Science opportunities with the Near-IR Camera (NIRCam) on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

Charles A. Beichman, Marcia Rieke, Daniel Eisenstein, Thomas P. Greene, John Krist, Don McCarthy, Michael Meyer, John Stansberry

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

54 Scopus citations

Abstract

The Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) offers revolutionary gains in sensitivity throughout the 1-5 μm region. NIRCam will enable great advances in all areas of astrophysics, from the composition of objects in our own Kuiper Belt and the physical properties of planets orbiting nearby stars to the formation of stars and the detection of the youngest galaxies in the Universe. NIRCam also plays an important role in initial alignment of JWST and the long term maintenance of its image quality. NIRCam is presently undergoing instrument Integration and Test in preparation for delivery to the JWST project. Key near-term milestones include the completion of cryogenic testing of the entire instrument; demonstration of scientific and wavefront sensing performance requirements; testing of replacement H2RG detectors arrays; and an analysis of coronagraphic performance in light of (image) measured telescope wavefront characteristics. This paper summarizes the performance of NIRCam, the scientific and education/outreach goals of the science team, and some results of the on-going testing program.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationSpace Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012
Subtitle of host publicationOptical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave
DOIs
StatePublished - 2012
EventSpace Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave - Amsterdam, Netherlands
Duration: Jul 1 2012Jul 6 2012

Publication series

NameProceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering
Volume8442
ISSN (Print)0277-786X

Other

OtherSpace Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave
Country/TerritoryNetherlands
CityAmsterdam
Period7/1/127/6/12

Keywords

  • Galaxies
  • Infrared
  • James webb space telescope
  • Planets
  • Solar system
  • Star formation

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Computer Science Applications
  • Applied Mathematics
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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