Location

Howard Johnson Plaza-Hotel, Columbia/ Enterprise Rooms

Start Date

24-4-1990 2:00 PM

End Date

24-4-1990 5:00 PM

Description

Although astronomy has been practiced since ancient times, the universe remains veiled in mystery. Limited for centuries to observations in the visible band of the electromagnetic spectrum, the ability to place instruments in space above the filtering atmosphere has given scientists access to the Universe at virtually all wavelengths revealing intriguing objects and events. Over the past two decades, NASA has introduced increasingly sensitive telescopes into space to make observations across the electromagnetic spectrum. Each successive telescope has exploited newly developed technologies to extend the limits of sensitivity and provide greater insight into the structure of stars, galaxies, and the cosmos.

A new generation of space observatories now offers significant new gains in sensitivity through the use of state-of-the-art technologies. These observatories include: the Gamma Ray Observatory which will explore the most energetic part of the spectrum across a much greater wavelength range than its predecessors; the Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility that will cover the X-ray portion of the spectrum with a hundred-fold improvement in sensitivity; the Hubble Space Telescope which will penetrate deep into the Universe in visible and ultraviolet light, observing objects with at least ten times more clarity than is now possible with ground-based optical telescope; and the Space Infrared Telescope Facility which will span the infrared part of the spectrum with a thousand-fold increase in sensitivity. These new observatories, along with supporting facilities on the ground and in space, will open the Universe to greatly increased scrutiny. While the introduction of new technologies, particularly over the last decade, has led to a dramatic increase in astronomical discoveries, the discoveries to date constitute only a fraction of the total to be made.

Comments

Science Payloads

Session Chairman: Joe Alexander, NASA Assistant Associate Administrator for Space Science and Applications, NASA Headquarters

Session Organizer: Lee O’Fallon, NASA, Kennedy Space Center

Share

COinS
 
Apr 24th, 2:00 PM Apr 24th, 5:00 PM

Paper Session I-B - The Great Observatories Program

Howard Johnson Plaza-Hotel, Columbia/ Enterprise Rooms

Although astronomy has been practiced since ancient times, the universe remains veiled in mystery. Limited for centuries to observations in the visible band of the electromagnetic spectrum, the ability to place instruments in space above the filtering atmosphere has given scientists access to the Universe at virtually all wavelengths revealing intriguing objects and events. Over the past two decades, NASA has introduced increasingly sensitive telescopes into space to make observations across the electromagnetic spectrum. Each successive telescope has exploited newly developed technologies to extend the limits of sensitivity and provide greater insight into the structure of stars, galaxies, and the cosmos.

A new generation of space observatories now offers significant new gains in sensitivity through the use of state-of-the-art technologies. These observatories include: the Gamma Ray Observatory which will explore the most energetic part of the spectrum across a much greater wavelength range than its predecessors; the Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility that will cover the X-ray portion of the spectrum with a hundred-fold improvement in sensitivity; the Hubble Space Telescope which will penetrate deep into the Universe in visible and ultraviolet light, observing objects with at least ten times more clarity than is now possible with ground-based optical telescope; and the Space Infrared Telescope Facility which will span the infrared part of the spectrum with a thousand-fold increase in sensitivity. These new observatories, along with supporting facilities on the ground and in space, will open the Universe to greatly increased scrutiny. While the introduction of new technologies, particularly over the last decade, has led to a dramatic increase in astronomical discoveries, the discoveries to date constitute only a fraction of the total to be made.

 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.