HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE

       DAILY REPORT #2965

PERIOD COVERED:  0000Z (UTC) 09/26/01 - 0000Z (UTC) 09/27/01

Daily Status Report as of 270/0000Z

1.0 OBSERVATIONS SCHEDULED AND ACCOMPLISHED:

    1.1 Completed WF/PC-2/STIS/CCD 8191 (The Faintest Radio Galaxies: 
Interacting Starbursts at z<1)

        Deep WF/PC-2 imaging and Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) 
slitless spectroscopy of two of our ultra-deep VLA fields were 
performed.  There were no reported problems.

    1.2 Completed Three Sets of STIS/CCD 9066 (Closing in on the Hydrogen 
Reionization Edge of the Universe)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used in parallel 
constrain the Hydrogen reionization edge in emission that marks the 
transition from a neutral to a fully ionized IGM at a predicted 
redshifts.  The proposal completed uneventfully.

    1.3 Completed WF/PC-2 9042 (An Archive To Detect The Progenitors Of 
Massive, Core-Collapse Supernovae)

         The WF/PC-2 was used to search for supernovae which have massive 
star progenitors.  The already extensive HST archive and high-resolution 
ground-based images of galaxies within ~20 Mpc enables us to resolve and 
quantify their individual bright stellar content.  As massive, evolved 
stars are the most luminous single objects in a galaxy, the progenitors of 
core-collapse supernovae should be directly detectable on pre-explosion 
images.  One Type II progenitor has been observed this year, and the 
investigators have proposed a short, companion WFPC2 proposal to confirm 
this candidate and identify a second.  The observations completed nominally.

    1.4 Completed Nine Sets of STIS/CCD 9285 (POMS Test Proposal: STIS 
Non-scripted Parallel Proposal Continuation III)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to make low 
galactic latitude, non-scripted parallel observations as part of a POMS 
test proposal.  The observations were completed as planned, and no 
anomalies were reported.

    1.5 Completed Two Sets of STIS/CCD 8901 (Dark Monitor-Part 1)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to monitor 
the darks.  There was no anomalous activity.

    1.6 Completed Three Sets of WF/PC-2 8936 (Cycle 10 Supplemental Darks 
Pt1/3)

        The WF/PC-2 was used to perform a dark calibration program that 
obtains three dark frames every day to provide data for monitoring and 
characterizing the evolution of hot pixels.  The proposal completed with no 
reported problems.

    1.7 Completed WF/PC-2 9042 (An Archive To Detect The Progenitors Of 
Massive, Core-Collapse Supernovae)

         The WF/PC-2 was used to search for supernovae which have massive 
star progenitors.  The already extensive HST archive and high-resolution 
ground-based images of galaxies within ~20 Mpc enables us to resolve and 
quantify their individual bright stellar content.  As massive, evolved 
stars are the most luminous single objects in a galaxy, the progenitors of 
core-collapse supernovae should be directly detectable on pre-explosion 
images.  One Type II progenitor has been observed this year, and the 
investigators have proposed a short, companion WFPC2 proposal to confirm 
this candidate and identify a second.  The observations completed nominally.

    1.8 Completed Three Sets of WF/PC-2 9057 (Host Galaxies of Obscured 
QSOs Identified by 2MASS)

        The WF/PC-2 was used to perform a snapshot survey of red QSOs 
discovered in The Two Micron All Sky Survey {2MASS} to investigate the 
detailed properties of their host galaxies.  This large, possibly dominant, 
population of QSOs in the local universe has been previously overlooked 
because reddening by {intrinsic} obscuration along our line of sight causes 
their colors to be too red for identification by traditional "UV- excess" 
techniques.  Their near-IR colors are similar to PG- type {UV-excess} QSOs, 
but it is far from certain whether they are indeed from the same parent 
population or represent a completely new class of QSO.  There were no 
reported problems.

    1.9 Completed STIS/CCD 9070 (A Census of Nuclear Star Clusters in 
Late-Type Spiral Galaxies: II. Spectroscopy and Stellar Populations)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to 
investigate spiral galaxies that have a prominent star cluster in their 
dynamical center.  Statistics for cluster frequency, size, and luminosity 
remain incomplete.  The proposal completed as planned.

    1.10 Completed STIS/CCD/MA2 8770 (The Nucleosynthesis of Boron - 
Benchmarks for the Galactic Disk)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD and MA2) was used to 
determine boron (B) abundance.  In spite of several HST cycles of B 
abundance determinations, we do not know the true, ambient, present-day 
abundance of B.  Only two stars {with undepleted Li and Be} have been 
observed to derive the Population I true B abundance.  Past cycles have 
focused on {1} halo stars with low metallicity and {2} solar-type stars 
with Li and/or Be deficiencies.  In this proposal, the stellar abundances 
of B will be determined, measured from the B I 2497 Angstrom line from STIS 
echelle spectra, of main sequence F-G stars that have retained their full 
initial abundances of boron.  Our target stars are those for which 
ground-based observations show that beryllium is undepleted.  These new 
abundances will map evolution of the B abundance in the Galactic disk in 
the metallicity range from one-third solar up to solar.  Then the B, and 
previously determined Li and Be abundances, will be used to improve 
understanding of the nucleosynthesis of B.  There were no reported anomalies.

    1.11 Completed STIS/MA2 8843 (Cycle 9 MAMA Dark Measurements)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (MA2) was used to perform 
the routine monitoring of the MAMA detector dark noise.  The proposal 
completed nominally.

    1.12 Completed WF/PC-2 9155 (The Cepheid Distance to NGC 1637: A Direct 
Comparison with the EPM Distance to SN 1999em)

        The WF/PC-2 was used to directly compare distances estimated by two 
primary extragalactic distance indicators. T he appearance of supernova 
1999em, a bright, extremely well- observed type II plateau event in the 
nearby SBc galaxy NGC 1637 offers the best chance to test the consistency 
of the Expanding Photosphere Method {EPM} of supernova distance 
determination with that derived from Cepheid variable stars.  Although EPM 
distances have been measured to 18 type II supernovae out to 180 Mpc and 
used to determine Hubble's constant independent of the Cepheid distance, 
there have never been any measurements of Cepheids in a galaxy that has 
hosted a normal type II-P supernova, the classic variety of core-collapse 
event to which EPM-derived distances are most robust.  The proposal 
completed nominally.

    1.13 Completed WF/PC-2 8941 (Cycle 10 UV Earthflats)

        The WF/PC-2 was used to monitor flat field stability by obtaining 
sequences of earth streak flats to improve the quality of pipeline flat 
fields for the WFPC2 UV filter set.  The proposal had no problems.

    1.14 Completed STIS/CCD/MA1 8103 (A Global Picture of White Dwarfs in 
Cataclysmic Variables)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD and MA1) was used to 
make ultraviolet spectrographic observations of the white dwarf star that 
is located in the cataclysmic variable star system known as 
GW-LIB-COP.  The observations were executed as scheduled, and no problems 
were reported.

    1.15 Completed WF/PC-2 9244 (POMS Test Proposal: WFII Parallel Archive 
Proposal Continuation)

        The WF/PC-2 was used to perform a generic target version of the 
Archival Pure Parallel program.  The program will be used to take parallel 
images of random areas of the sky, following the recommendations of the 
Parallels Working Group.  The observations completed with no anomalous 
activity.

    1.16 Completed WF/PC-2 9249 (POMS Test Proposal: WFII Backup Parallel 
Archive Proposal II)

        The WF/PC-2 was used to execute a POMS test proposal designed to 
simulate scientific plans.  The proposal completed with no reported problems.

    1.17 Completed STIS/CCD 8903 (Bias Monitor - Part 1)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to monitor 
the bias in the 1x1, 1x2, 2x1, and 2x2 bin settings at gain=1, and 1x1 at 
gain = 4 to build up high-S/N superbiases and track the evolution of hot 
columns.  There were no problems.

    1.18 Completed STIS/CCD 8648 (SINS: The Supernova Intensive Study-- 
Cycle 9)

        The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (CCD) was used to observe 
supernovae which explode to create the chemical history of the Universe and 
energize the interstellar gas.  The proposal completed with no reported 
problems.

2.0 FLIGHT OPERATIONS SUMMARY:

    2.1 Guide Star Acquisitions:
       Scheduled Acquisitions:  9
Successful:  9

  Scheduled Re-acquisitions:  6
Successful:  6

    2.2 FHST Updates:
Scheduled: 20
Successful: 20

    2.3 Operations Notes:

        The SSR EDAC error counter was cleared twice per ROP SR-1A.

        A TTR was written when there was a required re-transmit at 
269/122354Z during a NSSC-1 load uplink.  Accordingly, using ROP NS-05, SI 
C&DH errors were reset at 269/1226Z.

        HSTAR 8353 documents that the FGS-1 parameter F1YFCPB flagged 
out-of-limits intermittently (from 270/035158Z until 270/043038Z) while 
that FGS was performing astrometry.

3.0 SIGNIFICANT FORTHCOMING EVENTS:

        Continuation of normal science observations and calibrations.

/CAW