Abstract The INFRARED SPACE OBSERVATORY (ISO), a project of the European Space Agency (ESA), will make various astronomical observations in the wavelength range of 2 to 200 μm. Two-thirds of its observing time will be available to guest observers via the traditional route of proposal submission. ISO will be launched in 1995 by an Ariane 4 from Kourou (Guyana) and be brought into a very elongated orbit with a 24hr period of which 16 hr can be used for astronomical observations. The payload module is essentially a large cryostat with a tank that will be filled with over 2000 litres of superfluid helium to keep the instruments cold (2 to 4 K) during an expected lifetime of 18 months. Inside the dewar, there is a Ritchey-Chretien telescope with a primary mirror of diameter 60cm. Four instruments, each provided by a different PI consortium, share the ISO focal plane. These instruments are : a photometer, a camera and two spectrometers — one for the wavelength range 2–45 μm and the other for 45–180 μm.


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    Title :

    The INFRARED SPACE OBSERVATORY (ISO)


    Contributors:

    Published in:

    Advances in Space Research ; 13 , 12 ; 485-494


    Publication date :

    1993-01-01


    Size :

    10 pages




    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English



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    Salama, A. / Kessler, M. F. | British Library Online Contents | 1992


    The Infrared Space Observatory (ISO)

    Kessler, M.F. | Online Contents | 1993


    The Infrared Space Observatory (ISO)

    Kessler, M. F. / Habing, H. J. / COSPAR | British Library Conference Proceedings | 1993