BFORE: A CMB Balloon Payload to Measure Reionization, Neutrino Mass, and Cosmic Inflation

TL;DR

BFORE is a balloon mission designed to map the CMB, improve reionization measurements, detect neutrino mass, and search for gravitational wave signals, while also mapping Galactic dust.

Contribution

It introduces the first near-space use of TES/mSQUID multichroic detectors for CMB observations on a long-duration balloon.

Findings

Enhanced measurement of optical depth to reionization.

Potential to detect neutrino mass through parameter degeneracy breaking.

First application of multichroic detectors in near-space CMB mapping.

Abstract

BFORE is a high-altitude ultra-long-duration balloon mission to map the cosmic microwave background (CMB). During a 28-day mid-latitude flight launched from Wanaka, New Zealand, the instrument will map half the sky to improve measurements of the optical depth to reionization tau. This will break parameter degeneracies needed to detect neutrino mass. BFORE will also hunt for the gravitational wave B-mode signal, and map Galactic dust foregrounds. The mission will be the first near-space use of TES/mSQUID multichroic detectors (150/217 GHz and 280/353 GHz bands) with low-power readout electronics.