The Mid-Infrared Instrument for the James Webb Space Telescope, V: Predicted Performance of the MIRI Coronagraphs

The imaging channel on the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) is equipped with four coronagraphs that provide high-contrast imaging capabilities for studying faint point sources and extended emission that would otherwise be overwhelmed by a bright point-source in its vicinity. Such targets might include...

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Published in:Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 2015-07, Vol.127 (953), p.633-645
Main Authors: Boccaletti, A., Lagage, P.-O., Baudoz, P., Beichman, C., Bouchet, P., Cavarroc, C., Dubreuil, D., Glasse, Alistair, Glauser, A. M., Hines, D. C., Lajoie, C.-P., Lebreton, J., Perrin, M. D., Pueyo, L., Reess, J. M., Rieke, G. H., Ronayette, S., Rouan, D., Soummer, R., Wright, G. S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Astronomical objects
Astrophysics
Coronagraphs
Debris disks
Extrasolar planets
Imaging
Instrumentation
Optical filters
Physics
Planets
Reference stars
Telescopes
Wavelengths
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Summary:The imaging channel on the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) is equipped with four coronagraphs that provide high-contrast imaging capabilities for studying faint point sources and extended emission that would otherwise be overwhelmed by a bright point-source in its vicinity. Such targets might include stars that are orbited by exoplanets and circumstellar material, mass-loss envelopes around post-main-sequence stars, the near-nuclear environments in active galaxies, and the host galaxies of distant quasars. This paper describes the coronagraphic observing modes of MIRI, as well as performance estimates based on measurements of the MIRI flight model during cryo-vacuum testing. A brief outline of coronagraphic operations is also provided. Finally, simulated MIRI coronagraphic observations of a few astronomical targets are presented for illustration.
ISSN:0004-6280
1538-3873
DOI:10.1086/682256