Optical Astrophysics from the Stratosphere

by Dr Steve Benton (Princeton)

Tuesday 13 Apr 2021, 13:15 → 14:15 Europe/Stockholm

Zoom: https://stockholmuniversity.zoom.us/j/62320153507

SuperBIT is the first of its kind, three-axis stabilized, high-resolution, wide-field imaging telescope that flies on a stratospheric balloon. From its space-like observing platform, SuperBIT will spend its 2022 long duration flight making weak lensing measurements of dark matter around 50 galaxy clusters. I also report on results from the 2019 test flight in which SuperBIT demonstrated diffration limited imaging over the entire half degree field of view of its 0.5m telescope. SuperBIT is a technical pathfinder for a 1.3 m successor. With applications extending beyond weak lensing, we hope to develop a facility-class instrument that will augment and even surpass the capabilities of Hubble and other upcoming space telescopes.