The Arcus probe mission

Randall Smith

doi:10.1117/12.2677764

5 October 2023 The Arcus probe mission

Randall Smith

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 12678, UV, X-Ray, and Gamma-Ray Space Instrumentation for Astronomy XXIII; 126780E (2023) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2677764
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2023, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

The Arcus Probe mission to be proposed to the NASA Astrophysics Probe Explorer call addresses a range of Astro 2020 Decadal Priority science areas. These include (i) exploring how supermassive black hole accretion and winds vary with luminosity, black hole mass, black hole spin and other parameters, (ii) determining how gas, metals, and dust flow into, though, and out of galaxies, and (iii) probing stellar activity across all stellar types and lifecycles, including exoplanet hosts targeted by current and future NASA habitable planet missions. These science goals, along with a robust General Observer science program, will be achieved using a mission that provides a high-sensitivity soft X-ray spectrometer (XRS) with R=3500 (R⪆2500 req) and an average effective area in the 12-50Å bandpass of 335 cm² (250 cm² req). It will be complemented by a co-aligned UV spectrometer (UVS) working in the 1020-1560Å band with R= 24200 (R⪆17000 req) and ⪆5× the sensitivity of FUSE at O VI (1020Å) that observes simultaneously with the X-ray instrument. Working together, these instruments will enable astronomers to characterize warm and hot plasmas - including hydrogen, helium, and all abundant metals - throughout the Universe, from the halos of galaxies and clusters to the coronae of stars. We present the overall mission plan, including instrumentation, science, and operations for a five-year baseline mission.

Conference Presentation

(2023) Published by SPIE. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Citation Download Citation

Randall Smith "The Arcus probe mission", Proc. SPIE 12678, UV, X-Ray, and Gamma-Ray Space Instrumentation for Astronomy XXIII, 126780E (5 October 2023); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2677764

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