Related papers: First Science Observations with SOFIA/FORCAST: The…

The Galactic Center contains some of the most extreme conditions for star formation in our Galaxy as well as many other phenomena that are unique to this region. Given our relative proximity to the Galactic Center, we are able to study…

We present infrared observations of the ultra-compact H II region W3(OH) made by the FORCAST instrument aboard SOFIA and by Spitzer/IRAC. We contribute new wavelength data to the spectral energy distribution, which constrains the optical…

SINFONI, the SINgle Faint Object Near-infrared Investigation, is an instrument for the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which will start its operation mid 2002 and allow for the first time near infrared (NIR) integral field spectroscopy at the…

The Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA) is the 4-metre wide-field survey telescope at ESO's Paranal Observatory, equipped with the world's largest near-infrared imaging camera (VISTA IR Camera, VIRCAM), with 1.65…

SPICA (Space Infrared Telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics) is a JAXA led observatory that will operate in the mid and far infrared wavelength range (5-210 micron) with unprecedented sensitivity, thanks to the 3.5 m (current baseline)…

We present our second set of results from our mid-infrared imaging survey of Milky Way Giant HII regions. We used the FORCAST instrument on the Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy to obtain 20 and 37$\mu$m images of the central…

The question "How did we get here and what will the future bring?" captures the human imagination and the attention of the National Academy of Science's Astronomy and Astrophysics Survey Commitee (AASC). Fulfillment of this "fundamental…

The ultimate astronomical observatory would be a formation flying interferometer in space, immune to atmospheric turbulence and absorption, free from atmospheric and telescope thermal emission, and reconfigurable to adjust baselines…

We present a community-led assessment of the solar system investigations achievable with NASA's next-generation space telescope, the Wide Field InfraRed Survey Telescope (WFIRST). WFIRST will provide imaging, spectroscopic, and…

The sodium laser guide star adaptive optics system ALFA has been constructed at the Calar Alto 3.5-m telescope. Following the first detection of the laser beacon on the wavefront sensor in 1997 the system is now being optimized for best…

The Wide-field Infrared Transient Explorer (WINTER) is a near-infrared time-domain survey instrument operating on a dedicated 1-meter robotic telescope at Palomar Observatory. The project takes advantage of recent technology advances in…

Precise cosmological measurements are essential for understanding the evolution of the universe and the nature of dark energy. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), the most sensitive single-dish radio telescope, has…

The HIgh-Resolution Mid-infrarEd Spectrometer (HIRMES) is the 3rd Generation Instrument for the Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), currently in development at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), and due for…

Integral field spectroscopy allows for spectral mapping of extended sources in a time efficient manner. An integral field unit (IFU) in the ultraviolet on Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) could be used to quickly map extended objects like…

The "Bonn University Simultaneous CAmera" (BUSCA) is a CCD camera system which allows simultaneous direct imaging of the same sky area in four colors. The optics are designed for an f/8 beam and four 4Kx4K CCDs with 15m pixels covering a…

We present the concept for STARI: STarlight Acquisition and Reflection toward Interferometry. If launched, STARI will be the first mission to control a 3-D CubeSat formation to the few mm-level, reflect starlight over 10s to 100s of meters…

The Astro2010 Decadal Survey recommended a Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) as its top priority for a new large space mission. As conceived by the decadal survey, WFIRST would carry out a dark energy science program, a…

The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) first light instrument IRIS (Infrared Imaging Spectrograph) will complete its preliminary design phase in 2016. The IRIS instrument design includes a near-infrared (0.85 - 2.4 micron) integral field…

The Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) aboard the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) provides the observatory with a huge advance in mid-infrared imaging and spectroscopy covering the wavelength range of 5 to 28 microns. This paper describes the…

ASTRO-F is the first Japanese satellite mission dedicated for large area surveys in the infrared. The 69cm aperture telescope and scientific instruments are cooled to 6K by liquid Helium and mechanical coolers. During the expected mission…