Workshop Proceedings: Sensor Systems for Space Astrophysics in the 21st Century.Held in Pasadena, California on January 23-25, 1991. (Astrotech 21 Workshops Series III Integrated Technology Planning)

摘要

A technology development program, Astrotech 21, is being proposed by NASA toenable the next generation of space astrophysical observatories which will be launched in the two decade period 1995-2015. The Astrotech 21 planning process has three phases. This workshop on Sensor Systems Technology is part of the third and final phase in Astrotech 21 planning. The goal of this workshop was to identify areas of sensor capabilities which require technology advances in order to meet the science goals of the Astrotech 21 mission set, and to recommend a coherent development program to achieve the required capabilities. To this end, six panels were assembled to address sensor technologies across the electromagnetic spectrum from the gamma-ray to the submillimeter-wave regimes, as well as the closely related technologies of sensor readout electronics and space cryocoolers. The primary content of the proceedings is the set of reports prepared by the six panel chairs and their team members. These reports describe the panels' analyses of the Astrotech 21 mission set requirements, an assessment of the current capabilities and future promise of the relevant sensor technologies, and their specific recommendations to NASA for a development plan to achieve the desired sensor performance. To place these reports in context, this volume first recaps the purpose and evolution of the Astrotech 21 Plan, the view of the mission set at the time of the workshop, and the structure and goals of the workshop itself.