Design of a mechanically actuated reconfigurable slitmask for the NGST near IR spectrograph

The National Research Council of Canada, Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics has been developing a reconfigurable slitmask intended for the NGST near IR spectrograph. The Mechanically Actuated Reconfigurable Slitmask (MARS) creates 50 slits in the telescope focal plane. The slit location and width are adjustable, but the height is fixed. Reconfiguration of the mask components is achieved using a combination of electromagnetic and piezoelectric actuators. This actuation scheme has undergone structural, electrical, thermal and magnetic analysis. Several prototype components have also been built and tested. This analysis and testing indicates that the MARS device represents a viable concept for creating slits within the NGST near IR spectrograph.