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JULY 2009 BRIEFING:

Studying the First Galaxies with the Hubble and Webb Space Telescopes

Massimo Stiavelli, Space Telescope Science Institute

Dr. Massimo Stiavelli will explore what is known about the first galaxies in the context of the Epoch of Reionization -- the era in the early Universe when all Hydrogen was reionized by a yet partly unidentified population of galaxies. He will describe what has been learned about this population of galaxies thanks to the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, and what we expect to learn with future observations to be carried out with the newly installed Hubble Wide Field Camera 3. Finally, he will consider what the James Webb Space Telescope will be able to contribute to the study of the first galaxies, and will provide a short status update on JWST.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (2.4 MB)     PPT Format (7.3 MB)

     Telecon recording:  not yet available

     Telecon transcript:  not yet available

JUNE 2009 BRIEFING:

Diamonds in the Rough: Searching for the Oldest Stars in the Galaxy

Jason Kalirai, Space Telescope Science Institute

The stars that light up our night skies are balls of gas with nuclear furnaces in their cores. These brilliant objects have been gazed upon by humankind for centuries, and much of astronomy has historically represented a quest to understand the nature of these shining beacons. It is now well understood that, over time, most stars slowly deplete their fuel by converting the hydrogen in their cores into helium, and therefore cease nuclear burning. The first generation stars that formed in the Universe completed this process billions of years ago, and are now invisible to our eyes as burnt out stellar cinders.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (1.3 MB)    PPT Format (1.9 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (9.8 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  PDF Format (395 kb)

MAY 2009 BRIEFING:

The Impact of the Hubble Space Telescope: Outreach, Education, and Culture

Mario Livio, Space Telescope Science Institute

The final servicing mission to Hubble has been, in the words of astronaut John Grunsfeld, “a tour de force of tools and human ingenuity”. Scientists will spend the next several months calibrating and checking out the new and refurbished instruments.

In anticipation of a telescope with new and expanded capabilities, Dr. Livio will review the impact that the Hubble Space Telescope has already had in areas other than pure science. He will discuss Hubble news results, the impact of education products (both formal and informal), and the impact of online education products. He will also show how Hubble results have penetrated into human culture in general. Finally, he will discuss a unique outreach event that related the Hubble to art.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (4.2 MB)    PPT Format (3.9 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (10 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  PDF Format (386 kb)

APRIL 2009 BRIEFING:

Return to Hubble: Servicing Mission 4

Frank Summers, Space Telescope Science Institute

The final servicing mission to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is scheduled for May 12, 2009. There are three main goals for this complex mission. The first is to enhance the observatory by the addition of two new instruments. The second is to restore the existing scientific capability through in-situ repairs of STIS and ACS, and the third is to ensure life expectancy for at least five more years. This will be the most challenging mission to Hubble that NASA has ever attempted.

Frank Summers will present what museum and planetarium personnel need to know in order to inform the public and answer their questions about Hubble, its history, and Servicing Mission 4.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (2.7 MB)    PPT Format (3.2 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (11.5 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  PDF Format (380 kb)

JUNE 2008 BRIEFING:

Black Holes: Gravity's Relentless Pull

Roeland van der Marel, Space Telescope Science Institute

Black holes are one of the most fascinating topics in modern physics and astronomy. Dr. van der Marel is both an expert on the topic and the scientist behind a black hole website that garnered the Pirelli Internetional Award for Multimedia Science Communication. This briefing explores the wealth of information and interactive tools of the website that can be used for either quick exploration or in-depth study. Both the recent advances in understanding black holes as well as the main outstanding questions is highlighted.

Instead of a traditional slide presentation, this briefing will use the website itself: Black Holes  Please note that the website requires Flash, which most browsers already have installed. If not, you can download it free at this website: Adobe Flash Player

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (500 kb)    PPT Format (6.1 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (7.9 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  PDF Format (361 kb)

MAY 2008 BRIEFING:

The XO Search for Transiting Planets

Peter McCullough, Space Telescope Science Institute

Detecting planets around other stars is difficult, time-consuming, and data-intensive. It is paramount in such endeavors to maximize the amount of work that can be done by computers and automated equipment, and bring in the astronomers only once the potential planetary needles have been identified within the stellar haystack. One search method relies on the geometry of planet orbits, noting that a small percentage of extrasolar planets will pass directly in front of their stars as seen from Earth. Dr. McCullough is the head of a project to discover Jupiter-sized extrasolar planets by searching for the small decrease in a star's light during such a transit event. He will describe an ambitious project that searches tens of thousands of stars every month using autonomous equipment at the 10,000-foot Haleakala summit on Maui.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (1.2 MB)    PPT Format (0.9 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (8.8 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  not available

APRIL 2008 BRIEFING:

Wide-Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2): The Camera That Saved Hubble

John Trauger, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Hubble's "workhorse" instrument — the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) — has captured most of the famous Hubble pictures. WFPC2 is the telescope's main camera; specially designed small mirrors within WFPC2 correct for Hubble's spherical aberration. Scientists worldwide cheered in 1993 when WFPC2 was installed during the first servicing mission and brought the universe into sharp focus. John will talk about designing WFPC2, recall some of its greatest hits (for example, the "Pillars of Creation"), and look forward to seeing WFPC2 again when it returns to Earth onboard STS-125 later this year.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (49 MB)

     Telecon recording:  not available

     Telecon transcript:  PDF Format (123 kB)

     Hubble Recovery chapter for book:  PDF Format (38 kB)

MARCH 2008 BRIEFING:

Seeing Hubble's Universe: Making Pictures from Data

Zolt Levay , Space Telescope Science Institute

Hubble's view of the universe, as the public sees it, is a visually compelling portrait. Yet these images originate not for artistic reasons, but for science research. Zolt Levay is perhaps the person most responsible for shaping the public perception of Hubble imagery, and thereby much of their opinions of astronomy.  In this briefing, he will discuss the process of reconstructing color photographs from the Hubble Space Telescope's science data.  The detailed and involved procedures require technical  as well as aesthetic choices and rely on techniques from art and photography to produce visually appealing pictures without sacrificing scientific validity.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (3.5 MB)    PPT Format (2.6 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (7.1 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  PDF Format

FEBRUARY 2008 BRIEFING:

The Evolution of Galaxies over Cosmic Time

Harry Ferguson, Space Telescope Science Institute

Dr. Harry Ferguson, Head of Science at the Space Telescope Science Institute, has been involved in several deep surveys of galaxies with the Hubble Space Telescope. The Hubble Deep Field, GOODS, COSMOS, and Ultra Deep Field have provided unprecedented detail of galaxies stretching to more than 12 billion light-years distant in space, and thus more than 12 billion years in time. These collections of observations allows us to study the growth and development of galaxies from the proto-galactic star clumps through to fully formed majestic spirals and ellipticals. Dr. Ferguson will review some of the highlights of these findings.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation: PDF Format (7.8 MB)    PPT Format (6.0 MB)

     Image Notes:   Plain Text (4 kB)

     Movie - Slide 4:   Windows Media 9 (8.5 MB)      Quicktime (4.7 MB)

     Movie - Slide 9:  MPEG Format (9.1 MB)

     Movie - Slide 32:   Windows Media 9 (3.5 MB)      Quicktime (7.2 MB)

     Movie - Slide 33:   Windows Media 9 (12 MB)      Quicktime (7.0 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (9.5 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  PDF Format

DECEMBER 2007 BRIEFING:

James Webb Space Telescope

Knox Long, Space Telescope Science Institute

Join Dr. Knox Long of the Space Telescope Science Institute to learn about the James Webb Space Telescope now under construction. JWST will orbit beyond the Moon to search for the first stars, to identify how galaxies assemble their glorious spiral and elliptical structures, and to understand more fully the processes that give birth to stars and planets.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation:  PDF Format (2.4 MB)   PPT Format (4.4 MB)

     Movie - Slide 28:  Quicktime (25 MB)

     Movie - Slide 30:  Quicktime (61 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (8.2 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  not available

Links:

     JWST Website at STScI

NOVEMBER 2007 BRIEFING:

Astrophysics Enabled by the Return to the Moon

Mario Livio, Space Telescope Science Institute

In November 2006, the Space Telescope Science Institute hosted a forward-looking conference on the compatabilities and synergies between astronomical research and the current plans for manned space missions. Dr. Livio, chair of the organizing committee for that conference, will discuss its most important results. He will identify important astrophysical observations that can be either carried out from the lunar surface or that will be enabled by the Vision for Space Exploration. 

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required)

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation:  PDF Format (1.3 MB)   PPT Format (5.4 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (7.5 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  Microsoft Word Format (77 kB)   OpenDocument Format (30 kB)

Links:

     Astophysics Enabled by the Return to the Moon  Conference Website

JUNE 2007 BRIEFING:

Science with Hubble's New Instruments

Kenneth Sembach, Space Telescope Science Institute

Two new Hubble science instruments are scheduled to be installed during the final servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope in fall 2008. The Wide Field Camera 3 and the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph will provide views of the Universe with greater clarity and depth than ever before. This talk will describe the key science topics addressed by the two new instruments. Dr. Kenneth Sembach is the Hubble Project Scientist at the Space Telescope Science Institute.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required):

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation:  PDF Format (1.8 MB)   PPT Format (3.8 MB)

     Movie - Slide 15:  DIVX encoded AVI (7.5 MB)   Quicktime (26 MB)   Windows Media 9 (62 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (8.4 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  not available

Links:

     Hubble Servicing Mission 4 on the NASA Website

MAY 2007 BRIEFING:

HST Servicing Mission 4 - Repairs

Chris Blades, Space Telescope Science Institute, Project Scientist for SM4

The next and final servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope is currently scheduled for fall 2008. There are three main goals for this complex mission. The first is to enhance the Observatory by the addition of two new instruments. The second is to restore the existing scientific capability through in-situ repairs of STIS and ACS, and the third is to ensure life expectancy to 2013. This is likely to be the most challenging mission to Hubble that NASA has ever attempted. Chris Blades is the Project Scientist for SM4 at the Space Telescope Science Institute and during this briefing he will discuss the current situation with the Hubble telescope and describe the plans for SM4.

Telecon and Presentation Materials at the NASA Museum Alliance (password required):

Local Copy for Non-members:

     Slide Presentation:  PDF Format (1.2 MB)   PPT Format (0.9 MB)

     Telecon recording:  MP3 Format (7.3 MB)

     Telecon transcript:  Microsoft Word Format (123 kB)   OpenDocument Format (39 kB)

Links:

     Hubble Servicing Mission 4 on the NASA Website