A LARGE MONOLITHIC–APERTURE OPTICAL/UV SERVICABLE SPACE TELESCOPE DEPLOYED TO L2 BY AN ARES-V CARGO LAUNCH VEHICLE.
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A LARGE MONOLITHIC–APERTURE OPTICAL/UV SERVICABLE SPACE TELESCOPE DEPLOYED TO L2 BY AN ARES-V CARGO LAUNCH VEHICLE.
- Author:
M. Postman, P. Stahl, Calzetti, K. Sembach
Seeking answers to fundamental questions in astrophysics will ultimately require the deployment of one or more large-aperture, space-based optical/UV telescopes sometime in the next decade or two. This scientific quest includes firmly establishing the timeline for the reionization of neutral Hydrogen in the Universe, mapping the large-scale distribution of baryonic (‘ordinary’) matter, identifying the processes that govern galaxy and star formation, establishing the processes that drive planet formation, determining the physical characteristics of a large sample of exosolar gas giant and terrestrial planets, and looking for biosignatures from planets orbiting within the habitable zones of nearby stars.
