Paper 14146-70
Paper 14146-70
HWO key science and instrument goals for UV imaging and spectroscopy
8 July 2026 • 14:10 - 14:30 CEST | Room B4-M1
Abstract
This talk summarizes current progress by the HWO Community Science and Instrumentation Team (CSIT) to identify and quantify science cases that motivate the capabilities of the UV instrument suite for HWO. Key science drivers currently include the regulation of star formation over cosmic time through galactic feedback, the intergalactic ionizing radiation field, the properties of the first stars, and the evolution of chemical complexity in stars and galaxies, and access to ozone in the atmospheres of potentially habitable planets. We describe select science cases as well as the measurement goals and instrument capabilities they imply for the HWO, ranging from UV high-resolution point-source spectroscopy, multi-object and integral field spectroscopy, and far-UV imaging capabilities. The talk will conclude with a synthesis of these measurement capabilities and a description of the next steps for UV instrument definition through the 2026 call for US HWO instrument studies.
Presenter
Kevin France
Univ. of Colorado Boulder (United States)
Kevin France is a professor at LASP/University of Colorado. Kevin France’s research focuses on exoplanets, their host stars, and the development of instrumentation for ultraviolet astrophysics. He is the principal investigator (PI) of the Extreme-ultraviolet Stellar Characterization for Atmospheric Physics and Evolution (ESCAPE) Small Explorer concept, NASA’s Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment (CUTE) mission, and a NASA-supported sounding rocket to flight-test critical path hardware for future UV/optical astrophysics missions. He was a member of the HST-COS instrument team and is currently a member of the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) Community Science and Instrumentation Team, and former study PI for the Large Ultraviolet/Optical/Infrared Surveyor (LUVOIR) ultraviolet spectrograph.