Date: Friday 17 Aug 2012, 09:38 PDT Subject: SPITZER: Cycle-9 Update, Cryo-IRAC Flux Conversion Completed, Visiting Graduate Student Fellowships Contents: 1. Cycle-9 Update 2. Spitzer Heritage Archive Cryogenic IRAC Data Flux Conversion Completed 3. IPAC Visiting Graduate Student Fellowship - Spring 2013 1. Cycle-9 Update ------------------------------------------------------------ Sixty-one proposals requesting 46,653 hours in Exploration Science, Large GO, and Snapshot proposals were received by the August 3 proposal deadline. The oversubscription rate in terms of hours (proposed vs. available) is 5.6, which is the highest ever for a regular cycle. The proposal reviews will take place in September and we will release the results by September 28. The proposal submission system has been reopened for the submission of small proposals. The deadline for small proposals is October 26, 2012, 5:00 pm PDT. 2. Spitzer Heritage Archive Cryogenic IRAC Data Flux Conversion Completed ------------------------------------------------------------ All of the cryogenic IRAC data in the Spitzer Heritage Archive have now been processed with pipeline version S18.25 and contain corrected FLUXCONV values. A re-evaluation of the FLUXCONV used in the S18.18 IRAC cryogenic processing indicated that the conversion of raw data values into calibrated surface brightness (MJy/sr) in IRAC channels 3 and 4 was incorrect by 3.2% and 2.7%, respectively. Channels 1 and 2 were correct. This new calibration in S18.25 supersedes the previous calibration derived by Reach et al. (2005). The S18.25 pipeline processing used updated array location-dependent photometric and intrapixel sensitivity corrections which observers should apply to point source photometry measured in the S18.25 pipeline version processed images. These are currently available on the Spitzer website. The array location-dependent and intrapixel sensitivity corrections are explained and can be accomplished by following the links at http://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/data/SPITZER/docs/irac/calibrationfiles/pixelphasecryo/ http://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/data/SPITZER/docs/irac/calibrationfiles/locationcolor/ http://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/data/SPITZER/docs/dataanalysistools/tools/contributed/irac/iracaphotcorrcryo/ The revised aperture corrections and revised documentation to describe the proper measurement of point source flux densities with aperture photometry will soon be available on the Spitzer website under the IRAC Calibration and Analysis Files section and in the IRAC Instrument Handbook Chapter 4. 3. IPAC Visiting Graduate Student Fellowship - Spring 2013 ------------------------------------------------------------ The Infrared Processing and Analysis Center at Caltech announces the availability of six-month graduate student fellowships beginning in the Spring of 2013. The program is designed to allow students from other institutions to visit IPAC-Caltech and perform astronomical research in close association with an IPAC staff member during Spring 2013. In addition to existing projects at IPAC, several new projects are in their early stages, and students will expect to share in the excitement of these times at Caltech. Applicants would normally be expected to have completed preliminary course work in their graduate program and be available for research during the period of the award. Funding from IPAC will be provided for a 6-month period and will consist of a monthly stipend, paying for the airfare from the home institution to Los Angeles and back, and paying for some incidental start-up expenses. We expect several students will be able to participate in the program this year subject to funds being available. Students will come to IPAC in early January 2013. Please see the announcement at: http://www.ipac.caltech.edu/community/GraduateFellowship Spitzer Science User Support