ESA IUE Newsletter - No 12 - December 1981 - Observatory and UV Astronomy Updates

Sep 2, 2026

ESA IUE Newsletter No 12 (December 1981) compiles observatory administration and scientific updates for the IUE program. It summarizes the observatory controller’s message, covering scheduling demand, European time-allocation unification, and improvements to high-dispersion spectral extraction. The issue also reports personnel changes at VILSPA, progress on conferences and publications, and detailed planning for UV stellar classification and image releases to the scientific community.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages69

Reading Time2 h 54 min

AccessFree to download

Observatory Controller's Message

New Personnel at VILSPA; Departures

European IUE Conference in Madrid

Advances in Ultraviolet Astronomy

AIYOUEEE at Apogee

VILSPA Workshop on UV Stellar Classification

IUE Satellite News

Constraints affecting the IUE Scheduling

VILSPA images for release to Scientific Community

"Scientific Productivity" of IUE

Extraction Variants and Noise Reduction

IUE VILSPA Publications

Awards list; Log of VILSPA images

Various forms

Third European IUE Conference

Hotel reservation form

NO 12 DECEMBER 1981 TABLE OF CONTENTS Observatory Controller's Message2New Personnel at VILSPA; Departures3European IUE Conference in Madrid5Advances in Ultraviolet Astronomy:Four Years8 of IUE Research,AnnouncementAIYOUEEE at Apogee10VILSPA Workshop on UV Stellar Classification11IUE Satellite News12Constraints affecting the IUE Scheduling14VILSPA images for release to Scientific Community16The "Scientific Productivity"of IUE19Extraction Variants: UCL(II),22Reduction of noise in IUE spectra by adding27extracted spectraLibrary Bereavements36IUE VILSPA Publications37Undernourished Epicures -Awards list41Log of VILSPA images 01 July 1981 -31 Oct.198143Various forms66 ESA IUE Newsletter Editor:W.WamstekerPublished by :The ESA IUE ObservatoryApartado 54065,Madrid,SpainTelephone:(1)401-9661 Telex:42555 VILS E Typing:C.Ramirez PalaciosDrawingsJ.Garcia Palacios OBSERVATORY CONTROLLER MESSAGE The easiest way to demonstrate the success and popularityIUE is enjoying among European astronomers is to look at thenumber of new proposals for the next round of observations.ESA received 189 and the SERC 85 which represents an increaseof 88 over last year. The resulting over-subscription isabout 4 times. Looking at the different subject areas,wenotice an increase in the number of proposals aiming to studyinteraction phenomena involving hot stars:indeed many ofthese programmes envisage simultaneous observations by EXOSAT.The number of extragalactic proposals is fairly stable andthey are seeking by far the largest portion of observing time. After extensive negotiations during the past year, ESA and SEPC agreed,beginning with the next round(5th year)to unify the European allocation of IUE time. This means thatall proposals received by both agencies will be evaluated byone single Committee and the entire observing time availablefrom VILSPA will be allocated on scientific merit only. Thisyear the Committee will be formed by merging those existingfrom ESA and SERC. A new European Committee will be appointedfor the sixth and following round. We expect that this new arrangement will improve the scientific exploitation of IUE and will stimulate collaborationamong European astronomers. Also,we hope that scheduling willbecome easier! An important decision was taken at the last 3-Agencymeeting concerning the reduction of high dispersion spectra.A new extraction procedure was presented by NASA and accepted:it follows the same concept of the new IPS for low dispersion(see ESA IUE Newsletter \#11)and provides a better resolution.The price to pay is an increase in noise,but the user willhave the option to apply a low-pass filter before the spectrumis plotted. The instaliation testing of the new software isunder way. At the end of October a small number of scientists met atVILSPA to discuss and assess the status of Stellar Classifica-tion in the UV and the relevance of IUE data. The meeting,asummary of which is given by A.Heck(see page 11),was veryinteresting and stimulating. Mild,clear weather provided anideal environment. The organisation of the Third European IUE Conference isproceeding:on page 5 you will find more information about itand a Hotel booking form. Please note the slight change ofdates since the first announcement. We hope to meet al1 of younext May! NEW PERSONNEL AT VILSPA A new telescope operator has joined ourteam:Alfredo Ruiz de Silva. Alfredo(36)has an extensive history in Aeronautics.He has worked in aircraft navigation andattended various courses in the U.S..After working a few years in Las Palmashe joined the NASA Deep Space TrackingStation in Fresnedillas,also nearMadrid. He likes very much to makephotographs of his one year old son. Our new Chief Computer Operator is TarsicioMartin Santos(33). He studied in theEscuela Ingeniería Técnica Industrial inValladolid. He is an old timer at theStation and has worked in the project invarious functions. In many special courseshe has build up

FAQs

What major scheduling change was agreed between ESA and SERC for IUE time allocation?

ESA and SEPC agreed to unify the European allocation of IUE time so proposals from both agencies would be evaluated by one single committee and observing time would be allocated on scientific merit only.

What new extraction procedure was accepted for high dispersion spectra?

NASA presented a new extraction procedure following the concept of the new IPS for low dispersion, providing better resolution, with the tradeoff of increased noise and an optional low-pass filter before plotting.

What information does the newsletter provide about VILSPA image distribution and operations?

It includes constraints affecting IUE scheduling, details on VILSPA images prepared for release to the scientific community, and a log listing VILSPA images over a defined date range.

Sep 2, 2026

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