The Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer: Mission Overview and Prospects for Studies of the Interstellar Medium and High Velocity Clouds

Abstract

The Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) is a NASA astronomy mission that will explore the 905-1187 A wavelength region at high spectral resolution. Funded by NASA's Explorer Program, this Origins mission is scheduled for a 1999 launch and at least three years of operations. The development of FUSE is being led by the Johns Hopkins University, with major contributions to the program from the University of Colorado, the University of California-Berkeley, the space agencies of Canada and France, and corporate partners. FUSE will have approximately 10,000 times the sensitivity of its pioneering predecessor, Copernicus, which operated in the 1970s. Much of the FUSE Science Team observing time will be dedicated to studying the interstellar medium of the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds. Observations of high velocity clouds play an important role in the FUSE program. In this paper, I outline some of the FUSE Science Team plans for observing HVCs. Simple absorption line models are also provided for investigators seeking to identify atomic and molecular species in this wavelength region.