Revolutionizing Solar System Research with LUVOIR: unprecedented resolutions and sensitivities
Abstract
A new era of planetary exploration will begin with LUVOIR (Large UV Optical Infrared observatory concept), providing multi-wavelength capabilities at unprecedented spatial resolutions and sensitivities. LUVOIR will be able to map the Kuiper Belt, to explore interstellar visitors and the confines of the Oort Cloud via distant comets as they enter our Solar System, to obtain orders of magnitude greater characterization of asteroids/NEOs, to map the plumes of the icy moons, and to study the atmospheres of planets rivaling of orbital missions, among other transformative advances. With a proposed launch date in the late 2030s two alternative architectures were defined: LUVOIR-A (15-m) and LUVOIR-B (8-m). The observatory will have access to a highly versatile and capable suite of instruments: a) high-resolution imaging in the UV through the near IR (0.2-2.5 um) with a wide-field (2 x 3 arcminute field-of-view) via HDI (High Definition Imager); b) sensitive spectroscopy with ECLIPS (Extreme Coronagraph for Living Planetary Systems) covering the 0.2-2 um range; c) multi-object UV-IR spectroscopy with LUMOS (LUVOIR Ultraviolet Multi Object Spectrograph) featuring high/medium/low resolution in the 0.1-1 um range, and far-UV imaging modes; d) UV spectro-polarimetry with high resolution point source capability (R = 120,000) provided by POLLUX, a European contribution to LUVOIR. Such an instrument suite associated with a large aperture space observatory would enable orbiter- and flyby-quality observations of many solar system bodies, both large and small. For instance, LUVOIR could perform mapping of many outer Solar System bodies that have not been visited by spacecrafts in recent decades (e.g. Uranus, Neptune) at spatial resolutions comparable to those of the JUNO orbiter for Jupiter. This presentation will include simulated observations of Solar System bodies with the alternative LUVOIR-A and LUVOIR-B configurations and considering different instrument combinations. We will compare these observations with those from past, present and future space telescopes, using real and simulated observations.
- Publication:
-
American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #235
- Pub Date:
- January 2020
- Bibcode:
- 2020AAS...23517120V