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MIRI, the Mid-InfraRed Instrument, is one of four instruments being built for the James Webb Space Telescope, and is developed jointly between an EuropeanConsortium and the US. In this paper we present a software data simulator for one of MIRI's four instruments: the Integral Field Unit (IFU) Medium Resolution Spectrometer (MIRI-MRS), the first mid-infrared IFU spectrograph, and one of the first IFUs to be used in a space mission. To give the MIRI community a preview of the properties of the MIRI-MRS data products before the telescope is operational, the Specsim tool has been developed to model, in software, the operation of the spectrometer. Specsim generates synthetic data frames approximating those which will be taken by the instrument in orbit. The program models astronomical sources and generates detector frames using the predicted and measured optical properties of the telescope and MIRI. These frames can then be used to illustrate and inform a range of operational activities, including data calibration strategies and the development and testing of the data reduction software for the MIRI-MRS. Specsim will serve as a means of communication between the many consortium members by providing a way to easily illustrate the performance of the spectrometer under different circumstances, tolerances of components and design scenarios., Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures; A high resolution version is available at http://www.roe.ac.uk/~npfl/Publications/lgw+06.ps.gz (Changed URL of high-res version)

MIRI, the Mid-InfraRed Instrument, is one of four instruments being built for the James Webb Space Telescope. It is being developed jointly between an European Consortium (21 institutes from 10 countries, under the auspices of ESA), and the US. MIRI consists of an imager, a coronograph, a low-resolution spectrograph, and an Integral Field Unit (IFU) Medium Resolution Spectrometer (MIRI-MRS). The latter will be the first mid-infrared IFU spectrograph, and one of the first IFUs to be used in a space mission. To give the MIRI community a preview of the properties of the MIRI-MRS data products before the telescope is operational, the Specsim tool has been developed to model, in software, the operation of the spectrometer. Specsim generates synthetic data frames approximating those which will be taken by the instrument in orbit. The program models astronomical sources and transforms them into detector frames using the predicted optical properties of the telescope and MIRI. These frames can then be used to illustrate and inform a range of operational activities, including data calibration strategies and the development and testing of the data reduction software for the MIRI-MRS. Specsim will serve as a means of communication between the many consortium members by providing a way to easily illustrate the performance of the spectrometer under different circumstances, tolerances of components and design scenarios., Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures; contribution to the proceedings of ADASS XV 2-5 October, 2005

In late 2015 early 2016, a major cryo-vacuum test was carried out for the Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) of the James Webb Space Telescope. This test comprised the final cryo-certification and calibration test of the ISIM before its delivery for integration with the rest of the JWST observatory. Over the roughly 100-day period of the round-the-clock test program, the full complement of ISIM flight instruments, structure, harness radiator, and electronics were put through a comprehensive program of thermal, optical, electrical, and operational tests. We briefly summarize the goals, setup, execution, and key results for this critical JWST milestone.

In late 2015/early 2016, a major cryo-vacuum test was carried out for the Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). This test comprised the final cryo-certification and calibration test of the ISIM, after its ambient environmental test program (vibration, acoustics, EMI/EMC), and before its delivery for integration with the rest of the JWST observatory. Over the 108-day period of the round-the-clock test program, the full complement of ISIM flight instruments, structure, harness radiator, and electronics were put through a comprehensive program of thermal, optical, electrical, and operational tests. The test verified the health and excellent performance of the instruments and ISIM systems, proving the ISIM element's readiness for integration with the telescope. We report here on the context, goals, setup, execution, and key results for this critical JWST milestone.