Paper:	FUSE Conference Summary
Volume:	348, Astrophysics in the Far Ultraviolet: Five Years of Discovery with FUSE
Page:	575
Authors:	Shull, J.M.
Abstract:	In this conference summary, it is appropriate to reflect on the scientific accomplishments of FUSE during its first five years of operations, in comparison with what the mission was “sold to do”. Many of its major results were anticipated in the late 1980s: spectroscopic studies of D/H, O VI, H2 and observations of hot stars, cool stars, quasars, and interstellar/intergalactic gas. However, owing to its 104-fold increase in sensitivity over the Copernicus mission, FUSE brought several pleasant surprises – the detection of vast O VI reservoirs in the Galactic halo and intergalactic medium, planetary transits, and infalling comets in young stellar disks. Serendipity nearly always accompanies major increases in observing capability, a fact that should be remembered in strategic planning for the next generation of astronomical missions.

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