Speaker
Description
In this talk, I will introduce the ongoing concept development of a 2-meter class space ultraviolet (UV) mission designed to achieve high-sensitivity, spectroscopic, and pointing observation capabilities extending into the far-ultraviolet (FUV, 90–200 nm) regime. The mission aims to address key astrophysical questions concerning the ionized interstellar and intergalactic medium, the physics of hot stellar atmospheres, and the ultraviolet radiation fields that influence planetary environments.
The forthcoming China Space Station Telescope (CSST), scheduled for launch in 2027, will leave behind a wealth of engineering resources — including silicon carbide mirror blanks, AIV (Assembly, Integration, and Verification) facilities, and mission operation experience — that can serve as valuable legacies for future space astronomy missions. Building upon these resources, the combination of advanced UV mirror coating techniques and recent progress in back-illuminated CMOS detector technology in China offers a promising pathway toward realizing a dedicated and cost-effective space UV mission. Such an effort could provide the astronomical community with powerful new capabilities for exploring the far-ultraviolet universe.
