Guest Observer (GO) Program

In addition to those stars being monitored for planets, targets may be selected for guest observing based on peer reviewed proposals. For detailed information, please visit the

Kepler Guest Observer Web Site

(http://keplergo.arc.nasa.gov)

Note: KEPLER GUEST OBSERVER PROGRAM - CYCLE 1
Proposals were due 2008 October 24

This program solicited proposals for the acquisition and analysis of new scientific data from the Kepler mission (the 10th mission to be launched under NASA's Discovery Program). Observations associated with the Kepler Guest Observer - Cycle 1 will begin immediately following the successful scientific commissioning of the spacecraft. During its 3.5-year prime mission, Kepler will continuously monitor a ~100 square degree field-of-view (FOV) in the Cygnus region, with the objective of photometrically detecting transits of Earth-size planets in the habitable zone. The instrument's high-precision photometry capability, with two available cadence modes (1 minute and 30-minute) is also sufficient for asteroseismology research and other variability analyses of both Galactic and extragalactic sources. Proposals submitted to the Guest Observer program should be for new observations only and should address areas of astrophysics outside of the exoplanet transit survey Key Project already planned by the mission.

Current announcements of opportunity Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences (ROSES) can be found at http://nspires.nasaprs.com/. Questions about Kepler Guest Observer program can be directed to the Kepler Guest Observer Office at keplergo@arc.nasa.gov .

Data Archive

The data from the Kepler Mission will be processed and archived at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). The multiple pixels making up a single star's psf will not be combined, permitting users to perform their own photometry or other forms of analysis. In addition, light curves for all the stars will be processed on a quarterly basis at NASA Ames Research Center.

After the end of the mission, the STScI will perform a final processing and the light curves for all of the stars for the full duration of the mission derived by the Kepler science team will also be added to the archive. The Kepler archive in STScI's Multi-mission Archive Support Tool (MAST) is expected to be supported for ten years after the end of mission.