GEMINI 8 METRE TELESCOPE PROJECT UPDATE

 
The enclosure for the Mauna Kea telescope 

An aerial photo of the Mauna Kea enclosure, showing installation of the telescope structure. Photo by R. Wainscoat; courtesy Gemini 8m Telescopes Project.

There has been much recent progress in the Gemini 8 metre telescope project. The Mauna Kea dome has been completed, and work is underway on the telescope structure. The polishing of the primary mirror for the Mauna Kea telescope was completed earlier this year, and the mirror has been shipped to Hawaii. The polishing achieved an rms accuracy of 16 nanometres, making the Gemini mirror the best quality mirror of this size ever produced. 

The only component of the Mauna Kea telescope that is significantly behind schedule is the high-performance secondary mirror, as there have been difficulties fabricating the SiC facesheet. In order not to delay first light, a decision has been made to commission the Mauna Kea telescope with a light-weight glass secondary mirror. The added weight and increased moment of inertia of a glass secondary will have a modest impact on image quality and chopping performance. The glass secondary mirror will be replaced by a high-performance secondary mirror after telescope commissioning. 
The number of Gemini staff in Hawaii is growing as work on the telescope progresses and key Project staff members re-locate to Hilo. These staff are working in temporary office space until the new base facility, which is adjacent to the Joint Astronomy Centre, is completed later this year. The Gemini web pages  list all available openings for scientific, technical, and support positions.

Three of the initial instruments for Mauna Kea are currently under construction: NIRI (Near-InfraRed Imager), NIRS (Near-InfraRed Spectrograph), and GMOS (Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph - a twin of this instrument is also being built for Cerro Pachon). NIRI will be the first instrument delivered to the telescope, and will arrive in early 1999. Two other commissioning instruments, MIRI (Mid-InfraRed Imager) and HROS (High Resolution Optical Spectrograph), as well as the facility natural guide star adaptive optics system, ALTAIR, are in the design review phase, with construction of each of these starting soon. Finally, the mid-infrared spectroscopic imager MICHELLE, which is being constructed at the ROE (Royal Observatory, Edinburgh) for UKIRT, will also be available for shared use on Gemini.

The time for operational use of the Mauna Kea facility is rapidly approaching. The current schedule is for first light in December of this year, followed by a 15 month commissioning period, during which time the telescope and instrumentation will be integrated and tested. The operations staff will also be trained during commissioning. The Mauna Kea telescope will be turned over for operational use in March 2000.

Work on the Cerro Pachon facility is also going well. The lower portion of the dome and observing area have been completed, and Coast Steel has recently started to erect the moving portion of the dome. The primary mirror for the southern telescope is currently being polished at REOSC in France. First light for the Cerro Pachon telescope is scheduled for June 2000, with operational hand-over during October 2001.

Canada is involved in two instrumentation workpackages. The GMOSs are being developed at HIA, in collaboration with Durham University and the ROE in the UK. One GMOS will be delivered to Mauna Kea in late 1999, while the second will be sent to Cerro Pachon in late 2000. ALTAIR is also being developed at the HIA. This adaptive optics system, which will undergo a critical design review later this year, will be delivered to Mauna Kea in late 2000.

In addition to instrumentation, key control systems and facilities are also being developed in Canada by the HIA. The enclosure control system (ECS), which recently passed beta review, will be the first sub-system to be incorporated in the Gemini Telescope Control System. The facility data handling system (DHS) is also being developed at HIA, and will be delivered to Gemini later this year. Finally, HIA and the Royal Greenwich Observatory are constructing all optical wave front sensors that will be used on Gemini.

Planning efforts are underway to define the next generation of Gemini instrumentation, which will be delivered before 2010. High priority items are laser AO systems for both sites, an IR imager for Cerro Pachon, a high-spectral resolution pier-mounted spectrograph, and infrared multi-object spectrographs.

The Canadian Project Scientist, Jean-Rene Roy, has submitted a plan to NRC-HIA for a Canadian Gemini Office during the operation era of the Gemini Telescopes. The Canadian Gemini Office will serve four main functions:

  1. The Office will act as a technical and scientific support group for Canadian astronomers using the Gemini Telescopes. The staff will serve as an interface between the Gemini Observatory and Canadian users, and ensure that Canadian scientific programs on the telescopes are implemented efficiently. It will develop and exploit the most effective links with the CADC staff and archives.
  2. The Office will provide managerial, technical and scientific expertise at formal reviews and working groups. In addition, the staff will participate in scientific and managerial groups (e.g. the Project Scientists and Project Managers teams, the Gemini Instrumentation Forum, etc.), which caucus and provide scientific and technical advice on a regular basis. The staff will interact with their counterparts in other partner communities, monitor international activities, and provide scientific leadership in order to guarantee a strong and active Canadian presence in the Gemini Observatory.
  3. The Office will ensure that HIA obtains and manages the Canadian share of the continuing Gemini instrumentation program, and serve as an interface between the Gemini Observatory, the instrument builders and suppliers of services. The CGO will make special efforts to involve Canadian university groups in this important intellectual effort.
  4. The Office will serve as the first point of contact for outreach, making the activities of the Gemini Observatory known to the general public and publicizing scientific results, with particular emphasis on those involving work done at Canadian institutions.
Copies of the CGO proposal can be obtained by contacting Jean-Rene at jrroy@phy.ulaval.ca. It is proposed that the Canadian Gemini Office have 4 dedicated Gemini scientists when both Gemini telescopes are in operation.

The Gemini Project is currently enjoying rapid progress, and readers are encouraged to check the Gemini website, for regular updates. A Canadian Gemini web site is also available at www.hia.nrc.ca.

Tim on a good day T. J. Davidge      <Tim.Davidge@hia.nrc.ca>
 
Tim obtained his PhD is astronomy from the University of Victoria in 1987. From 1987 - 1992 he was a staff astronomer at the CFHT, and from 1992 to the present has served as Canadian Deputy Project Scientist for the Gemini 8 metre Telescope Project. His main research interest is galaxy evolution. He is married to the beautiful and charming Jacqui Prowse.