Pan-STARRRS Status and Geo Observations Results

Abstract

Pan-STARRS, Panoramic Survey Telescope And Rapid Response System, is an astronomical telescope developed through a cooperative agreement between University of Hawaii/Institute for Astronomy and the Air Force Research Laboratory which utilizes MIT/LL-developed orthogonal transfer arrays. While its primary mission is investigating astronomical transient phenomena, 5% of the telescope time is allocated for AFRL Geo Research. The combination of its high sensitivity (>21st Magnitude), wide field of view (7 square degrees), and high metric accuracy (<1arcsec), provides AFRL a unique capability to assess the Faint Geo Population. In its survey mode, many of the faint objects are detected as they streak across the focal plane. For a significant portion of these objects, the streak will not be entirely detected due to gaps, masking, and low signal levels. This talk will discuss the various methodologies for computing detection magnitudes in these scenarios and present observation results.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 2011
Accession Number
ADA550685

Entities

People

  • Mark Bolden
  • Paul Kervin
  • Paul Sydney

Organizations

  • Air Force Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Air Force
  • Air Force Research Laboratories
  • Artificial Satellites
  • Astronomy
  • Calibration
  • Debris
  • Detection
  • Focal Planes
  • Laboratory Procedures
  • Military Research
  • Observation
  • Sensitivity
  • Space Debris
  • Space Surveillance
  • Telescopes
  • Tumbling

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Astronomy and Astrophysics.
  • Astronomy/Astrophysics
  • Geodesy

Technology Areas

  • Space
  • Space - Space Objects