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Advanced Technology Large-Aperture Space Telescope (ATLAST): A Technology Roadmap for the Next Decade
Astro2010 Decadal Committee (2009)
  • Vic Argabright
  • Bill Arnold
  • David Aronstein
  • Paul Atcheson
  • Morley Blouke
  • Tom Brown
  • Daniela Calzetti
  • Webster Cash
  • Mark Clampin
  • Dave Content
  • Dean Dailey
  • Rolf Danner
  • Rodger Doxsey
  • Dennis Ebbets
  • Peter Eisenhardt
  • Lee Feinberg
  • Andrew Fruchter
  • Mauro Giavalisco, University of Massachusetts - Amherst
  • Tiffany Glassman
  • Qian Gong
  • James Green
  • John Grunsfeld
  • Ted Gull
  • Greg Hickey
  • Randall Hopkins
  • John Hraba
  • Tupper Hyde
  • Ian Jordan
  • Jeremy Kasdin
  • Steve Kendrick
  • Steve Kilston
  • Anton Koekemoer
  • Bob Korechoff
  • John Krist
  • John Mather
  • Chuck Lillie
  • Amy Lo
  • Rick Lyon
  • Peter McCullough
  • Gary Mosier
  • Matt Mountain
  • Bill Oegerle
  • Bert Pasquale
  • Lloyd Purves
  • Cecelia Penera
  • Ron Polidan
  • Dave Redding
  • Kailash Sahu
  • Babak Saif
  • Ken Sembach
  • Mike Shull
  • Scott Smith
  • George Sonneborn
  • David Spergel
  • Phil Stahl
  • Karl Stapelfeldt
  • Harley Thronson
  • Gary Thronton
  • Jackie Townsend
  • Wesley Traub
  • Steve Unwin
  • Jeff Valenti
  • Robert Vanderbei
  • Michael Werner
  • Richard Wesenberg
  • Jennifer Wiseman
  • Bruce Woodgate
Abstract
The Advanced Technology Large-Aperture Space Telescope (ATLAST) is a set of mission concepts for the next generation of UVOIR space observatory with a primary aperture diameter in the 8-m to 16-m range that will allow us to perform some of the most challenging observations to answer some of our most compelling questions, including "Is there life elsewhere in the Galaxy?" We have identified two different telescope architectures, but with similar optical designs, that span the range in viable technologies. The architectures are a telescope with a monolithic primary mirror and two variations of a telescope with a large segmented primary mirror. This approach provides us with several pathways to realizing the mission, which will be narrowed to one as our technology development progresses. The concepts invoke heritage from HST and JWST design, but also take significant departures from these designs to minimize complexity, mass, or both. Our report provides details on the mission concepts, shows the extraordinary scientific progress they would enable, and describes the most important technology development items. These are the mirrors, the detectors, and the high-contrast imaging technologies, whether internal to the observatory, or using an external occulter. Experience with JWST has shown that determined competitors, motivated by the development contracts and flight opportunities of the new observatory, are capable of achieving huge advances in technical and operational performance while keeping construction costs on the same scale as prior great observatories.
Publication Date
2009
Publisher Statement
This paper was harvested from ArXiv.org and ArXiv identifier is arXiv:0904.0941
Citation Information
Vic Argabright, Bill Arnold, David Aronstein, Paul Atcheson, et al.. "Advanced Technology Large-Aperture Space Telescope (ATLAST): A Technology Roadmap for the Next Decade" Astro2010 Decadal Committee (2009)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/mauro_giavalisco/51/