Swift Cycle 1 Reviewer Request

[terri@milkyway.gsfc.nasa.gov]

Dear Colleague,

This is a call for reviewers for the Swift Cycle 1 Guest Investigator Program.

      The Office of Guest Investigator Programs at NASA's
Goddard Space Flight Center is preparing to receive the first
round of proposals for the Swift MIDEX mission. Swift is a
gamma ray burst chasing satellite that will detect GRBs onboard,
and autonomously repoint itself to obtain X-ray, UV and optical
observations of the GRB and afterglow within about one minute of
detection. After an initial in-orbit check-out phase of approximately
5 months, all Swift data will be immediately available to the public
as soon as they are received at the ground and processed.
The Swift Cycle 1 Guest Investigator Program is part of a NASA
Headquarters Office of Space Science solicitation, review and
selection process.

    Swift Guest Investigators can propose for funding to
carry out GRB science using Swift data, perform follow-up observations
at other wavelengths, or carry out theoretical investigations
related to GRB science. More information about the Swift mission,
the scientific instruments, and the Guest Investigator program
can be found on the Swift Mission Website (http://swift.gsfc.nasa.gov/)
and the Swift Science Center Website at
http://swiftsc.gsfc.nasa.gov/. Swift Cycle 1 is part of NASA
Headquarters' Office of Space Science Research Opportunities
in Space Science 2003 (ROSS-03)
(http://research.hq.nasa.gov/code_s/nra/current/NRA-03-OSS-01/index.html)

      The Swift Cycle 1 review will take place in early February
2004, in Baltimore, Maryland, and is expected to last three days.
Lodging, meals and US airfare expenses are covered for reviewers.
If you are interested in being a Swift peer reviewer, please
let us know and we will add you to the pool of potential reviewers.
The requirements for being a Swift peer reviewer are a PhD in
astrophysics or a closely related field, and research experience
in the field of gamma ray bursts and/or afterglow studies. Even
if you can not participate yourself, please consider passing
this invitation along to colleagues whom you feel would make good
reviewers. (Participating in the peer review process is particularly
illuminating for younger scientists.) Many reviewers report that they
learn a lot from the experience, and feel they can write better
proposals as a result of their participation.

      To be added to the pool of prospective reviewers, please send an
email to Mike Arida at:

peer_review@athena.gsfc.nasa.gov.

Sincerely,

Padi Boyd
Dr. Patricia Boyd
Swift Science Center Lead