THE ANALYSIS SYSTEM FOR ASTROPHYSICAL PLASMAS (ASAP) OF THE OSSERVATORIO-ASTRONOMICO-DI-PALERMO

We present the software package ASAP, mainly devoted to the presentati on and analysis of fluid models of astrophysical plasmas. ASAP allows to generate optically thin X-ray and UV spectra emitted by plasma of g iven density, temperature and velocity, by means of well established s pectral synthesis codes; the emission can then be easily folded with t he instrumental response of interest and compared directly with measur ements, or can be used to predict the performance of planned instrumen ts. As examples of typical applications of the ASAP package, we show h igh resolution emission spectra derived from 1D static models of coron al loops, detailed fitting with coronal loop models of observations ma de with the ROSAT/PSPC instrument, hydrodynamic simulations of a solar flaring loop as seen by the Yohkoh satellite, and the evolution of li ne emission from a dense blob of interstellar plasma subject to the pa ssage of a shock. The package, designed to be highly flexible, modular , and easily expandable, is expected to evolve and grow rapidly in res ponse to new needs and required tasks. It operates within the IDL envi ronment, and it is under consideration for being included in the SOHO Archive System.