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The Cosmic Origins Spectrograph: on-orbit instrument performance

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Abstract

The Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) was installed in the Hubble Space Telescope in May, 2009 as part of Servicing Mission 4 to provide high sensitivity, medium and low resolution spectroscopy at far- and near-ultraviolet wavelengths (FUV, NUV). COS is the most sensitive FUV/NUV spectrograph flown to date, spanning the wavelength range from 900 Å to 3200 Å with peak effective area approaching 3000 cm2. This paper describes instrument design, the results of the Servicing Mission Orbital Verification (SMOV), and the ongoing performance monitoring program.

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Osterman, S., Green, J., Froning, C. et al. The Cosmic Origins Spectrograph: on-orbit instrument performance. Astrophys Space Sci 335, 257–265 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10509-011-0699-5

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