Zodiacal Infrared Foreground Prediction for Space Based Infrared Interferometer Missions

The zodiacal foreground for a highly sensitive space infrared interferometer is predicted for various observing locations. For the predictions we use a model that was derived from measurements of the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). We find that at a wavelength of10 μm 96% of the sky is darker tha...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Astrophysics and space science 2001-11, Vol.278 (3), p.357-365
Main Authors: Landgraf, M, Jehn, R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Astronomy
Astrophysics
Infrared radiation
Space exploration
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The zodiacal foreground for a highly sensitive space infrared interferometer is predicted for various observing locations. For the predictions we use a model that was derived from measurements of the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). We find that at a wavelength of10 μm 96% of the sky is darker than 1 MJy sr^sup -1^ for observations in the ecliptic plane at 5 AU, and 83% is darker than 0.1 MJy sr^sup -1^.At 1 AU, however, always more than 50% of the sky are brighter than1 MJy sr^sup -1^, even if the observations are made from 30^sup °^ or60^sup °^ of latitude above the ecliptic plane, at 10 or 20 μm.Thus, according to the employed model, the foreground reduction by increasing the heliocentric distance of the observing location is more effective than by increasing the latitude.[PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]
ISSN:0004-640X
1572-946X
DOI:10.1023/A:1013122610256