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Frontier Science Enabled by a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope (Gsmt)

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Frontier Science Enabled by a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope (Gsmt) MEMBERS OF THE GSMT SCIENCE WORKING GROUP ELIZABETH BARTON-GILLESPIE, Steward Observatory, University of Arizona JILL BECHTOLD, Steward Observatory, University of Arizona MICHAEL BOLTE, University of California, Santa Cruz RAY CARLBERG, University of Toronto MATTHEW COLLESS, Australian National University IRENE CRUZ-GONZALEZ, UNAM, Instituto de Astronomía, Mexico ALAN DRESSLER, Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington TERRY HERTER, Cornell University PAUL HO, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics ROLF-PETER KUDRITZKI, Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, Chair JONATHAN LUNINE, University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Lab. CLAIRE MAX, LLNL and University of California, Santa Cruz CHRISTOPHER MCKEE, Physics Department, University of California, Berkeley FRANÇOIS RIGAUT, Gemini Observatory DOUG SIMONS, Gemini Observatory CHUCK STEIDEL, California Institute of Technology STEPHEN E. STROM, NOAO, Vice-Chair NOAO-NIO SUPPORT STAFF EXTERNAL OBSERVER SAM BARDEN TETSUO NISHIMURA, NAOJ ROBERT BLUM ARJUN DEY JOAN NAJITA KNUT OLSEN STEPHEN RIDGWAY LARRY STEPP COVER A montage of multi-color images obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope of the Antennae, a pair of colliding galaxies. The bright blue regions are newly-formed clusters of stars produced as a consequence of the collision. Systems similar to the Antennae were common when our expanding Universe was much younger, the average distance between galaxies much smaller, and the likelihood of collision much higher. Galaxy collisions can lead to mergers of the gas and stars initially bound to the two systems. Systems like the Milky Way appear to be product of multiple mergers. GSMT will be able to image colliding systems during the earliest evolutionary phases of the Universe, providing direct observation of the processes that give rise to the Milky Way. Courtesy: B. Whitmore, STScI FRONTIER SCIENCE ENABLED BY A GIANT SEGMENTED MIRROR TELESCOPE (GSMT) TABLE OF CONTENTS REPORT OF THE GSMT SCIENCE WORKING GROUP EXECUTIVE SUMMARY................................................................................................................................................1 FUTURE ACTIVITIES OF THE GSMT SCIENCE WORKING GROUP..........................................................3 Members of the GSMT Science Working Group, 4 INTRODUCTION..............................................................................................................................................................5 THE ORIGIN OF LARGE-SCALE STRUCTURE IN THE UNIVERSE .............................................................6 Scientific Context and Questions, 6 The Role of GSMT, 7 BUILDING THE MILKY WAY AND OTHER GALAXIES.....................................................................................9 Scientific Context and Questions, 9 The Role of GSMT, 10 EXPLORING OTHER SOLAR SYSTEMS.................................................................................................................12 Scientific Context and Questions, 12 The Role of GSMT, 14 SUPPORTING SCIENTIFIC REPORTS 1 THE POWER OF GSMT.........................................................................................................................................1-1 2 A THREE-DIMENSIONAL MAP OF GALAXIES AND GAS IN THE EARLY UNIVERSE..............................................................................................................2-1 3 STAR FORMATION IN THE VERY EARLY UNIVERSE............................................................................. 3-1 4 BUILDING GALAXIES: THE PHYSICS OF GALAXY EVOLUTION ........................................................4-1 5 BUILDING GALAXIES: THE HISTORIES OF MATURE GALAXIES ......................................................5-1 6 THE ORIGIN OF THE STELLAR INITIAL MASS FUNCTION.................................................................6-1 7 STUDY OF PLANET FORMATION ENVIRONMENTS...............................................................................7-1 8 CHARACTERIZATION OF EXTRA-SOLAR PLANETS..............................................................................8-1 Frontier Science Enabled by a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope i TABLE OF CONTENTS APPENDIX A TECHNOLOGY NEEDED TO ENABLE EXTREMELY LARGE TELESCOPES (ELTS)......................A-1 Telescope Systems, A-1 Adaptive Optics, A-2 Site Evaluation, A-4 Instrumentation, A-4 The Need to Invest Now, A-5 ii Frontier Science Enabled by a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope REPORT OF THE GSMT SCIENCE WORKING GROUP EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BACKGROUND In spring 2002, the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) was asked by the National Science Foundation to organize a Science Working Group (SWG) to “advise the NSF Division of Astronomical Sciences on a strategy for guiding federal investment in a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope (GSMT).” Following a broad community solicitation (via the June 2002 NOAO Newsletter) seeking interested potential members, and close consultation with the Foundation, sixteen scientists active in ground-based astronomy research, and/or representing national and international groups that expect to play a role in developing next-generation telescopes, accepted invitations to join the SWG. Rolf-Peter Kudritzki, Director of the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii, agreed to serve as the SWG Chair. Over the period July 2002 through May 2003, the SWG held four meetings. Its primary focus has been on developing an understanding of: The forefront astrophysical problems likely to emerge over the next decade The science potentially enabled by-next generation telescopes Design options that can achieve that potential Technologies that must be advanced or developed in order to realize viable telescopes at acceptable cost The SWG analyzed these major GSMT issues in detail, collecting information through reports and presentations of the four principal private telescope design groups: University of Hawaii; the Magellan 20 consortium (Carnegie, Harvard, Arizona, Michigan, MIT); the Large Atacama Telescope (LAT) consortium (Cornell, Illinois, Chicago, Northwestern); and the CELT consortium (California Institute of Technology and the University of California). The SWG also heard reports from adaptive optics experts drawn from throughout the U.S. community, and received vital information from individual scientists who carried out simulations or calculations critical to assessing the potential performance of next generation telescopes. Presentations to the SWG and meeting summaries are available on the SWG web site (http://www.nsf- gsmt-swg.noao.edu/). Frontier Science Enabled by a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope, the first report of the GSMT Science Working Group, summarizes and provides supporting material for the SWG’s conclusions and recommendations. CONCLUSIONS The unique challenge of astronomy in the 21st century is to study “the evolution of the universe in order to relate causally the physical conditions during the Big Bang to the development of RNA and DNA” (Riccardo Giacconi, 2002 Nobel Prize in Physics). A 20-m to 30-m telescope will provide capability to meet this challenge. It will, for the first time, permit direct observations of hundreds of extra-solar giant planets, the disks from which planetary systems take form, the building blocks of galaxies and the process of galaxy assembly; the early evolution of chemical elements heavier than helium, and the emergence of large scale structure as mapped by galaxies and intergalactic gas during the first billion years following the Big Bang. Frontier Science Enabled by a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This telescope will have the light gathering power and angular resolution to open up discovery spaces that virtually assure uncovering of unanticipated phenomena. From extensive analysis carried out by several groups, a 20-m to 30-m telescope can be built for costs within the envelope estimated by the most recent NAS/NRC decadal survey (Astronomy and Astrophysics in the New Millennium, 2001), i.e., approximately $700M. While there are significant technical challenges to building telescopes of this size, there appear to be no “show stoppers.” In order to reap the enormous potential synergy between the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and a 20-m to 30-m telescope, it is essential to initiate major design and technology development efforts now to ensure that facility operations coincide with the early JWST era. Private consortia are open to public-private partnerships to design, build, and operate a next- generation telescope. Federal investment now in a major technology development program targeted at key areas can advance multiple design programs, and will ensure a strong public voice at all stages in the development of next-generation telescopes. RECOMMENDATION The U.S. community appears poised to embrace a new paradigm: public-private partnerships to advance flagship research facilities. The SWG urges NSF to “seize the moment” and provide funding for advancing key technologies. 2 Frontier Science Enabled by a Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope FUTURE ACTIVITIES OF THE GSMT SCIENCE WORKING GROUP This report, the product of one year’s study, discussion, and analysis, represents an initial response to the NSF charge to the GSMT Science Group, which was “… to examine the science case and justification for any federal investment by NSF or other agencies in GSMT.” As efforts proceed on telescope designs both in the U.S. and abroad, the SWG envisions a continuing, active
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