Arcus is a high-resolution soft X-ray and far-ultraviolet spectroscopy mission submitted to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s inaugural Astrophysics Probe solicitation. Arcus makes simultaneous observations in these two critical wavelength regimes to address a broad range of science questions highlighted by the 2020 Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey, from the temperature and composition of the missing baryons in the intergalactic medium to the evolution of stars and their influence on orbiting planets. We present the science motivation for and performance of the Arcus ultraviolet spectrograph (UVS). UVS comprises a 60-cm, off-axis Cassegrain telescope feeding an imaging spectrograph operating over the 970- to 1580-Å bandpass. The instrument employs two interchangeable diffraction gratings to provide medium-resolution spectroscopy (R>20,000 in two grating modes centered at ∼1110 and 1390 Å). The spectra are recorded on an open-face, photon-counting microchannel plate detector. The instrument design achieves an end-to-end sensitivity >10 times that of the Far-Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer over the key 1020- to 1150-Å range and offers arcsecond-level angular resolution spectral imaging over a 6-arcminute-long slit for observations of extended sources. We describe the example science investigations for far-ultraviolet spectroscopy on Arcus, the resultant instrument design and predicted performance, and simulated data from potential General Observer programs with Arcus.
The Arcus Probe mission addresses a wide range of Astro2020 Decadal and NASA Science Mission Directorate Priority science areas, and is designed to explore astrophysical feedback across all mass scales. Arcus' three baseline science goals include: (i) Characterizing the drivers of accretion-powered feedback in supermassive black holes, (ii) Quantifying how feedback at all scales drives galaxy evolution and large-scale structure, including the tenuous cosmic web, and (iii) Analyzing stellar feedback from exoplanetary to galactic scales, including its effects on exoplanet environments targeted by current and future NASA missions. These science goals, along with a robust General Observer program, will be achieved using a mission that provides a high-sensitivity soft (10-60Å) X-ray spectrometer (XRS), working simultaneously with a co-aligned UV spectrometer (UVS; 970-1580Å). Arcus enables compelling baseline science and provides the broader astronomy community a revolutionary tool to characterize the full ionization range of warm and hot plasmas - including hydrogen, helium, and all abundant metals - in the Universe, from the halos of galaxies and clusters to the coronae of stars.
Arcus is a high-resolution soft X-ray and far-ultraviolet spectroscopy mission being developed for submission to NASA’s inaugural Astrophysics Probe solicitation. Arcus makes simultaneous observations in these two critical wavelength regimes to address a broad range of science questions highlighted by the 2020 Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey, from the temperature and composition of the missing baryons in the intergalactic medium to the evolution of stars and their influence on orbiting planets. This proceeding presents the science motivation for and performance of the Arcus UltraViolet spectrograph (UVS). UVS comprises a 60 cm, off-axis Cassegrain telescope feeding an imaging spectrograph operating over the 970 – 1580 ˚A bandpass. The instrument employs two interchangeable diffraction gratings to provide medium-resolution spectroscopy (R ⪆ 20,000 in two grating modes centered at approximately 1110 and 1390 ˚A, respectively). The spectra are recorded on an open-face, photon-counting microchannel plate detector. The instrument design achieves an end-to-end sensitivity ⪆ 10 times that of the Far-Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer over the key 1020 – 1150 ˚A range and offers arcsecond-level angular resolution spectral imaging over a six arcminute long slit for observations of extended sources. We describe example science investigations for FUV spectroscopy on Arcus, the resultant instrument design and predicted performance, and simulated data from potential Guest Observer programs with Arcus.
We discuss the recent input and development of next generation UV-visible space-based observatories, the science they have been designed to achieve, and the technological challenges and potential solutions that have been identified. This paper will cover community-driven needs and strategic goals and hopefully give some insight into what the next UVvisible space telescopes will look like and what they will be able to deliver. The discussion will focus on, but not be exclusive to, the ongoing studies for both LUVOIR and HabEx.
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