Title:  PRIMA:  A Concept for a Far-Infrared NASA Observatory for New Astrophysics of Planet Formation and Galaxy Evolution

Abstract:  PRIMA is a far-infrared NASA Astrophysics Probe currently in Phase A concept development, with an anticipated launch in 2032.  This talk will present astrophysical motivation for PRIMA and descriptions of the observatory and the enabling detector technology.  We designed PRIMA for a broad range of astrophysics, from the role of water in planet formation to the coevolution of galaxies and black holes, and the evolving properties of dust and metallicity, over cosmic time. The observatory features a 1.8 m telescope cooled to 4.5 K and two science instruments providing spectral coverage from 24 to 235 μm, with imaging, spectroscopy, and polarimetry.  It has exquisite sensitivity enabled by new arrays of superconducting kinetic inductance detectors in combination with the cold telescope.  PRIMA will be an important asset to the astrophysics community in the 2030s, with seventy-five percent of the observing time reserved for Genearal Observer observations and 100% of the data available rapidly for Guest Investigator analyses.