GREX-PLUS (Galaxy Reionization EXplorer and PLanetary Universe Spectrometer) is one of the three candidates of ISAS/JAXA’s Strategic L-class mission for the 2030s. The 1.2 m aperture, 50 K cryogenic space telescope with the wide-field camera (WFC) will provide the 1,260 square arcmin field-of-view for five photometric bands between 2 and 8 μm. The high resolution spectrometer (HRS) will observe the 10–18 µm with a wavelength resolution of 30,000. The GREX-PLUS WFC field-of-view is 130 times larger than that of the James Webb Space Telescope and similar to those of Euclid and Roman Space Telescope. Since these two survey missions are limited to the wavelength less than around 2 µm, GREX-PLUS will extend the wavelength coverage beyond 2 μm, providing versatile legacy imaging survey significantly improved from previous Spitzer imaging survey in the same wavelength range. The spectral resolution of the GREX-PLUS HRS is 10 times higher than that of the James Webb Space Telescope, opening a new window of the mid-infrared high-resolution spectroscopy from space. The main scientific themes are the galaxy formation and evolution and the planetary system formation and evolution. The GREX-PLUS WFC aims to detect the first generation of “bright” galaxies at redshift z > 15. The GREX-PLUS HRS aims to resolve the Kepler motion of water vapor molecules and identify the location of the water “snowline” in ∼ 100 proto-planetary disks. Both instruments will provide unique data sets for a broad range of scientific topics including galaxy mass assembly, origin of super massive blackholes, infrared background radiation, molecular spectroscopy in the interstellar medium, transit spectroscopy for exoplanet atmosphere, planetary atmosphere in the Solar system, and so on. This paper presents the status of the concept design of GREX-PLUS, including telescope system, WFC, HRS, cooling system, and spacecraft bus system.
GREX-PLUS (Galaxy Reionization EXplorer and PLanetary Universe Spectrometer) is a new mission concept for ISAS/JAXA’s strategic L-class mission program in the 2030s. With a 1.2 m aperture, a 50 K cryogenic space telescope will have a < 1, 400 arcmin2 wide-field camera with 6 bands in the 2–10 μm wavelength range and a high-dispersion spectrometer with a wavelength resolution of < 30, 000 in the 10–18 μm band. The cryogenic infrared mission concept of GREX-PLUS is based on SPICA, exploiting the technical resources so far studied and developed, such as an active cooling system. The high-dispersion spectrometer of GREX-PLUS is based on the high-dispersion channel of the SPICA Mid-Infrared Instrument (SMI). The wide-field camera of GREX-PLUS is also based on previous concept studies for the ISAS/JAXA’s WISH mission concept. GREX-PLUS is a concept proposal for a Japan-led mission but international collaborations are also welcome.
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