TY - JOUR
T1 - BRITE-Constellation: Nanosatellites for Precision Photometry of Bright Stars
AU - Weiss, W. W.
AU - Rucinski, S. M.
AU - Moffat, A. F. J.
AU - Schwarzenberg-Czerny, A.
AU - Koudelka, O. F.
AU - Grant, C. C.
AU - Zee, R. E.
AU - Kuschnig, R.
AU - Mochnacki, Stefan W.
AU - Matthews, J. M.
AU - Orleanski, P.
AU - Pamyatnykh, A.
AU - Pigulski, A.
AU - Alves, J.
AU - Güdel, Manuel
AU - Handler, G.
AU - Wade, G. A.
AU - Zwintz, K.
AU - Chaumont, M.
AU - Choi, S.
AU - Grant, C.
AU - Kallinger, T.
AU - Lifshits, Jakob
PY - 2014/6/1
Y1 - 2014/6/1
N2 - BRITE-Constellation (where BRITE stands for BRIght Target Explorer) is
an international nanosatellite mission to monitor photometrically, in
two colours, the brightness and temperature variations of stars
generally brighter than mag(V) ≈ 4 with precision and time coverage
not possible from the ground. The current mission design consists of six
nanosats (hence Constellation): two from Austria, two from Canada, and
two from Poland. Each 7 kg nanosat carries an optical telescope of
aperture 3 cm feeding an uncooled CCD. One instrument in each pair is
equipped with a blue filter; the other with a red filter. Each BRITE
instrument has a wide field of view (≈24°), so up to about 15
bright stars can be observed simultaneously, sampled in 32 × 32
pixels sub-rasters. Photometry of additional fainter targets, with
reduced precision but thorough time sampling, will be possible through
onboard data processing. The BRITE sample is dominated by the most
intrinsically luminous stars: massive stars seen at all evolutionary
stages, and evolved medium-mass stars at the very end of their nuclear
burning phases. The goals of BRITE-Constellation are to (1) measure p-
and g-mode pulsations to probe the interiors and ages of stars through
asteroseismology; (2) look for varying spots on the stars surfaces
carried across the stellar disks by rotation, which are the sources of
co-rotating interaction regions in the winds of the most luminous stars,
probably arising from magnetic subsurface convection; and (3) search for
planetary transits.
AB - BRITE-Constellation (where BRITE stands for BRIght Target Explorer) is
an international nanosatellite mission to monitor photometrically, in
two colours, the brightness and temperature variations of stars
generally brighter than mag(V) ≈ 4 with precision and time coverage
not possible from the ground. The current mission design consists of six
nanosats (hence Constellation): two from Austria, two from Canada, and
two from Poland. Each 7 kg nanosat carries an optical telescope of
aperture 3 cm feeding an uncooled CCD. One instrument in each pair is
equipped with a blue filter; the other with a red filter. Each BRITE
instrument has a wide field of view (≈24°), so up to about 15
bright stars can be observed simultaneously, sampled in 32 × 32
pixels sub-rasters. Photometry of additional fainter targets, with
reduced precision but thorough time sampling, will be possible through
onboard data processing. The BRITE sample is dominated by the most
intrinsically luminous stars: massive stars seen at all evolutionary
stages, and evolved medium-mass stars at the very end of their nuclear
burning phases. The goals of BRITE-Constellation are to (1) measure p-
and g-mode pulsations to probe the interiors and ages of stars through
asteroseismology; (2) look for varying spots on the stars surfaces
carried across the stellar disks by rotation, which are the sources of
co-rotating interaction regions in the winds of the most luminous stars,
probably arising from magnetic subsurface convection; and (3) search for
planetary transits.
KW - Astronomical Instrumentation
U2 - 10.1086/677236
DO - 10.1086/677236
M3 - Article
SN - 0004-6280
VL - 126
SP - 573
EP - 585
JO - Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific
JF - Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific
IS - 940
ER -