Space Interferometer for Cosmic Evolution (SPICE)

Dear Colleague,

You are cordially invited to attend a community workshop to help plan for the Space Interferometer for Cosmic Evolution (SPICE), a NASA Far-Infrared Probe mission concept. SPICE will offer image resolution comparable to that of the Webb telescope, but at ten-times longer wavelengths (25 - 400 mm) with sensitivity greatly surpassing that of Herschel to transform our understanding of:

• the physical processes that drive the evolution of galaxies and their central supermassive black holes throughout cosmic time;
• planet formation and water delivery to nascent planets;
• planetary system architectures and their development; and
• gas and ice giant exoplanet atmospheres.

Most of SPICE’s operational phase will be dedicated to a general observing program based on community proposals. The purpose of the community workshop is to introduce the SPICE mission concept, describe the legacy observations envisaged by the SPICE science team, and give you an opportunity to ask questions and suggest observations that will influence the Design Reference Mission (DRM). The DRM will be used to right-size the mission lifetime and describe a typical day, month, and year in the life of the mission. Please check the SPICE website for a synopsis of the mission’s measurement capabilities.

The workshop will be held on Wednesday, 14 September 2022, from 10 am to 2 pm US eastern time. It will be an all-virtual event. An agenda and connection instructions will be provided in the coming weeks. For now, we simply ask you to indicate your interest in attending the workshop by completing a registration form.

We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity to shape a mission that could be the world’s next space-based far-infrared observatory. Please join us on September 14^th.

Sincerely,