Euclid Imaging Consortium Science Book

TL;DR

The Euclid Imaging Consortium Science Book details the Euclid mission's goals, instrument design, and expected scientific contributions to understanding dark energy and dark matter through high-precision imaging and spectroscopy of the universe.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of the Euclid imaging instrument, survey strategies, and the scientific studies conducted during its assessment phase.

Findings

Design of the Euclid imaging instrument and survey strategy

Projected scientific outcomes for dark energy and dark matter research

Development of data handling and simulation schemes

Abstract

The energy density of the Universe is dominated by dark energy and dark matter, two mysterious components which pose some of the most important questions in fundamental science today. Euclid is a high-precision survey mission designed to answer these questions by mapping the geometry of the dark Universe. Euclid's Visible-NIR imaging and spectroscopy of the entire extragalactic sky will further produce extensive legacy science for various fields of astronomy. Over the 2008-2009 period, Euclid has been the object of an ESA Assessment Phase in which the study of the Euclid Imaging instrument was under the responsibility of the Euclid Imaging Consortium (EIC). The EIC Science Book presents the studies done by the EIC science working groups in the context of this study phase. We first give a brief description of the Euclid mission and of the imaging instrument and surveys. We then summarise the primary and legacy science which will be achieved with the Euclid imaging surveys, along with the simulations and data handling scheme which have been developed to optimise the instrument and ensure its science performance.