0 Assigned ID: 655 ----- Attempting Submission 1 (Fri Apr 08 18:21:18 GMT 2016) ----- HST Phase I Proposal 655 (C60_proposal_PhaseI.apt) successfully submitted. Receipt: # 655-1 ----- Attempting Submission 2 (Fri Apr 08 21:44:32 GMT 2016) ----- Updated phase 2 for final visit (visit 01), including revised STIS scan strategy based on data obtained from previous visit. -917842515 ----- Attempting Submission 1 (Wed Jul 20 20:05:47 GMT 2016) ----- ----- Attempting Submission 2 (Mon Jan 02 20:16:10 GMT 2017) ----- Due to recent advances in laboratory spectroscopy, the first detection of a large molecule has been claimed in the diffuse interstellar medium: C60+ (ionized Buckminsterfullerene). If confirmed, the detection of C60+ will constitute a major breakthrough in interstellar chemistry and may provide, for the first time, an insight into the true chemical complexity of the diffuse ISM. Confirming the presence of C60+ rests on a rigorous detection of the weaker absorption lines of this molecule at 9365 and 9428 Angstroems - a region of the spectrum heavily obscured in ground based studies due to telluric water vapour absorption. We seek to demonstrate for the first time the feasibility of long-slit STIS scan exposures to reach an unprecedented signal-to-noise ratio >500 in the near-IR. These observations will eliminate the need for error-prone telluric cancellation methods, allowing us to search for and measure the weak C60+ features with sufficient accuracy to confirm or reject the recently claimed C60+ discovery. If successful, our CCD fringing reduction strategy would be a major breakthrough for precise spectroscopic observations of various astrophysical phenomena in this previously less well-explored wavelength region. The target star will be acquired in the middle of the 52x0.1'' slit (at row 512) then exposed while scanning the star up the slit by 15'' to row 812 (at a rate not exceeding the maximal FGS tracking rate of 4.8''/sec). After readout, a second science exposure will be performed with the scan direction reversed, to move the star back to row 512. Next, a sequence of two contemporaneous flat-field exposures will be obtained (without moving the slit mechanism), to ensure the closest alignment between the flat and science exposures. Use of the 0.1'' slit for both science and flat-field exposures will ensure closely similar optical illumination, necessary for optimal fringe removal. Two more science exposures will be obtained with the sequence reversed -- scanning the star from the middle of the CCD down to row 212, then back up to row 512, followed by two more flat-field exposures. This (up-down-down-up) scan sequence was chosen to reduce the chances of losing the star out of the slit during the scan, in case the 52x0.1'' aperture is not completely straight. Additional fringe flats will be obtained during occultation to improve the flat-field statistics. The entire sequence is repeated in Orbit 2. Visit 2 is for observations of a standard star and follows a similar pattern. An additional 'long scan', traversing the entire length of the slit, will be performed for the standard star using leftover time in orbit 3. This will test the possibility for further improvements in science exposure fringing and illumination characteristics (beyond that already offered by our program), but suffers a greater risk of loosing the star off the slit. The exposure time is set to reach a target S/N > 500 per exposure, so that the sequence of 8 science exposures will result in total counts equivalent to S/N > 1000. Both science and standard stars are spatially well-isolated, and no surrounding objects exist within 50'' that might introduce contamination into our long-slit observations. Stellar Physics Stellar Populations 12 false false false false false false AVAILABLE STAR B0-B2 III-I NO J2000 J2000 J=6.9 STAR B0-B2 III-I NO This object was generated by the targetselector and retrieved from the SIMBAD database. J2000 J2000 J=6.0 STIS/CCD Spectroscopic No No G750M 9336 STIS/CCD Spectroscopic No No G750M 9336 /private/var/folders/_8/6bhqt1nx30q_4vsnq86qrc8rc_kp_y/T/OPVisit5768730164739081925.xml 1483388082687 The scheduling data was generated by CASM 24.2. CASM was run in Phase II mode. (Tic-Visit :proposal-id 14705 :visit-id "01" :proposal-version -1 :trans-version "20160601" :date "02-Jan-2017 15:14:42.0" :trans-errors '(:WARNINGS 0 :ERRORS 0 :HEALTH-AND-SAFETY 0 :FATAL-ERRORS 0 :CONTINUABLE-FATALS 0) :number-of-orbits 2 :saa-model "24" :si-bright-earth-limb-angle 20.0 :data-volume 737264 :tdrss-contact-duration 0 :coron NIL ) (Tic-Obset :proposal-id 14705 :visit-id "01" :obset-id "01" :pcs-mode "FGS" ) (Tic-Orbit :proposal-id 14705 :visit-id "01" :orbit-number 1 :pcs-time 333 :si-vis-utilization 3143 :al-overhead-at-end 0 :internal-dur-at-end 1900 :dark-offset NIL :dark-utilization 0 :max-dark-utilization 1920 :low-sky "N" :pcs-visibility 3478 :pcs-gap 0 ) (Tic-Orbit :proposal-id 14705 :visit-id "01" :orbit-number 2 :pcs-time 222 :si-vis-utilization 3250 :al-overhead-at-end 0 :internal-dur-at-end 2074 :dark-offset NIL :dark-utilization 0 :max-dark-utilization 1920 :low-sky "N" :pcs-visibility 3478 :pcs-gap 0 ) true 2 0 1475841409945 /Users/mcordine/work/proposals/HST/STIS24/OP-cache/C60_proposal_PhaseII_revised4-v02.xml The scheduling data was generated by CASM 24.2. CASM was run in Phase II mode. 1479579235000 74.0 (Tic-Visit :proposal-id 14705 :visit-id "02" :proposal-version -1 :trans-version "20160601" :date "07-Oct-2016 13:56:48.0" :trans-errors '(:WARNINGS 0 :ERRORS 0 :HEALTH-AND-SAFETY 0 :FATAL-ERRORS 0 :CONTINUABLE-FATALS 0) :number-of-orbits 1 :saa-model "24" :si-bright-earth-limb-angle 20.0 :data-volume 461152 :tdrss-contact-duration 0 :coron NIL ) (Tic-Obset :proposal-id 14705 :visit-id "02" :obset-id "02" :pcs-mode "FGS" ) (Tic-Orbit :proposal-id 14705 :visit-id "02" :orbit-number 1 :pcs-time 333 :si-vis-utilization 2925 :al-overhead-at-end 0 :internal-dur-at-end 2346 :dark-offset NIL :dark-utilization 0 :max-dark-utilization 1920 :low-sky "N" :pcs-visibility 3267 :pcs-gap 0 ) true 1 0