Swift Proposals & Tools
Jump to:- Cycle 4—Recommended Targets
- Cycle 3—Recommended TOO Targets
- Target of Opportunity Requests
- Status of Grants (for Accepted Swift Proposals)
- Previously Accepted Swift Proposals:
- Planning Tools (simulate Swift spectra, etc.)
Schedule for Swift Cycle 4
- ROSES 2007 NRA Released: February 16, 2007
- Notices of Intent due: September 14, 2007
- Proposals due: November 9, 2007
- Proposal Review: January 2008
- Cycle 4 Observations begin: April 2008
For Cycle 4, non-GRB astrophysical sources can be proposed for both regular and target of opportunity (TOO) observations.
Please refer to the NASA Research Announcement Solicitation Summary for more details. The Swift Cycle 4 Guest Investigator Program Information Page covers the procedures for proposal preparation and submission. The submission process for Cycle 4 will use NSPIRES, as was done in Cycle 3.
Swift Target of Opportunity Requests
The Swift MOC considers requests for Target of Opportunity (TOO) observations on timely non-GRB targets of astrophysical interest. For more information, and to submit a TOO request visit the Swift MOC's TOO page.Status of Swift Grants (for previously accepted Swift proposals):
GSFC's Grant Status Page
Planning Tools
Want to get an idea of how the BAT, XRT and UVOT instruments will perform on your favorite source? Check out our Swift simulation tools!
Response matrix files and ancillary response files for BAT, XRT,
and UVOT are available for download here. Example
scripts for the generation of simulated spectral data using these calibration files
and the X-ray spectral fitting package XSPEC are available here.
To simulate spectra on-line, use WebSpec, the WWW interface to XSPEC. A variety of spectra models are available from the page. Use any of these to predict your Swift BAT, XRT or UVOT spectrum.
If count rates are what you are after, visit WebPIMMS, a mission count rate simulator powered by PIMMS --- the Portable, Interactive Multi-Mission Simulator. Choose a flux, or count rate from any of a wide variety of previous and current missions, then convert it into Swift BAT, XRT and UVOT count rates.
The ASI Science Data Center in Italy have provided a web-based XRT Data Simulation tool. The tool creates science-like event FITS files from simulated or real sky fields.
The UVOT instrument team at the Mullard
Space Science Laboratory have developed a web-based tool for calculating S/N, background levels, and sensitivity limits.
If it's the BAT Field of View you're interested in, check out the BAT partial coding maps made available by the BAT team.
To determine when, or if, a given object can be viewed by Swift, use the Viewing tool.
If you have a question about Swift, please contact us via the Feedback form.