In-flight performance of the NIRSpec Micro Shutter Array

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  • 121803R

    Final published version, 4 MB, PDF document

  • Timothy D. Rawle
  • Giovanna Giardino
  • David E. Franz
  • Robert Rapp
  • Maurice te Plate
  • Christian A. Zincke
  • Yasin M. Abul-Huda
  • Catarina Alves de Oliveira
  • Katie Bechtold
  • Tracy Beck
  • Stephan M. Birkmann
  • Torsten Boker
  • Ralf Ehrenwinkler
  • Pierre Ferruit
  • Dennis Garland
  • Diane Karakla
  • Hermann Karl
  • Charles D. Keyes
  • Robert Koehler
  • Kumari Nimisha
  • Nora Lutzgendorf
  • Elena Manjavacas
  • Anthony Marston
  • S. Harvey Moseley
  • Peter Mosner
  • James Muzerolle
  • Patrick Ogle
  • Charles Proffitt
  • Elena Sabbi
  • Marco Sirianni
  • Glenn Wahlgren
  • Emily Wislowski
  • Raymond H. Wright
  • Chi Rai Wu
  • Peter Zeidler

The NIRSpec instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) brings the first multi-object spectrograph (MOS) into space, enabled by a programmable Micro Shutter Array (MSA) of similar to 250,000 individual apertures. During the 6-month Commissioning period, the MSA performed admirably, completing similar to 800 reconfigurations with an average success rate of similar to 96% for commanding shutters open in science-like patterns. We show that 82.5% of the unvignetted shutter population is usable for science, with electrical short masking now the primary cause of inoperable apertures. In response, we propose a plan to recheck existing shorts during nominal operations, which is expected to reduce the number of affected shutters. We also present a full assessment of the Failed Open and Failed Closed shutter populations, which both show a marginal increase in line with predictions from ground testing. We suggest an amendment to the Failed Closed shutter flagging scheme to improve flexibility for MSA configuration planning. Overall, the NIRSpec MSA performed very well during Commissioning, and the MOS mode was declared ready for science operations on schedule.

Original languageEnglish
Article number121803R
JournalProceedings of SPIE
Volume12180
Number of pages15
ISSN0277-786X
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 27 Aug 2022
EventConference on Space Telescopes and Instrumentation - Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave - Montreal, Canada
Duration: 17 Jul 202222 Jul 2022

Conference

ConferenceConference on Space Telescopes and Instrumentation - Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave
CountryCanada
CityMontreal
Period17/07/202222/07/2022

    Research areas

  • JWST, NIRSpec, MEMS, Micro Shutters, Multi-object spectroscopy, MOS, Operations, INFRARED SPECTROGRAPH NIRSPEC

ID: 325371692