18 Years of Science with the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory's Ultra-Violet/Optical Telescope

Dear Colleagues,

The Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory’s Ultra-Violet/Optical Telescope (UVOT) began collecting science data in late 2004. Since that time, it has become a workhorse ultraviolet instrument in the international astrophysics community. Although the primary purpose of UVOT is time-domain astronomy (TDA), its utility as an ultraviolet instrument outside of TDA science has been abundantly demonstrated. This Special Issue reviews the range of TDA (e.g., supernovae, active galactic nuclei, gamma-ray bursts, novae) and non-TDA (e.g., dust extinction, comets, galaxy evolution) science accomplished with the UVOT. It also examines potential research directions and the necessary tools required to pursue these new exploration paths.

The focus of this Special Issue is to highlight the importance of the UV to TDA and non-TDA science. The scope of this Issue is to review the work accomplished with the UVOT in different areas of astrophysics (Type Ia and core-collapse SNe, quasars/blazars, long and short GRBs, kilonovae, dust extinction, comets, tidal disruption events, science with UV grisms, galaxy evolution, and novae) and to detail the importance of the UV in advancing the respective science area. Ultimately, the purpose of the Issue is to look back at the past and advocate a path forward. This Issue will be a one-stop review of the work done with UVOT over the last 18 years.

Dr. Peter Roming
Dr. Michael Siegel
Guest Editors

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