SIRTF "ALIVENESS TEST" IMAGE

This engineering image is a quick look at the sky through the Infrared 
Array Camera (IRAC), one of three scientific instruments aboard SIRTF. The 
instrument was powered on for a brief electronics checkout, and some images
of the sky were taken to test whether the IRAC detectors were functioning.

The 5 arcmin x 5 arcmin image was taken in a low Galactic latitude region 
in the constellation Perseus. It results from 100 seconds of exposure time 
with the short-wavelength (3.6 micron) array. The image reveals a mixture 
of stars and galaxies, and indicates that the instrument performance is 
consistent with pre-launch predictions. A final focus assessment of the 
telescope will be made in one month, once the observatory achieves its 
operating temperature of a few degrees above absolute zero.

The science mission will commence after the completion of SIRTF's 90-day 
in-orbit checkout and science verification phases. A larger set of Early 
Release Observations will be released by NASA in December.