STIS Cycle 30 Calibration Programs

TL;DR

This paper reviews the calibration programs for the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) during HST Cycle 30, detailing objectives, procedures, results, and ongoing calibration efforts to ensure data accuracy.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of the current calibration activities and updates on the instrument's performance and calibration status for Cycle 30.

Findings

Routine reference file deliveries maintained calibration accuracy.

Comparison shows consistency with previous cycles and desired standards.

Ongoing efforts to revise flux calibration improve measurement reliability.

Abstract

We discuss the suite of STIS calibration programs executed during HST Cycle 30, covering the period 2022 Nov 07 through 2023 Nov 05. For each of the 19 current regular calibration programs, we provide brief descriptions of the objectives, observations, analysis procedures, and results - with comparisons to the results from previous cycles and to desired accuracies, as well as references to more detailed analyses of the calibration data. Many of these calibration programs produce routine reference file deliveries or demonstrate the continuing applicability of existing reference files for processing STIS observations. This ISR provides a brief snapshot of the current instrument performance, similar to those given in annual reports for Cycles 7-10 and 17-21. Two Appendices briefly discuss the state of the onboard calibration lamps and the ongoing major effort to revise the flux calibration for the many STIS spectroscopic and imaging modes.