WFMOS as a Bridge to the Future for Gemini & Subaru Doug Simons Director, Gemini Observatory

WFMOS – Current Status & Next Steps Collaborations – Overarching Considerations Gemini Design WFMOS in the Aspen Context Gemini Fundamentals WFMOS Negotiations Gemini/Subaru Science & Instrumentation Three Presentations – One Message… Kentaro Motohara Chris Packham

Gemini Fundamentals

Two Telescopes - One Observatory Gemini-North Mauna Kea, Hawaii Gemini-South Cerro Pachon, Chile To our community, Gemini appears and functions as a single observatory - the only major ground based observatory that is capable of targeting any object in the sky

6 Gemini Observatory Management Structure  The Gemini Director has many bosses, some real, others virtual, all important…  Requires careful attention, clear communication, and regular interaction with many key stakeholders  Gemini Board has ultimate authority  AURA provides the business and legal framework within which Gemini functions Gemini Board NSF, STFC, NRC, etc. Executive Agency NSF AURA President Gemini Director

7 Mauna KeaCerro Pachon Current Status Baseline Modes Commissioned Instrument Under Development  GMOS  NICI  T-ReCS  FLAMINGOS-2  GSAOI  MCAO  GMOS  NIRI  ALTAIR+LGS  MICHELLE  NIFS  GNIRS

Aspen Instrument Program Ground Layer Adaptive Optics Precision Radial Velocity Spectrometer Gemini Planet Imager Wide Field Multi- Object Spectrometer

Aspen Instrument Program Ground Layer Adaptive Optics Precision Radial Velocity Spectrometer Gemini Planet Imager Wide Field Multi- Object Spectrometer  High performance coronagraph  ~10 7 contrast ratio  Being built by a number of institutions – led by LLNL  Scheduled for deployment at Gemini-South in 2011  AAO and JPL are now completing competitive design studies for WFMOS  Conceptual design studies will be reviewed Feb. 09  Gemini Board decision regarding proceeding with WFMOS - May 09  Conceptual design studies completed successfully  Instrument procurement canceled due to lack of funding and higher priority given to WFMOS  UH completed site testing in 2008  Results indicate that a GLAO system at Gemini-N would be powerful  Decision to proceed with GLAO 2010?

10 IR Optimized Telescope Design IR Optimized Design f /16 secondary tip/tilt chopping Telescope structure Designed to reduce thermal inertia Relies on active optics that are always “on” Primary mirror rests above elevation axis to increase wind flushing & Cassegrain payload

11 IR Optimized Telescope Design 4-Layer Protected Silver Coatings ~3% total emissivity

12 IR Optimized Telescope Design  Reduced cross-section secondary mirror supports designed to minimize diffracted light in PSF Typical strehl achieved is 10  m

13 IR Optimized Telescope Design  However, the same design features which allow Gemini to excel as an infrared optimized telescope make it difficult to support prime focus instruments (like WFMOS…)

The Subaru/Gemini Collaboration Some Overarching Considerations…

15 Some Overarching Considerations…  There is an inevitable trend in science toward international collaboration and Gemini and Subaru are uniquely poised to lead the way among 8-10 m class facilities worldwide  Subaru and Gemini each have unique capabilities that would help the “other” community  Subaru – world class wide field instrumentation (optical and NIR)…  Gemini – IR optimization, all-sky access; fast response modes…

16 Some Overarching Considerations…  In general scientific collaborations should be –  Mutually beneficial  Founded on fair and equitable terms  Designed to provide partners with research opportunities that they would not otherwise have  Take advantage of natural synergies  Tailored to avoid costly capability duplication between observatories

17 Some Overarching Considerations…  In many ways the WFMOS initiative is just a catalyst for fostering a scientific collaboration between the Subaru and Gemini communities  If we do not proceed with WFMOS, for any reason, I urge that we continue to nurture future scientific collaboration based on other capabilities unique to Subaru and Gemini

WFMOS – Current Status and Next Steps

19 Oct WFMOS Negotiations  Discussion topics to date have included –  Duration of agreement  Cost sharing  Time exchange parameters  Commissioning and maintenance considerations  Other related issues…  Motohara-san will summarize negotiations in more detail in the next presentation Nov Dec. 2008

20 WFMOS Baseline Design Guidelines  Wavelength Range: 0.39 – 1.0 µm  Field of View: ~1.5 deg diameter  Spatial Sampling: ~1 arcsec fiber entrance  Spectral Resolution: R~1800 – 3500 (~3000 fibers) and R~40,000 (~1500 fibers)  One-shot wavelength coverage: ~0.39 to 1.0 µm (low resolution spectrographs), >100 Å (high resolution spectrographs)  Simultaneous stellar targets: ~4500  Detector operating modes: standard readout or “nod & shuffle” as required to achieve the science goals.

21 WFMOS Trade Studies  WFMOS teams will include in their proposals a number of trades studies to determine the optimal WFMOS design/cost needed to support the science goals of the instrument  Trades can include many things including -  Acquisition field size  Vignetting  Multiplex gains  Total survey time  Fiber manipulation schemes  Manufacturing risks for key components  Science impact of cost-saving reductions in the baseline WFMOS capabilities

22 Two WFMOSConceptual Design Study Teams JPL Team  PI Richard Ellis  Caltech  Penn State  ATC  Cambridge IofA  U. College London  LNA Brazil AAO Team  PI Sam Barden  NOAO  U. Oxford/RAL  U. Portsmouth  U. Durham  Johns Hopkins U.  RAL Two competitive conceptual design studies are being performed by large, international teams. They will be completed in Feb. 2009

23 WFMOS Decision Process  After the WFMOS Conceptual Design Review (Feb ) a number of discussions will be held leading to a May Gemini Board meeting decision about proceeding with WFMOS  Gemini and Subaru will consider the review committee report jointly before a recommendation is made to Gemini Board  Subaru and Gemini SAC’s will consider science implications of any significant design changes in WFMOS  Draft Subaru/Gemini agreement will be negotiated and submitted for consideration by Gemini Board and NAOJ

24 Possible Concerns  Number of fibers in WFMOS  The design will include a complex trade between fiber number, throughput, field of view, etc.  Together these design parameters determine the amount of telescope time needed to complete a survey and the amount of telescope time needed will not be allowed to be prohibitive as design/cost options are weighed

25 Possible Concerns  Delay in delivery  Historically Gemini instruments have been delivered 1-2 years late  Typical of other observatories  NIFS (2) and GSAOI were Gemini’s best performers, bHROS and FLAMINGOS-2 our worst  It is in the strategic interests of everyone to ensure that WFMOS is deployed on schedule  If approved, Gemini will increase the size of its development group to help oversee the timely delivery of WFMOS  Gemini and Subaru will interact regularly throughout the development period of the instrument to ensure design trades meet everyone’s needs

26 Possible Concerns  Funding challenges  The global economic crisis is effecting essentially all segments of society and astronomy is no different  Gemini funding for WFMOS remains uncertain  The US funding situation in particular should be clarified in the next ~2-3 months  Funding for Gemini’s operations will be given higher priority than its development program

27 Gemini Commitment to WFMOS  Today, 5 years after the Aspen Workshop, WFMOS remains the highest priority instrument in Gemini’s development program with strong support from the –  Gemini Science Committee  Gemini Board of Directors  Gemini Community  Both personally and on behalf of Gemini Observatory, I thank you for the opportunity to share these perspectives on Gemini, WFMOS, and hopefully a long lasting scientific partnership between our observatories

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