DOCSLIB.ORG

Reaching New Heights in Astronomy — ESO Long Term Perspectives

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Reaching New Heights in Astronomy — ESO Long Term Perspectives The Organisation Reaching New Heights in Astronomy — ESO Long Term Perspectives Tim de Zeeuw1 in science, are of enormous interest to costs and place the main contracts. the general public, and are instrumental Phase A design studies for ESO’s OWL in stimulating young people to consider concept and the competing EURO50 1 ESO a career in science or engineering, which concept for extremely large optical- is important for our society. infrared telescopes were under develop- ment. Other giant telescope projects A comprehensive description of ESO The construction of a major astronomical were gaining momentum elsewhere in the in the current global astronomical con- facility typically takes a decade or longer. world. The ESO Council realised the need text, and its plans for the next decade ESO has built three such observatories to develop a policy for the near future, and beyond, are presented. This survey (on La Silla, Paranal and Chajnantor in which led to the Resolution on Scientific covers all aspects of the Organisation, Chile) since its founding in 1962 and is Strategy. The Resolution is included in full including the optical-infrared pro- now constructing the European Extremely in the Appendix. gramme at the La Silla Paranal Obser- Large Telescope (ELT) on Armazones vatory, the submillimetre facilities ALMA near Paranal. They take advantage of At the time of writing, twelve years later, and APEX, the construction of the developments in technology and in turn ESO’s programme at visual/infrared 39-metre European Extremely Large stimulate further technology development. wavelengths has Paranal as its flagship, Telescope and the science operation ESO’s observatories make key contribu- and the well-instrumented system com- of these facilities. An extension of the tions to all aspects of astrophysics and prising the VLT and VLTI, supplemented current optical/infrared/submillimetre are the main ground-based observational by VISTA and VST, is world-leading. facilities into multi-messenger astron- resource for astronomers in most of the Following extensive design studies, the omy has been made with the decision Member States. 39-metre ELT is under construction on to host the southern Cherenkov Tele- Armazones, as an integral part of the scope Array at Paranal. The structure Paranal system, and is on track for first of the Organisation is presented and 1.1 The 2004 Council Resolution on light in 2024. It has a good chance of the further development of the staff is Scientific Strategy being the first of the next generation of described within the scope of the long- giant telescopes to go into operation. range financial planning. The role of ESO’s current programme is guided by The venerable 3.6-metre telescope and Chile is highlighted and expansion of the the Council Resolution on Scientific the New Technology Telescope (NTT) number of Member States beyond the Strategy, which was formulated in 2004 on La Silla continue to produce excellent current 15 is discussed. The strengths when ESO had 11 Member States. science. In the submillimetre regime, the of the ESO model, together with chal- The Very Large Telescope (VLT) had Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) lenges as well as possible new opportu- entered full operations with all four Unit came on line in 2006 and the ALMA Part- nities and initiatives, are examined Telescopes (UTs), but not all of the first- nership has completed the construction and a strategy for the future of ESO is generation instruments had been com- of the transformational array which is now outlined. pleted. An additional instrument, the operational on Chajnantor. In addition, High Acuity Wide field K-band Imager ESO will host the Cherenkov Telescope (HAWK-I), was in development, and four Array (CTA) South in the Paranal area, 1. Introduction second-generation instruments had and will operate it for the CTA Partnership been selected (X-shooter, the K-band on a cost-reimbursement basis. Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences Multi Object Spectrograph [KMOS], the and can be defined as the study of the Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exo- ESO’s internal organisation has been Universe and everything in it. Advances planet REsearch instrument [SPHERE] adapted to carry out this challenging in technology during the past half-century and the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer portfolio of major programmes. Many have made it possible to build increas- [MUSE]). The VLT Interferometer (VLTI) internal processes have been stream- ingly powerful facilities on the ground and was operational with the two-beam mid- lined and harmonised. Since early 2014 in space to study the Universe across infrared instrument MIDI. The VLT Survey all staff at Headquarters work in a single the entire electromagnetic spectrum and Telescope (VST) was under construction set of interconnected buildings on the to detect particles and gravitational waves but had experienced delays. The Visible ESO premises and are no longer spread from celestial sources. This has resulted and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astron- over multiple buildings on the Garching in tremendous advances, including: the omy (VISTA) had been agreed under the research campus. A world-leading out- discovery of the mysterious dark energy; UK accession to ESO, and construction reach and education centre, the ESO probing the extreme physics of black had started. ESO was operating three Supernova Planetarium & Visitor Centre, holes, supernovae and gamma-ray bursts; telescopes on La Silla and hosted a num- donated by the Klaus Tschira Foundation, understanding the formation and evolu- ber of independent telescope projects will be inaugurated in 2018. tion of stars and galaxies; and the direct there. The Atacama Large Millimeter/sub- detection and study of planets around millimeter Array (ALMA) was under con- In this same period, the accession of other stars, which may have the potential struction by the partnership between Spain (2006), the Czech Republic (2007), to harbour life. These discoveries address East Asia, ESO and North America, but Austria (2009) and Poland (2015) some of the most fundamental questions re-baselining was required to contain increased the number of ESO Member 2 The Messenger 166 – December 2016 States to 15. The Brazilian accession agreement, signed in December 2010, )/ESO was ratified by the Brazilian Congress and Senate in 2015, but still awaits the final signature by the President. Formal and informal discussions with a number atacamaphoto.com of other countries regarding membership are ongoing. The entire programme is under significant financial pressure caused by factors beyond ESO’s control. These include rap- idly increasing costs for labour in Chile, J. L. Dauvergne & G. Hüdepohl ( unfavourable exchange rates and special organisational contributions to the CERN Pension Fund. 1.2 Global context State-of-the-art fully steerable optical/ infrared telescopes with primary mirrors will provide very accurate positions and Figure 1. Aerial view of the Paranal Observatory. 8 metres, or larger, in diameter are opera- motions for more than a billion stars in tional at various locations around the the Milky Way by 2020. ESA’s Euclid construction into two phases. The first world, supported by different organisa- mission expects to provide an infrared phase comprises 90 % of the project. tions or partnerships. The main centre in map of the entire extragalactic sky by It has been authorised, is independent the northern hemisphere is Mauna Kea, the middle of the next decade. The Large of the timing of the completion of the which hosts the two Keck telescopes, the Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) on Brazilian accession, and was enabled by Subaru telescope and the Gemini North Cerro Pachón will start mapping the entire the accession of Poland. A significant telescope. The Large Binocular Tele- accessible sky twice per week in 2023, uncertainty in the planning for the future scope on Mount Graham and the Gran sensitive to new transient phenomena. was removed in June 2016 when Council Telescopio Canarias on La Palma provide At that time, the northern and southern gave approval to place the Phase 1 ELT northern access to astronomers from components of the Cherenkov Telescope contracts in accordance with first light in (some of) the ESO Member States. The Array (CTA), designed to detect optical 2024, even if this might require making Gemini South telescope on Pachón in flashes in the atmosphere caused by high- use of the credit facility in place with the Chile and the VLT on Paranal cover the energy gamma-rays from the Universe, European Investment Bank. It is therefore southern hemisphere. Two independent should be operational as well. Ground- timely to present ESO’s Long Term Per- international partnerships aim to build based facilities in the design phase, or spectives, setting out the planned devel- the 25-metre Giant Magellan Telescope on the drawing board, include the Square opment of ESO’s programme over the (GMT) on Las Campanas in Chile and the Kilometre Array, to be built in stages in next fifteen years, and including the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT). The latter South Africa and Australia, a large single organisational perspective, financial plan- was initially planned to be on Mauna Kea, submillimetre dish on Chajnantor, a large ning and risks, options for funding of but the location is presently in doubt. In wide-field telescope for highly multiplexed ELT Phase 2, opportunities beyond the the submillimetre radio regime ALMA has spectroscopic surveys, new facilities to baseline programme over a longer period, no competition (thanks to its sensitivity, measure cosmic rays and a world-wide and an assessment of the ESO model. baseline range, size and global character), network of gravitational wave detectors except for the upgraded Plateau de Bure with sufficient angular resolution to allow NOrthern Extended Millimeter Array electromagnetic telescopes to locate and 2. Optical-infrared programmes (NOEMA), which can access the entire characterise the sources.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Through a Technical Lens
    THROUGH A TECHNICAL LENS CRAIG MARTIN Figure 1. Front cover: Moon [Signature Page] THROUGH A TECHNICAL LENS A Design Thesis Submitted to the Department of Architecture and Landscape Architecture of North Dakota State University. By, Craig Michael Martin In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Architecture. Primary Thesis Advisor Thesis Committee Chair May 2013 Fargo | North Dakota 2-3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Figures 4-9 Thesis Abstract 11 Problem Statement 13 Statement of Intent 14-15 Narrative 17-18 A User/Client Description 19 Major Project Elements 21 Site Information 22-26 Project Emphasis 27 Plan for Proceeding 28-29 Previous Studio Experience 30-31 Theoretical Research 32-41 Typological Case Studies 42-73 Historical Context 74-81 Project Goals 82-83 Site Analysis 84-95 Climate Data 96-107 Programmatic Requirements 108-111 Design Process 112-129 Final Design 130-151 Presentation Display 152-153 References 154-157 Personal Information 159 [Table of Contents] List OF FIGURES Figure 1. Moon ESO: Chekalin 2011 1 Figure 2. Paranal Telescope ESO: Hudepohl 2012 10 Figure 3. Camera Lens Delirium 2012 16 Figure 4. Nebula 1 ESO: Chekalin 2011 18 Figure 4a. Nebula 2 ESO: Chekalin 2011 18 Figure 4b. Nebula 3 ESO: Chekalin 2011 18 Figure 5. Beartooth Pass Craig Martin 2012 20 Figure 6. Beartooth Pass 2 Craig Martin 2012 22 Figure 7. Macro Map Google 2012 22 Figure 8. Micro Map Craig Martin 2012 22 Figure 9. Beartooth Pass 3 Craig Martin 2012 24 Figure 10. Dark Sky Map Grosvold 2011 26 Figure 11.
    [Show full text]
  • Arxiv:2003.04650V1 [Astro-Ph.EP] 10 Mar 2020 Sphere (Arcangeli Et Al
    Astronomy & Astrophysics manuscript no. main c ESO 2020 March 11, 2020 Detection of Fe i and Fe ii in the atmosphere of MASCARA-2b using a cross-correlation method M. Stangret1,2, N. Casasayas-Barris1,2, E. Pallé1,2, F. Yan3, A. Sánchez-López4, M. López-Puertas4 1 Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Vía Láctea s/n, 38205 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain e-mail: [email protected] 2 Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna, 38200 San Cristobal de La Laguna, Spain 3 Institut für Astrophysik, Georg-August-Universität, Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, 37077 Göttingen, Germany 4 Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA-CSIC), Glorieta de la Astronomía s/n, 18008 Granada, Spain Received 21 January 2020; accepted 27 February 2020 ABSTRACT Ultra-hot Jupiters are gas giants planets whose dayside temperature, due to the strong irradiation received from the host star, is greater than 2200 K. These kind of objects are perfect laboratories to study chemistry of exoplanetary upper atmospheres via trans- mission spectroscopy. Exo-atmospheric absorption features are buried in the noise of the in-transit residual spectra. However we can retrieve the information of hundreds of atmospheric absorption lines by performing a cross-correlation with an atmospheric transmission model, which allows us to greatly increase the exo-atmospheric signal. At the high-spectral resolution of our data, the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect and centre-to-limb variation have a strong contribution. Here, we present the first detection of Fe i and the confirmation of absorption features of Fe ii in the atmosphere of the ultra-hot Jupiter MASCARA-2b/KELT-20b, by using three transit observations with HARPS-N.
    [Show full text]
  • Exoplanetary Atmospheres: Key Insights, Challenges, and Prospects
    AA57CH15_Madhusudhan ARjats.cls August 7, 2019 14:11 Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics Exoplanetary Atmospheres: Key Insights, Challenges, and Prospects Nikku Madhusudhan Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0HA, United Kingdom; email: [email protected] Annu. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 2019. 57:617–63 Keywords The Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics is extrasolar planets, spectroscopy, planet formation, habitability, atmospheric online at astro.annualreviews.org composition https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-astro-081817- 051846 Abstract Copyright © 2019 by Annual Reviews. Exoplanetary science is on the verge of an unprecedented revolution. The All rights reserved thousands of exoplanets discovered over the past decade have most recently been supplemented by discoveries of potentially habitable planets around nearby low-mass stars. Currently, the field is rapidly progressing toward de- tailed spectroscopic observations to characterize the atmospheres of these planets. Various surveys from space and the ground are expected to detect numerous more exoplanets orbiting nearby stars that make the planets con- ducive for atmospheric characterization. The current state of this frontier of exoplanetary atmospheres may be summarized as follows. We have entered the era of comparative exoplanetology thanks to high-fidelity atmospheric observations now available for tens of exoplanets. Access provided by Florida International University on 01/17/21. For personal use only. Annu. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 2019.57:617-663. Downloaded from www.annualreviews.org Recent studies reveal a rich diversity of chemical compositions and atmospheric processes hitherto unseen in the Solar System. Elemental abundances of exoplanetary atmospheres place impor- tant constraints on exoplanetary formation and migration histories.
    [Show full text]
  • 50 Years of Existence of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) 30 Years of Swiss Membership with the ESO
    Federal Department for Economic Affairs, Education and Research EAER State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation SERI 50 years of existence of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) 30 years of Swiss membership with the ESO The European Southern Observatory (ESO) was founded in Paris on 5 October 1962. Exactly half a century later, on 5 October 2012, Switzerland organised a com- memoration ceremony at the University of Bern to mark ESO’s 50 years of existence and 30 years of Swiss membership with the ESO. This article provides a brief summary of the history and milestones of Swiss member- ship with the ESO as well as an overview of the most important achievements and challenges. Switzerland’s route to ESO membership Nearly twenty years after the ESO was founded, the time was ripe for Switzerland to apply for membership with the ESO. The driving forces on the academic side included the Universi- ty of Geneva and the University of Basel, which wanted to gain access to the most advanced astronomical research available. In 1980, the Federal Council submitted its Dispatch on Swiss membership with the ESO to the Federal Assembly. In 1981, the Federal Assembly adopted a federal decree endorsing Swiss membership with the ESO. In 1982, the Swiss Confederation filed the official documents for ESO membership in Paris. In 1982, Switzerland paid the initial membership fee and, in 1983, the first year’s member- ship contributions. High points of Swiss participation In 1987, the Federal Council issued a federal decree on Swiss participation in the ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) to be built at the Paranal Observatory in the Chilean Atacama Desert.
    [Show full text]
  • A First Reconnaissance of the Atmospheres of Terrestrial Exoplanets Using Ground-Based Optical Transits and Space-Based UV Spectra
    A First Reconnaissance of the Atmospheres of Terrestrial Exoplanets Using Ground-Based Optical Transits and Space-Based UV Spectra The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Diamond-Lowe, Hannah Zoe. 2020. A First Reconnaissance of the Atmospheres of Terrestrial Exoplanets Using Ground-Based Optical Transits and Space-Based UV Spectra. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. Citable link https://nrs.harvard.edu/URN-3:HUL.INSTREPOS:37365825 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA A first reconnaissance of the atmospheres of terrestrial exoplanets using ground-based optical transits and space-based UV spectra A DISSERTATION PRESENTED BY HANNAH ZOE DIAMOND-LOWE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ASTRONOMY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN THE SUBJECT OF ASTRONOMY HARVARD UNIVERSITY CAMBRIDGE,MASSACHUSETTS MAY 2020 c 2020 HANNAH ZOE DIAMOND-LOWE.ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ii Dissertation Advisor: David Charbonneau Hannah Zoe Diamond-Lowe A first reconnaissance of the atmospheres of terrestrial exoplanets using ground-based optical transits and space-based UV spectra ABSTRACT Decades of ground-based, space-based, and in some cases in situ measurements of the Solar System terrestrial planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars have provided in- depth insight into their atmospheres, yet we know almost nothing about the atmospheres of terrestrial planets orbiting other stars.
    [Show full text]
  • Strong Detection of the CMB Lensing × Galaxy Weak Lensing Cross
    Astronomy & Astrophysics manuscript no. main_file ©ESO 2020 November 24, 2020 Strong detection of the CMB lensing × galaxy weak lensing cross-correlation from ACT-DR4, Planck Legacy and KiDS-1000 Naomi Clare Robertson1; 2; 3,?, David Alonso3, Joachim Harnois-Déraps4; 5, Omar Darwish6, Arun Kannawadi7, Alexandra Amon8, Marika Asgari5, Maciej Bilicki9, Erminia Calabrese10, Steve K. Choi11; 12, Mark J. Devlin13, Jo Dunkley7; 14, Andrej Dvornik15, Thomas Erben16, Simone Ferraro17; 18, Maria Cristina Fortuna19 Benjamin Giblin5, Dongwon Han20, Catherine Heymans5; 16, Hendrik Hildebrandt15 J. Colin Hill21; 22, Matt Hilton23; 24, Shuay-Pwu P. Ho25, Henk Hoekstra19, Johannes Hubmayr26, Jack Hughes27, Benjamin Joachimi28, Shahab Joudaki3; 29, Kenda Knowles23, Konrad Kuijken19, Mathew S. Madhavacheril30, Kavilan Moodley23; 24, Lance Miller3, Toshiya Namikawa6, Federico Nati31, Michael D. Niemack11; 12, Lyman A. Page14, Bruce Partridge32, Emmanuel Schaan17; 18, Alessandro Schillaci33, Peter Schneider16, Neelima Sehgal20, Blake D. Sherwin6; 2, Cristóbal Sifón34, Suzanne T. Staggs14, Tilman Tröster5, Alexander van Engelen35, Edwin Valentijn36, Edward J. Wollack37, Angus H. Wright15, Zhilei Xu13; 38 (Affiliations can be found after the references) Received XXXX; accepted YYYY ABSTRACT We measure the cross-correlation between galaxy weak lensing data from the Kilo Degree Survey (KiDS-1000, DR4) and cosmic microwave background (CMB) lensing data from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT, DR4) and the Planck Legacy survey. We use two samples of source galaxies,
    [Show full text]
  • Imaging the Dynamical Atmosphere of the Red Supergiant Betelgeuse in the CO first Overtone Lines with VLTI/AMBER,
    A&A 529, A163 (2011) Astronomy DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201016279 & c ESO 2011 Astrophysics Imaging the dynamical atmosphere of the red supergiant Betelgeuse in the CO first overtone lines with VLTI/AMBER, K. Ohnaka1,G.Weigelt1,F.Millour1,2, K.-H. Hofmann1, T. Driebe1,3, D. Schertl1,A.Chelli4, F. Massi5,R.Petrov2,andPh.Stee2 1 Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, 53121 Bonn, Germany e-mail: [email protected] 2 Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, Departement FIZEAU, Boulevard de l’Observatoire, BP 4229, 06304 Nice Cedex 4, France 3 Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V., Königswinterer Str. 522-524, 53227 Bonn, Germany 4 Institut de Planétologie et d’Astrophysique de Grenoble, BP 53, 38041 Grenoble Cedex 9, France 5 INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Instituto Nazionale di Astrofisica, Largo E. Fermi 5, 50125 Firenze, Italy Received 7 December 2010 / Accepted 12 March 2011 ABSTRACT Aims. We present one-dimensional aperture synthesis imaging of the red supergiant Betelgeuse (α Ori) with VLTI/AMBER. We reconstructed for the first time one-dimensional images in the individual CO first overtone lines. Our aim is to probe the dynamics of the inhomogeneous atmosphere and its time variation. Methods. Betelgeuse was observed between 2.28 and 2.31 μm with VLTI/AMBER using the 16-32-48 m telescope configuration with a spectral resolution up to 12 000 and an angular resolution of 9.8 mas. The good nearly one-dimensional uv coverage allows us to reconstruct one-dimensional projection images (i.e., one-dimensional projections of the object’s two-dimensional intensity distri- butions).
    [Show full text]
  • La Silla Paranal Observatory Observatory
    European Southern La Silla Paranal Observatory Observatory HARPS Secondary Guiding Poster 7739-171 Gerardo Ihle1, Ismo Kastinen1, Gaspare Lo Curto1, Alex Segovia1, Peter Sinclaire1, Raffaele Tomelleri2 [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] Introduction Design and Fabrication HARPS, the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher at the ESO La Silla 3.6m telescope, is The design and fabrication of the unit was done by Tomelleri s.r.l., Villafranca, Italy following defined dedicated to the discovery of exosolar planets and high resolution spectroscopy. specifications and requirements. The unit was installed on top of the HARPS adaptor flange. The current precision in the measurement of the radial velocity of stars down to 60 cm/sec in the long term, has permitted to discover the majority of the “super Earth” type of extra solar planets up to date. Several factors enter in the radial velocity error budget, among these is the guiding accuracy, which has direct influence on the light injection into the spectrograph’s fiber. Guiding is actually done by corrections directly sent to the telescope with frequencies in the range of 0.2 Hz-0.05 Hz, depending on the brightness of the target. Due to mechanical limitations of the telescope there is an expected relaxation time of approximately 2 sec. The final objective of this modification is to reach radial velocities precision of 30 cm/sec with HARPS, that will allow the detection of Earth mass planets in close-in orbits. Fig. 5a Details Fig. 5 Tip Tilt table. The table movement is done by means of three voice coil actuators, with a resolution of 0.1 microns, controlled by an amplifier included in a GALIL- Fig.
    [Show full text]
  • Abstracts of Extreme Solar Systems 4 (Reykjavik, Iceland)
    Abstracts of Extreme Solar Systems 4 (Reykjavik, Iceland) American Astronomical Society August, 2019 100 — New Discoveries scope (JWST), as well as other large ground-based and space-based telescopes coming online in the next 100.01 — Review of TESS’s First Year Survey and two decades. Future Plans The status of the TESS mission as it completes its first year of survey operations in July 2019 will bere- George Ricker1 viewed. The opportunities enabled by TESS’s unique 1 Kavli Institute, MIT (Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States) lunar-resonant orbit for an extended mission lasting more than a decade will also be presented. Successfully launched in April 2018, NASA’s Tran- siting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is well on its way to discovering thousands of exoplanets in orbit 100.02 — The Gemini Planet Imager Exoplanet Sur- around the brightest stars in the sky. During its ini- vey: Giant Planet and Brown Dwarf Demographics tial two-year survey mission, TESS will monitor more from 10-100 AU than 200,000 bright stars in the solar neighborhood at Eric Nielsen1; Robert De Rosa1; Bruce Macintosh1; a two minute cadence for drops in brightness caused Jason Wang2; Jean-Baptiste Ruffio1; Eugene Chiang3; by planetary transits. This first-ever spaceborne all- Mark Marley4; Didier Saumon5; Dmitry Savransky6; sky transit survey is identifying planets ranging in Daniel Fabrycky7; Quinn Konopacky8; Jennifer size from Earth-sized to gas giants, orbiting a wide Patience9; Vanessa Bailey10 variety of host stars, from cool M dwarfs to hot O/B 1 KIPAC, Stanford University (Stanford, California, United States) giants. 2 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology TESS stars are typically 30–100 times brighter than (Pasadena, California, United States) those surveyed by the Kepler satellite; thus, TESS 3 Astronomy, California Institute of Technology (Pasadena, Califor- planets are proving far easier to characterize with nia, United States) follow-up observations than those from prior mis- 4 Astronomy, U.C.
    [Show full text]
  • The Case for Irish Membership of the European Southern Observatory Prepared by the Institute of Physics in Ireland June 2014
    The Case for Irish Membership of the European Southern Observatory Prepared by the Institute of Physics in Ireland June 2014 The Case for Irish Membership of the European Southern Observatory Contents Summary 2 European Southern Observatory Overview 3 European Extremely Large Telescope 5 Summary of ESO Telescopes and Instrumentation 6 Technology Development at ESO 7 Big Data and Energy-Efficient Computing 8 Return to Industry 9 Ireland and Space Technologies 10 Astrophysics and Ireland 13 Undergraduate Teaching 15 Outreach and Astronomy 17 Education and Training 19 ESO Membership Fee 20 Conclusions 22 References 24 1 Summary The European Southern Observatory (ESO) is universally acknowledged as being the world leading facility for observational astronomy. The astrophysics community in Ireland is united in calling for Irish membership of ESO believing that this action would strongly support the Irish government’s commitment to its STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) agenda. An essential element of the government’s plans for the Irish economy is to substantially grow its high-tech business sector. Physics is a core part of that base, with 86,000 jobs in Ireland in this sector1 while astrophysics, in particular, is a key driver both of science interest and especially of innovation. To support this agenda, Irish scientists and engineers need access to the best research facilities and with this access comes the benefits of spin-off technology, contracts and the jobs which this can bring. ESO is currently expanding its membership to include Brazil and is considering some eastern European countries. The cost of membership will increase as more states join and as Ireland’s GDP increases.
    [Show full text]
  • ESO Calendar 2019
    ESO Calendar 2019 European Southern Observatory Cover January February March April May June Rendering of the Extremely Large Telescope The Small Magellanic Cloud The Cat’s Paw and the Lobster Nebulae APEX and snowy Chajnantor VISTA’s cosmic view A sky full of galaxies ALMA’s dramatic surroundings This artist’s impression displays the Extremely One of our closest neighbours, the Small Magellanic This spectacular image from the VLT Survey The slumbering Atacama Pathfinder Experiment The Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for This image contains a plethora of astronomical ALMA is a revolutionary astronomical telescope, Large Telescope (ELT) in all its grandeur. Sitting Cloud (SMC), is a dwarf irregular galaxy 200 000 Telescope (VST) shows the Cat’s Paw (upper right) (APEX) telescope sits beneath reddened skies in Astronomy (VISTA) is located at ESO’s Paranal treats. A subtle grouping of 1000 yellowish galaxies comprising an array of 66 giant antennas observing atop Cerro Armazones, 3046 m up in the Chilean light-years away. In the southern hemisphere, the and the Lobster (lower left) Nebulae. These vivid the snow covered Chajnantor landscape. Snow Observatory in Chile. The extreme altitude and arid cluster together near the centre of the frame. at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths. It is Atacama Desert, the ELT’s mirror will be 39 metres SMC can be seen with the naked eye. The bright displays are sites of active star formation: photons blankets not only the ground, but also the many climate make for cloudless skies and excellent Combined with large quantities of hot gas and dark situated on the breathtaking Chajnantor Plateau, at in diameter: “the world’s biggest eye on the sky.” globular star cluster, 47 Tucanae, appears to the from hot young stars excite surrounding hydrogen peaks that encircle the Chilean plateau, which also viewing conditions.
    [Show full text]
  • Ground-Based Search for the Brightest Transiting Planets with the Multi-Site All-Sky Camera - MASCARA
    Ground-based search for the brightest transiting planets with the Multi-site All-Sky CAmeRA - MASCARA Ignas A. G. Snellena, Remko Stuika, Ramon Navarrob, Felix Bettonvilb, Matthew Kenworthya, Ernst de Mooijc , Gilles Ottena , Rik ter Horstb & Rudolf le Poolea aLeiden Observatory, Leiden University, Postbus 9513, 2300 RA, Leiden, The Netherlands bNOVA Optical and Infrared Instrumentation Division at ASTRON, PO Box 2, 7990 AA, Dwingeloo, The Netherlands cDepartment of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Toronto, 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada ABSTRACT The Multi-site All-sky CAmeRA MASCARA is an instrument concept consisting of several stations across the globe, with each station containing a battery of low-cost cameras to monitor the near-entire sky at each location. Once all stations have been installed, MASCARA will be able to provide a nearly 24-hr coverage of the complete dark sky, down to magnitude 8, at sub-minute cadence. Its purpose is to find the brightest transiting exoplanet systems, expected in the V=4-8 magnitude range - currently not probed by space- or ground-based surveys. The bright/nearby transiting planet systems, which MASCARA will discover, will be the key targets for detailed planet atmosphere obs ervations. We present studies on the initial design of a MASCARA station, including the camera housing, domes, and computer equipment, and on the photometric stability of low-cost cameras showing that a precision of 0.3-1% per hour can be readily achieved. We plan to roll out the first MASCARA station before the end of 2013. A 5-station MASCARA can within two years discover up to a dozen of the brightest transiting planet systems in the sky.
    [Show full text]