The Optical Head of the EnVisS Camera for the Comet Interceptor ESA Mission: Phase 0 Study

Da Deppo, V. et al. (2020) The Optical Head of the EnVisS Camera for the Comet Interceptor ESA Mission: Phase 0 Study. In: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation 2020, 14-18 Dec 2020, ISBN 9781510636736 (doi: 10.1117/12.2562907)

Abstract

EnVisS (Entire Visible Sky) is an all-sky camera specifically designed to fly on the space mission Comet Interceptor. This mission has been selected in June 2019 as the first European Space Agency (ESA) Fast mission, a modest size mission with fast implementation. Comet Interceptor aims to study a dynamically new comet, or interstellar object, and its launch is scheduled in 2029 as a companion to the ARIEL mission. The mission study phase, called Phase 0, has been completed in December 2019, and then the Phase A study had started. Phase A will last for about two years until mission adoption expected in June 2022. The Comet Interceptor mission is conceived to be composed of three spacecraft: spacecraft A devoted to remote sensing science, and the other two, spacecraft B1 and B2, dedicated to a fly-by with the comet. EnVisS will be mounted on spacecraft B2, which is foreseen to be spin-stabilized. The camera is developed with the scientific task to image, in push-frame mode, the full comet coma in different colors. A set of ad-hoc selected broadband filters and polarizers in the visible range will be used to study the full scale distribution of the coma gas and dust species. The camera configuration is a fish-eye lens system with a FoV of about 180°x45°. This paper will describe the preliminary EnVisS optical head design and analysis carried out during the Phase 0 study of the mission.

• Item Type: Conference Proceedings
• Keywords: Comets, cameras, space operations, head, monochromatic aberrations, imaging systems, optical design.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Brydon, Dr George
• Authors: Da Deppo, V., Pernechele, C., Jones, G., Brydon, G., Zuppella, P., Chioetto, P., Nordera, S., Slemer, A., Crescenzio, G., Piersanti, E., Spano, P., Bucciol, G., Consolaro, L., Lara, L., and Slavinskis, A.
• Subjects: Q Science > QB Astronomy; T Technology > TR Photography
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Physics and Astronomy
• ISSN: 0277-786X
• ISBN: 9781510636736