August 11-15, 2014

Abstract

Future observations of white dwarfs from space

Martin Barstow (University of Leicester)

S.L. Casewell (University of Leicester)

Astronomical observations in a number of wavebands, including X-ray, EUV, UV and IR require access to space-based observatories. However, several important facilities (e.g. EUVE, FUSE) failed many years ago and others (e.g. Chandra, XMM-Newton, Spitzer) are nearing the end of their lives. After the 2009 repair mission enhanced its capabilities, it is hoped that HST will continue for a number of years beyond its 25th anniversary next year. However, in space, unanticipated system failures can occur and no further repairs are possible. Recent selections for new space missions have tended to concentrate on addressing quite focused topics such as exoplanet detection or dark energy studies. Therefore, there is an emerging need for new, more general, observing facilities that are able to address science of interest to the white dwarf community. In this paper, we review the current developments and activities aimed at securing such missions and outline some of the potential facilities that are being planned.

Mode of presentation: poster