The Astronomical Journal (Jan 2024)
Calibrating the Clock of JWST
- A. W. Shaw,
- D. L. Kaplan,
- P. Gandhi,
- T. J. Maccarone,
- E. S. Borowski,
- C. T. Britt,
- D. A. H. Buckley,
- K. B. Burdge,
- P. A. Charles,
- V. S. Dhillon,
- R. G. French,
- C. O. Heinke,
- R. I. Hynes,
- C. Knigge,
- S. P. Littlefair,
- Devraj Pawar,
- R. M. Plotkin,
- M. E. Ressler,
- P. Santos-Sanz,
- T. Shahbaz,
- G. R. Sivakoff,
- A. L. Stevens
Affiliations
- A. W. Shaw
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Butler University , 4600 Sunset Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46208, USA ; [email protected]
- D. L. Kaplan
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee , P.O. Box 413, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
- P. Gandhi
- ORCiD
- School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Southampton , Southampton, Hampshire SO17 1BJ, UK
- T. J. Maccarone
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Tech University , Lubbock, TX 79409, USA
- E. S. Borowski
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Louisiana State University , 202 Nicholson Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
- C. T. Britt
- Space Telescope Science Institute , 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
- D. A. H. Buckley
- ORCiD
- South African Astronomical Observatory , P.O Box 9, Observatory, 7935 Cape Town, South Africa; Department of Astronomy, University of Cape Town , Private Bag X3, 7701 Rondebosch, South Africa
- K. B. Burdge
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- P. A. Charles
- School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Southampton , Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK; Astrophysics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford , Denys Wilkinson Building, Keble Road, Oxford OX1 3RH, UK; Department of Physics, University of the Free State , 205 Nelson Mandela Drive, Bloemfontein, 9300, South Africa
- V. S. Dhillon
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield , Sheffield, S3 7RH, UK; Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias , E-38205 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
- R. G. French
- ORCiD
- Space Science Institute , Boulder, CO 80301, USA
- C. O. Heinke
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, University of Alberta , Edmonton, AB T6G 2E1, Canada
- R. I. Hynes
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Louisiana State University , 202 Nicholson Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
- C. Knigge
- ORCiD
- School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Southampton , Southampton, Hampshire SO17 1BJ, UK
- S. P. Littlefair
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield , Sheffield, S3 7RH, UK
- Devraj Pawar
- R. J. College , Mumbai-86, India
- R. M. Plotkin
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, University of Nevada , Reno, NV 89557, USA; Nevada Center for Astrophysics, University of Nevada , Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA
- M. E. Ressler
- ORCiD
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology , 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
- P. Santos-Sanz
- ORCiD
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (CSIC) , Glorieta de la Astronomía s/n, 18008-Granada, Spain
- T. Shahbaz
- ORCiD
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias , E-38205 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain; Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna (ULL) , E-38206 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
- G. R. Sivakoff
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, University of Alberta , Edmonton, AB T6G 2E1, Canada
- A. L. Stevens
- ORCiD
- Michigan State University Museum , 409 W. Circle Drive, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ad8eb1
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 169,
no. 1
p. 21
Abstract
JWST, despite not being designed to observe astrophysical phenomena that vary on rapid timescales, can be an unparalleled tool for such studies. If timing systematics can be controlled, JWST will be able to open up the subsecond infrared timescale regime. Rapid time-domain studies, such as lag measurements in accreting compact objects and solar system stellar occultations, require both precise interframe timing and knowing when a time series begins, down to an absolute accuracy significantly below 1 s. In this work, we present two long-duration observations of the deeply eclipsing double white dwarf system ZTF J153932.16+502738.8, which we use as a natural timing calibrator to measure the absolute timing accuracy of JWST's clock. From our two epochs, we measure an average clock accuracy of 0.12 ± 0.06 s, implying that JWST can be used for subsecond time-resolution studies down to the ∼100 ms level, a factor ∼5 improvement upon the prelaunch clock accuracy requirement. We also find an asymmetric eclipse profile in the F322W2 band, which we suggest has a physical origin.
Keywords
- High time resolution astrophysics
- Time domain astronomy
- Eclipsing binary stars
- White dwarf stars
- Infrared astronomy
