 Rendering of the LUVOIR-A observatory concept | |||||||||||
| Mission type | Space telescope | ||||||||||
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| Operator | NASA | ||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||
| Mission duration | 5 years (prime mission) (proposed) 10 years consumables 25 years lifetime goal for non-serviceable components | ||||||||||
| Start of mission | |||||||||||
| Launch date | 2039 (proposed) | ||||||||||
| Rocket | SLS Block 2 (proposed), SpaceX Starship (proposed) | ||||||||||
| Orbital parameters | |||||||||||
| Reference system | Sun-EarthL2 | ||||||||||
| Main | |||||||||||
| Type | Multi-wavelength space telescope | ||||||||||
| Diameter | 8 or 15.1 m (26 or 50 ft)[1] | ||||||||||
| Wavelengths | UV,visible andinfrared | ||||||||||
| Instruments | |||||||||||
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 Mission proposal insignia | |||||||||||
TheLarge Ultraviolet Optical Infrared Surveyor, commonly known asLUVOIR (/luːˈvwɑːr/), is a multi-wavelengthspace telescope concept being developed byNASA under the leadership of aScience and Technology Definition Team. It was one of four large astrophysics space mission concepts studied in preparation for theNational Academy of Sciences 2020Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey.[2][3]
While LUVOIR is a concept for a general-purpose observatory, it has the key science goal of characterizing a wide range ofexoplanets, including those that might behabitable. An additional goal is to enable a broad range ofastrophysics, from thereionization epoch, through galaxy formation and evolution, tostar andplanet formation. Powerful imaging andspectroscopy observations ofSolar System bodies would also be possible.
LUVOIR would be aLarge Strategic Science Mission and was considered for a development start sometime in the 2020s. The LUVOIR Study Team, under Study ScientistAki Roberge, has produced designs for two variants of LUVOIR: one with a 15.1 m diameter telescope mirror (LUVOIR-A) and one with an 8 m diameter mirror (LUVOIR-B).[4] LUVOIR would be able to observeultraviolet,visible, andnear-infraredwavelengths of light. The Final Report on the 5-year LUVOIR mission concept study was publicly released on 26 August 2019.[5]
On 4 November 2021, the2020 Astrophysics Decadal Survey recommended development of a "large (~6 m aperture) infrared/optical/ultraviolet (IR/O/UV) space telescope", with the science goals of searching for signatures of life on planets outside of the Solar System and enabling a wide range of transformative astrophysics. Such a mission draws upon both the LUVOIR andHabEx mission concepts.[6][7][8]
In 2016, NASA began considering four differentspace telescope concepts for future Large Strategic Science Missions.[9] They are theHabitable Exoplanet Imaging Mission (HabEx), Large Ultraviolet Optical Infrared Surveyor (LUVOIR),Lynx X-ray Observatory (Lynx), andOrigins Space Telescope (OST). In 2019, the four teams turned in their final reports to theNational Academy of Sciences, whose independentDecadal survey committee advisesNASA on which mission should take top priority. If funded, LUVOIR would launch in approximately 2039 using a heavy launch vehicle, and it would be placed in an orbit around theSun–Earth Lagrange point 2.[5]
LUVOIR's main goals are to investigateexoplanets,cosmic origins, and theSolar System.[4] LUVOIR would be able to analyze the structure and composition of exoplanet atmospheres and surfaces. It could also detectbiosignatures arising from life in the atmosphere of a distant exoplanet.[10] Atmospheric biosignatures of interest includeCO
2,CO,molecular oxygen (O
2),ozone (O
3),water (H
2O), andmethane (CH
4). LUVOIR's multi-wavelength capability would also provide key information to help understand how a host star's UV radiation regulates the atmosphericphotochemistry onhabitable planets. LUVOIR will also observe large numbers of exoplanets spanning a wide range of characteristics (mass, host star type, age, etc.), with the goal of placing theSolar System in a broader context of planetary systems. Over its five-year primary mission, LUVOIR-A is expected to identify and study 54potentially habitable exoplanets, while LUVOIR-B is expected to identify 28.[1]
The scope of astrophysics investigations include explorations ofcosmic structure in the far reaches of space and time, formation and evolution ofgalaxies, and the birth ofstars andplanetary systems.
In the area ofSolar System studies, LUVOIR can provide up to about 25 km imaging resolution in visible light at Jupiter, permitting detailed monitoring of atmospheric dynamics inJupiter,Saturn,Uranus, andNeptune over long timescales. Sensitive, high resolution imaging and spectroscopy of Solar Systemcomets,asteroids,moons, andKuiper Belt objects that will not be visited by spacecraft in the foreseeable future can provide vital information on the processes that formed the Solar System ages ago. Furthermore, LUVOIR has an important role to play by studying plumes from the ocean moons of the outer Solar System, in particularEuropa andEnceladus, over long timescales.
LUVOIR would be equipped with an internalcoronagraph instrument, calledECLIPS for Extreme Coronagraph for LIving Planetary Systems, to enabledirect observations of Earth-like exoplanets. An externalstarshade is also an option for the smaller LUVOIR design (LUVOIR-B).
Other candidate science instruments studied are: High-Definition Imager (HDI), a wide-field near-UV, optical, and near-infraredcamera;LUMOS, a LUVOIR Ultraviolet Multi-ObjectSpectrograph; and POLLUX, an ultravioletspectropolarimeter. POLLUX (high-resolution UVspectropolarimeter) is being studied by a European consortium, with leadership and support from theCNES, France.
The observatory can observe wavelengths of light from thefar-ultraviolet to thenear-infrared. To enable the extreme wavefront stability needed for coronagraphic observations of Earth-like exoplanets,[11] the LUVOIR design incorporates three principles. First, vibrations and mechanical disturbances throughout the observatory are minimized. Second, the telescope and coronagraph both incorporate several layers of wavefront control through active optics. Third, the telescope is actively heated to a precise 270 K (−3 °C; 26 °F) to control thermal disturbances. The LUVOIR technology development plan is supported with funding from NASA'sAstrophysics Strategic Mission Concept Studies program, theGoddard Space Flight Center, theMarshall Space Flight Center, theJet Propulsion Laboratory and related programs atNorthrop Grumman Aerospace Systems andBall Aerospace.
LUVOIR-A, previously known as theHigh Definition Space Telescope (HDST), was proposed by theAssociation of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) on 6 July 2015.[12] It would be composed of 36mirror segments with anaperture of 15.1 metres (50 ft) in diameter, offering images up to 24 times sharper than theHubble Space Telescope.[13] LUVOIR-A would be large enough to find and study the dozens ofEarthlike planets inour nearby neighborhood. It could resolve objects such as the nucleus of a smallgalaxy or agas cloud on the way to collapsing into astar andplanets.[12]
The case for HDST was made in a report entitled "From Cosmic Birth to Living Earths", on the future ofastronomy commissioned by AURA, which runs the Hubble and other observatories on behalf ofNASA and theNational Science Foundation.[14] Ideas for the original HDST proposal included an internalcoronagraph, a disk that blocks light from the central star, making a dim planet more visible, and astarshade that would float kilometers out in front of it to perform the same function.[15] LUVOIR-A folds so it only needs an 8-metre wide payload fairing.[5] Initial cost estimates are approximately US$10 billion,[15] with lifetime cost estimates of $18 billion to $24 billion.[1]
LUVOIR-B, previously known as theAdvanced Technology Large-Aperture Space Telescope (ATLAST),[16][17][18][19] is an 8-meter architecture initially developed by theSpace Telescope Science Institute,[20] the science operations center for theHubble Space Telescope (HST) and theJames Webb Space Telescope (JWST). While smaller than LUVOIR-A, it is being designed to produce an angular resolution that is 5–10 times better than the JWST, and a sensitivity limit that is up to 2,000 times better than HST.[16][17][20] The LUVOIR Study Team expects that the telescope would be able to be serviced – similar to HST – either by an uncrewed spacecraft or by astronauts viaOrion orStarship. Instruments such as cameras could potentially be replaced and returned to Earth for analysis of their components and future upgrades.[19]
The originalbackronym used for the initial mission concept, "ATLAST", was a pun referring to the time taken to decide on a successor for HST. ATLAST itself had three different proposed architectures – an 8-metre (26 ft) monolithic mirror telescope, a 16.8-metre (55 ft) segmented mirror telescope, and a 9.2-metre (30 ft) segmented mirror telescope. The current LUVOIR-B architecture adopts JWST design heritage, essentially being an incrementally larger variant of the JWST, which has a 6.5 m segmented main mirror. Running onsolar power, it would use an internalcoronagraph or an externalocculter which can characterize the atmosphere and surface of an Earth-sized exoplanet in thehabitable zone of long-lived stars at distances up to 140 light-years (43 pc), including its rotation rate, climate, and habitability. The telescope would also allow researchers to glean information on the nature of the dominant surface features, changes in cloud cover and climate, and, potentially, seasonal variations in surface vegetation.[21] LUVOIR-B was designed to launch on a heavy-lift rocket with an industry-standard 5-metre-diameter (16 ft) launch fairing. Lifetime cost estimates range from $12 billion to $18 billion.[1]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
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