Mr. Thomas H. Ebben Profile

Thomas H. Ebben

Business Area Manager II at BAE Systems Inc

SPIE Involvement:

Author | Instructor

Proceedings Article | 17 September 2007 Paper

Mission to Mars: the HiRISE camera on-board MRO

Thomas Ebben, James Bergstrom, Peter Spuhler, Alan Delamere, Dennis Gallagher

Proceedings Volume 6690, 66900B (2007) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.739930

KEYWORDS: Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Mars, Cameras, Space operations, Image resolution, Charge-coupled devices, Mirrors, Staring arrays, Aerospace engineering, Signal to noise ratio

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Following its launch in August, 2005 and a year of interplanetary cruise and aero-braking, the successful Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) mission is currently orbiting Mars and down-linking imagery from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera. The primary objectives of the MRO mission are to characterize the present climate of Mars, look for evidence of water-related activities, and characterize potential landing sites. After only four months in the Primary Science Phase (PSP) of the mission, MRO has returned more data than any other previous Mars mission. Approximately one-third of this data volume is from the HiRISE camera, built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corporation (BATC), for the University of Arizona (UofA), Department of Planetary Sciences. With a 0.5-meter primary mirror, the HiRISE instrument includes the largest optical telescope ever sent beyond Earth's orbit, and is producing images with unprecedented resolution. It has detected objects of less than one meter size from the nominal orbit of 250 x 320 km. The highest resolution images have a scale of 25 to 32 cm per pixel (1.0 microradian IFOV). HiRISE is a "push-broom" camera with a swath width of 6 km in a broad red spectral band and 1.2 km in blue-green and near infrared bands. There are 14 CCD detector chips (2048 x 128 TDI elements each) on the focal plane. The HiRISE camera was designed to minimize use of spacecraft resources. Even with a half-meter primary mirror, through the use of lightweight glass optics and graphite-composite structures the final mass of the instrument is only 64.2 kg. It maintains a nearly uniform telescope temperature of 20°C yet its orbital average power consumption is less than 60 W. An overview is given of the NASA MRO mission and the HiRISE instrument. Pre-launch activities are detailed and the launch time discussed. An account is given of the cruise events, along with a description of aerobraking and the primary science phase. A sample of science results are presented, including a wealth of imagery.

Proceedings Article | 22 April 1996 Paper

Pointing, acquisition, and tracking demonstration system for laser communications

Thomas Ebben, C. Varner, K. Parrish, Robert Marshalek, David Begley

Proceedings Volume 2699, (1996) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.238432

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Telecommunications, Receivers, Electronics, Laser communications, Mirrors, Beam splitters, Data communications, Acquisition tracking and pointing, Data acquisition

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SPIE Journal Paper | 1 March 1995

Phase-noise-limited accuracy of distance measurements in a frequency-modulated continuous-wave LIDAR with a tunable twin-guide laser diode

Thomas Ebben, David Begley, Robert Marshalek

OE, Vol. 34, Issue 03, (March 1995) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.10.1117/12.190442

KEYWORDS: Semiconductor lasers, Distance measurement, Interference (communication), LIDAR, Heterodyning, Diodes, Tunable lasers, Refractive index, Continuous wave operation, Oscillators

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SPIE Journal Paper | 1 March 1995

High-power, high-data-rate laser diode transmitter

Robert Marshalek, Thomas Ebben, David Begley

OE, Vol. 34, Issue 03, (March 1995) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.10.1117/12.190435

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Proceedings Article | 14 September 1994 Paper

CCD detector for the space telescope imaging spectrograph

Randy Kimble, Lawrence Brown, Walter Fowler, Bruce Woodgate, J. Yagelowich, Morley Blouke, Taner Dosluoglu, Jon Ferrara, David Dorn, Thomas Ebben, Debbie Murata-Seawalt, R. Ortiz, Richard Reed, Thomas Wolfe

Proceedings Volume 2282, (1994) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.186626

KEYWORDS: Charge-coupled devices, Ultraviolet radiation, Electronics, Sensors, Quantum efficiency, Clocks, CCD image sensors, Spectrographs, Space telescopes, Amplifiers

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Proceedings Article | 28 August 1992 Paper

Programmable timing generator for focal plane array testing and operation

Thomas Ebben

Proceedings Volume 1693, (1992) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.138075

KEYWORDS: Staring arrays, Charge-coupled devices, Surveillance, Signal processing, Logic, Mercury cadmium telluride, Clocks, Infrared radiation, Digital signal processing, Multiplexers

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Proceedings Article | 1 August 1991 Paper

Space telescope imaging spectrograph 2048 CCD and its characteristics

Alan Delamere, Thomas Ebben, Debbie Murata-Seawalt, Morley Blouke, Richard Reed, Bruce Woodgate

Proceedings Volume 1479, (1991) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.44516

KEYWORDS: Charge-coupled devices, Electrons, Amplifiers, Space telescopes, Spectrographs, Interference (communication), Quantum efficiency, Aerospace engineering, Clocks, Cameras

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Proceedings Article | 1 August 1991 Paper

High-radiometric-performance CCD for the third-generation stratospheric aerosol and gas experiment

Alan Delamere, James Baer, Thomas Ebben, James Flores, Gary Kleiman, Morley Blouke, Michael McCormick

Proceedings Volume 1479, (1991) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.44517

KEYWORDS: Charge-coupled devices, Sensors, Quantum efficiency, Aerosols, Electrons, Amplifiers, Spectroscopy, Signal detection, Surveillance, Diodes

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Proceedings Article | 1 July 1991 Paper

Space telescope imaging spectrograph 2048 CCD and its characteristics

Alan Delamere, Thomas Ebben, Debbie Murata-Seawalt, Morley Blouke, Richard Reed, Bruce Woodgate

Proceedings Volume 1447, (1991) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.45333

KEYWORDS: Charge-coupled devices, Electrons, Amplifiers, Space telescopes, Spectrographs, Interference (communication), Quantum efficiency, Optical amplifiers, Aerospace engineering, Clocks

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Proceedings Article | 1 July 1991 Paper

High radiometric performance CCD for the third-generation stratospheric aerosol and gas experiment

Alan Delamere, James Baer, Thomas Ebben, James Flores, Gary Kleiman, Morley Blouke, Michael McCormick

Proceedings Volume 1447, (1991) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.45325

KEYWORDS: Charge-coupled devices, Sensors, Quantum efficiency, Electrons, Aerosols, Optical amplifiers, Signal detection, Solid state electronics, Optical sensors, Spectroscopy

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Showing 5 of 10 publications

Course Instructor

SC073: Low Noise CCD Electronics

Charge Coupled Devices (CCDs) are the main imaging element in a variety of scientific and commercial applications. The interaction between the CCD and electronics is to achieve a quality image characterized by low-noise and low-smear, and meet frame-rate and linearity specifications. This course presents practical circuit applications and components, accompanied by appropriate theory, so the attendee has the tools to begin the electrical design of a working CCD imaging system. The course emphasizes standard design practice: understand the problem, propose a design, analyze the design using an appropriate math tool, then prototype, test and verify.

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