Infrared and Submillimeter Space Missions in the Coming Decade

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

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2. Solar System Observations and Future Missions

   • Emmanuel Lellouch

   Pages 1-7

3. Extragalactic Observations and Future Missions

   • A. Franceschini, G. De Zotti, P. Mazzei

   Pages 9-16

4. Detection Limits in the Far Infrared

   • G. H. Rieke, E. T. Young, T. N. Gautier

   Pages 17-25

5. Background Limited Infrared and Submillimeter Instruments

   • J.-M. Lamarre, F.-X. Désert, T. Kirchner

   Pages 27-36

6. Simulations of the Microwave Sky and of its “Observations”

   • F. R. Bouchet, R. Gispert, N. Aghanim, J. R. Bond, A. De Luca, E. Hivon et al.

   Pages 37-43

7. Radiative and Hybrid Cooling of Infrared Space Telescopes

   • Timothy G. Hawarden, Robert Crane, Harley A. Thronson Jr., Alan J. Penny, Anna H. Orlowska, Thomas W. Bradshaw

   Pages 45-56

8. The Infrared Space Observatory (ISO)

   • M. F. Kessler

   Pages 57-65

9. The Infrared Space Observatory

   • C. Singer

   Pages 67-72

10. Infrared Telescope in Space: IRTS

    • T. Matsumoto

    Pages 73-79

11. Infrared Astronomy on the Midcourse Space Experiment

    • Stephan D. Price

    Pages 81-87

12. The Wide-Field Infrared Explorer (WIRE)

    • P. B. Hacking, M. W. Werner

    Pages 89-89

13. SOFIA: The Next Generation Airborne Observatory

    • E. F. Erickson

    Pages 91-100

14. POST: Polar Stratospheric Telescope

    • Pierre Y. Bely, Holland C. Ford, Richard Burg, Larry Petro, Rick White, John Bally

    Pages 101-112

15. Infrared Imaging Surveyor: IRIS

    • T. Matsumoto

    Pages 113-117

16. Optics of the Far Infra-Red and Submillimetre Space Telescope

    • Richard Hills

    Pages 119-123

17. SIRTF — The Moderate Mission

    • M. W. Werner, L. L. Simmons

    Pages 125-138

18. The Edison Infrared Space Observatory

    • H. A. Thronson, T. G. Hawarden, A. J. Penny, L. Vigroux, G. Sholomitskii

    Pages 139-144

19. The BOOMERANG Experiment

    • A. Lange, P. De Bernardis, M. De Petris, S. Masi, F. Melchiorri, E. Aquilini et al.

    Pages 145-150

20. The Far Infrared Explorer (FIRE)

    • A. E. Lange, J. J. Bock, P. Mason

    Pages 151-156

A revolution similar to that brought by CCDs to visible astronomy is still ahead in IR and submillimeter astronomy. There is certainly no wavelength range which has, over the past several years, seen such impressive advances in technology: large-scale detector arrays, new designs for cooling in space, lightweight mirror technologies. Scientific cases for observing the cold universe are outstanding. Observations in the FIR/Submm range will provide answers to such fundamental questions as: What is the spectrum of the primordial fluctuations? How do primeval galaxies look? What are the first stages of star formation? Most of the international space missions that have been triggered by these questions are presented in detail here. Technological issues raised by these missions are reviewed, as are the most recent achievements in cooling and detector technologies.

• Observatories
• astronomy
• design
• instruments
• simulation
• space

• Wyoming Infrared Observatory, University of Wyoming, Laramie, USA

  Harley A. Thronson

• DAPNIA/Service d’ Astrophysique, C.E. Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France

  Marc Sauvage, Pascal Gallais, Laurent Vigroux

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