MAGELLAN: High resolution spectroscopy at FUV and EUV wavelengths

The aim of ESA's MAGELLAN mission is to provide high resolution spectra of celestial sources down to sixteenth magnitude over the extreme ultraviolet wavelength range (between 50 and 140 nm). This range extends from studies of interstellar matter in the disc and halo of this and other galaxies, to stellar envelopes, hot and evolved stars, clusters, intergalactic matter, nuclei of galaxies, quasars, and, finally, planets and satellites. The instrument has a nonconventional optical design using only one reflecting surface; a high groove density concave grating collects the star light, diffracts it and focuses its spectrum into a bidimensional windowless detector operated in a photon counting mode. The slitless configuration provides the spectra of all the sources (point like and extended) in the field of view of the grating. This field of view is limited by a grid collimator to reduce the diffuse background, the stray light and the probability of overlapping spectra in crowded fields.