint red objects near the target star. Long exposures through the F555W filter were taken with the core of the stellar PSF shifted just outside PC1 into Wide Field Camera 2 (WF2). This configuration uses the WFPC-2 pyramid as a coronographic mask to improve detection of faint diffuse sources in PC1. Two candidate faint red companions have been identified. Data analysis to pull out any faint signal from the disks is in progress and will be reported.
This work was supported by NASA through HST General Observer grant GO-06469.01-95A.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: schultz@stsci.edu