JWST Example Science Programs
Example science programs, available to prospective JWST proposers, provide a walk-through of all the elements in creating a JWST observing program, from posing a question, to identifying instrument-specific modes optimized for science goals, to using proposal preparation tools needed to create a valid proposal.
All example science programs presented below were constructed prior to launch.
A few examples have been updated to include content based on Cycle 4 versions of ETC and APT but others may use older versions. Therefore, details contained in these examples (such as exposure parameter specifications or achieved S/N values, etc.) may be different than those produced by the latest ETC and APT tools. However, they are still judged to provide good guidance for the process of going from a science use case to a finished proposal, by way of running the ETC and preparing an APT file for submission.
Due to ongoing development of ETC and APT, you may see minor differences in the GUI appearance when compared to screen shots in the example articles. Also, the detailed results produced by the current ETC will be different from those described in some of these examples. Hence, while details may be different, these examples are still deemed useful for training purposes.
On this page
The example science programs listed in Table 1 are actual worked proposal examples for a number of JWST instruments, modes, and combinations of instruments. They are written as step-by-step guides to follow along, and will serve as a useful reference when crafting your own proposals.
These examples each include a description of the program, along with step-by-step guides to using Exposure Time Calculator (ETC) workbooks and Astronomers Proposal Tool (APT) files. Descriptions provide background on the science goals of each program and also walk through some of the technical decision-making steps in crafting realistic programs. ETC workbooks and filled-out APT files for the examples are available within each of those tools from a pull-down menu (see below).
Note the program reference numbers in the first column; they provides a numerical ID that ties together the description, ETC, and APT components of an example, as well as other relevant JDox articles.
With the availability of public domain APT files and actual JWST data in the MAST archive, we expect many proposers may use these materials as examples going forward. However, users may still find the descriptive materials provided in these examples a useful supplement for understanding the process of moving from a scientific use case to a finished proposal.
Example science programs by instrument
Table 1. Example science programs
Program reference # | Prime instrument(s) and template(s) | Parallel instrument and template (if any) | Example science program title (links go to the relevant articles) |
|---|---|---|---|
MIRI | |||
28 | MIRI MRS | --- | |
| (See other MIRI examples in the Multi-instrument section.) | |||
NIRCam | |||
22 | NIRCam Imaging | MIRI Imaging | |
| 30 | NIRCam Grism Time-Series | --- | |
| 37 | NIRCam WFSS | --- | |
NIRISS | |||
23 | NIRISS AMI | --- | NIRISS AMI Observations of Extrasolar Planets Around a Host Star |
31 | NIRISS SOSS | --- | NIRISS SOSS Time-Series Observations of a Transiting Exoplanet |
33 | NIRISS WFSS | NIRCam Imaging | NIRISS WFSS with NIRCam Parallel Imaging of Galaxies in Lensing Clusters |
NIRSpec | |||
| 25 | NIRSpec MOS | --- | |
| 32 | NIRSpec BOTS | --- | NIRSpec BOTS Observations of WASP-79b |
34 | NIRSpec IFU+FS | --- | NIRSpec IFU and Fixed Slit Observations of Near Earth Asteroids -- Moving Target Example |
Multi-Instrument | |||
26 | MIRI MRS, NIRSpec IFU | --- | |
| 35 | MIRI Coronagraphy, NIRCam Coronagraphy | --- | MIRI and NIRCam Coronagraphy of the Beta Pictoris Debris Disk |
| 36 | MIRI Coronagraphy, NIRCam Coronagraphy | --- | |
Each of the example science programs linked above also links to two step-by-step guide articles, one for creating the ETC information and the other for creating a valid APT file. The actual example ETC workbooks and APT files for each program are available from within each tool, as described below.
Accessing ETC workbooks and APT files for the example science programs
Words in bold are GUI menus/
panels or data software packages;
bold italics are buttons in GUI
tools or package parameters.
Click on the figure for a larger view.
In the ETC GUI, select the Example Science Program Workbooks tab (arrow 1) and then select an example workbook of interest (in this example, #22). That workbook then becomes available for your use, but is assigned a unique new ID number (arrow 2). Once you load this notebook, you can read it to follow along with the example program description, or edit it further as you like.
Click on the figure for a larger view.
From APT, you can retrieve the APT files for any example science program by accessing the top File pull-down menu and selecting JWST Example Science Programs. Then, slide right to select a category and a particular program of interest. Note that, unlike the ETC case, APT treats these example programs as if they are previously accepted programs. While you can edit them to experiment, you should use the Copy and Paste functions in the Edit menu to transfer any work you want to keep to a new proposal file.