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Cassiopeia Newsletter – Vernal Equinox 2025

Updated: Aug 21, 2025

Date: March 20, 2025


In this Issue:

President’s Message

ALMA Matters

CCAT Update

Update on CASTOR

CFHT News and Updates

Gemini News

Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE) Update

ngVLA Update


Editor: Dennis Crabtree


Cassiopeia is CASCA’s quarterly Newsletter, published on or near the solstices and equinoxes (March 21, June 21, September 21 and December 21).


To submit a contribution please email cassiopeia.editors@gmail.com. All submissions must be received by the due date (usually 2 weeks in advance of publication) to be published in the next edition. I accept plain text and Word documents. Note that the formatting of your document will not be preserved. Please include any images as attachments in your email, not embedded in the text. Please include URLs in parentheses next to the word or phrase that you wish to act as link anchors.

President’s Message


Dear CASCA Community,


I am closing out the final months of my term as CASCA president in a time of significant upheaval.  In light of recent and dramatic political changes, the expectations of long-standing partnerships are shifting.  We will have significant turnover in the CASCA Board in June, and the current members aim to finish specific community recommendations from the 2020 Long Range Plan before the transition.  Adopting a Mission and Values statement is foundational to this end, and the final consultation on the wording is open now.  Subsequently, we will have another round of consultation on a proposed Code of Conduct.  These documents are important for defining who we are and aspire to be, and how we treat each other.


The Mid-Term Review Committee has been working hard to gather information and engage our community.  The participation in the Town Halls to date has been robust and productive.  We will have further opportunity for discussion (in-person and virtual) at the CASCA AGM in Halifax in June.  Thank you to the Committee and all of you who have contributed to date in the consultations.  We are cognizant that the landscape in March 2025 is remarkably different than when papers and reports were submitted at the end of 2024.  We are in the process of figuring out how to incorporate new realities without being too reactive.  I ask for your patience as we work to navigate this challenge.


CASCA is only as effective as its leadership and the contributions of its members.  Suggestions of potential candidates (including yourself!) for the open Board positions (VP, Treasurer, Secretary, and Directors) continue to be most welcome.


Best wishes,

Sarah Gallagher

ALMA Matters


By Brenda Matthews & Gerald Schieven (NRC-HAA)


Cycle 12 Call for Proposals Open (March 20)


The ALMA Director, on behalf of the Joint ALMA Observatory and the partner organizations in East Asia, Europe, and North America, is pleased to announce that the ALMA Cycle 12 Call for Proposals (https://almascience.org/proposing/call-for-proposals) for scientific observations is now OPEN!


ALMA Cycle 12 is currently scheduled for observations from October 2025 to September 2026. Users of any nationality or affiliation are invited to submit proposals before the deadline of 15:00 UT on Thursday 24 April 2025.


Full details about capabilities, applying, and other information can be found at https://almascience.nrao.edu/documents-and-tools.


Proposal Preparation Webinar and Workshops


Webinar  – Join the ALMA Ambassadors for a webinar on 02 April at 2pm Eastern, in preparation for the Cycle 12 proposal deadline (24 April 2025). This webinar will provide an overview of the basics of ALMA, new capabilities in Cycle 12, and proposal preparation (including dual-anonymous and distributed peer review). The webinar will be followed by a brief Q&A session. Please register at: https://nrao-edu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_M5as44qrR7qUoB851XrWAw


Workshops – The North American ALMA Science Center (NAASC) and the Cycle 12 ALMA Ambassadors have also organized a series of ALMA proposal preparation workshops, to take place between 21 March and 05 April 2025. The goal of these events is to provide users with the knowledge they need to carry out cutting-edge scientific research using ALMA. We are particularly interested in reaching new users, so no experience with radio astronomy is required to participate!

Registration for these workshops is free. The workshops are designed to assist you in proposal preparation and observation planning for ALMA Cycle 12, and may include talks on the following topics:


  • ALMA Basics and Cycle 12 Capabilities

  • Radio Interferometry Basics

  • Cycle 12 Proposal Preparation and the Proposal Review Process

  • Introduction to the ALMA Observing Tool

  • ALMA Data Products, Archive Use, and Notes on the Pipeline Weblog

  • Common Astronomy Software Applications (CASA) Simulations

  • Science-ready Data Products


Workshops are being held in person as well as virtually in two locations in Canada:



In-person and virtual workshops are also being held in locations across the United States, Puerto Rico, and Chile. For information and registration for all workshops, please go to https://science.nrao.edu/facilities/alma/community

These ALMA workshops and webinar are hosted by experienced postdocs and graduate students as part of the ALMA Ambassadors program, which is open to graduate students and postdocs at any institution in Canada or the United States. Check out https://science.nrao.edu/facilities/alma/ambassadors-program/ for more information and to learn about applying.


ALMA Primer Video Series – New Releases


The ALMA Primer Instructional Video series, which can be found on the Science Portal at https://almascience.nrao.edu/tools/alma-primer-videos, is designed to provide a basic introduction to radio interferometry, calibration, imaging, and other topics in short (5-10 minute), easy-to-digest segments. As a work in progress, new videos are released periodically.  Recent videos include a brief introduction to how ALMA’s heterodyne receivers work (https://youtu.be/rpbaPNwntb0?si=JHsWTQ1OIYDTxali), and a series explaining sidebands, basebands and spectral windows (https://youtu.be/bm6vrEWAlYM?si=R2NIYvcZ1vnXBRd-), with practical examples on tuning setups (https://youtu.be/1zWwLrsBwA4?si=elgmOu8SGFtpKQaJ; https://youtu.be/18qE2-u0rMY?si=We49svch4_AfKctC). A new video on Primary Beams and Field-of-View is under production and is expected to be released by April 2025.


Other videos in the series include an Introduction to Radio Interferometry, Calibration, CLEAN, and much more. Subscribe to the ALMA Primer Video Series YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@almaprimer920) to be alerted to new videos as they are released.


We are always looking for ideas for new videos, and especially looking for people who would like to help with script generation, animation, and narration. If you have an idea or want to join the Primer Video Working Group (at any level of effort), please contact gerald.schieven[at]nrc-cnrc.gc.ca.

CCAT Update


By Mike Fich (Waterloo Centre for Astrophysics) and the Canadian CCAT team


The CCAT team is pleased to announce that another major milestone has been reached in this project: the Fred Young Submillimeter Telescope (FYST) has arrived in Chile and assembly on the CCAT Observatory site will begin within the next few weeks.  Telescope commissioning will follow in August 2025.  First light instruments (a broad-band camera and a heterodyne spectrometer) will be installed in February 2026.



FYST is a 6-meter diameter submillimeter survey telescope and will be located at the best submillimetre site that has been identified anywhere in the world.  The CCAT partnership is led by Cornell University with German, Canadian, and Chilean partners. The Canadian participation is channelled through the Canadian Atacama Telescope Consortium (CATC) and includes researchers at ten Canadian universities.  The central camera module for FYST – a 350-micron 50,000-pixel device – is under development by a multi-institutional team led by Scott Chapman at UBC and scheduled for installation in 2027.  This camera will be the crowning jewel of FYST Planning is now underway for the Canadian provision of a second-generation camera to follow in a few years.  Much more detail on the project is available at the website www.ccatobservatory.org.


The CCAT team has been actively planning the science activities for FYST for several years and the plans are now in a quite mature state.  All of the observing time with FYST will be used in large surveys that are now well-defined.  Eight Key Projects have been identified.  Four of these Key Projects have Canadian leadership.  The sixth (annual) CCAT Consortium Meeting (CCM6) will be held in the Fall at Cornell (CCM5 was held at the University of Toronto).


The CCAT team is very much open to new members. We are especially encouraging new science ideas that we can explore with the amazing survey datasets we will create with FYST. If you have an interest in participating in the technology development or in any of the Key Projects please contact the author of this note, or Norm Murray (a CCAT Director), or a Key Project leader (listed on the website above).

CASTOR Update


By Patrick Côté (NRC-Herzberg), Tyrone Woods (University of Manitoba)


  • The Coalition for Canadian Astronomy. The Coalition for Canadian Astronomy — which brings together representatives from the astronomical community (CASCA), the Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy (ACURA) and industry — has the goal of securing federal funding for projects endorsed by the LRP. The Coalition is continuing its vigorous efforts in support of CASTOR, meeting with representatives from CSA, NRC, industry and the federal government on multiple occasions. The highest priority for the project remains the approval of a mission-defining Phase A study (and associated technology development) that would include formal agreements with international partners who await this critical next step.

  • Detector Testing and Characterization Program. Upgrades to the vacuum ultraviolet calibration facility at the University of Calgary are nearing completion. This specialized facility is being used in a long-term program to test and characterize delta-doped CMOS detectors for the CASTOR mission. QE-enhanced CIS120 CMOS detectors from Teledyne-e2v and JPL have now been delivered to the facility, along with custom readout electronics developed by NRC-HAA. This facility will also feature prominently in the three-year NRC Small Teams project that is building a proto-type UVMOS instrument, in collaboration with France (Marseille) and Colorado (LASP). Promising discussions are also underway with GOLD (Grupo de Óptica de Láminas Delgadas), a research group affiliated with Instituto de Óptica-CSIC (Madrid, Spain) that specializes in optical coatings for use at UV wavelengths.

  • CASTOR Overview Paper. The Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Instruments and Systems (JATIS) will soon publish a special issue entitled “Ultraviolet Science and Instrumentation: On the Way to Habitable Worlds Observatory and Beyond”. An invited review of the CASTOR mission was recently accepted for publication in this special issue of JATIS, which will be available soon. This article provides an up-to-date summary of the current design, science plan, and ongoing technology development — with a focus on synergies with NASA’s upcoming Habitable Worlds Observatory. The large number of coauthors (180) reflects the many individuals who have contributed to the scientific, technical and programmatic development of the mission since 2010.

  • Science Planning Tools. Work continues on the development of various science planning tools for the mission, carried under the FORECASTOR initiative (Finding Optics Requirements and Exposure times for CASTOR). Recent highlights include the development of a survey scheduling and implementation tool (including a careful trade study on the choice of downlink technologies for the mission), Pyxel-based simulations of the in-orbit performance of CASTOR’s expected flight detectors, and the continuing development of a grism ETC and data simulator. A priority for the coming semester will be the extension of the survey scheduling tool to the case of non-sidereal targets within our solar system. A series of monthly FORECASTOR zoom meetings brings together astronomers and developers with shared interests in these tools. For more details, contact the one the mission science leads.

  • Town Hall at 2025 CASCA AGM. The upcoming CASCA AGM, to be held in Halifax on June 2-5, will feature an ACURA Town Hall. The first half of this lunchtime session will be devoted to SKA, and the second half to CASTOR. Community members are encouraged to attend to learn more about the current status of the mission and its ongoing development. The AGM will also feature a dedicated session on the MTR which is reviewing the state of our field, including progress towards realizing the LRP’s goals in space astronomy.


    For more information on the mission, see https://www.castormission.org

CFHT News and Updates


By Nadine Manset (Director of Science Operations, on behalf of the CFHT ‘ohana)


Recently


At its December 2024 meeting, the CFHT Board of Directors made an important recommendation regarding the Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer. See Pat Hall’s update in this newsletter.


In the science news, University of Hawaiʻi astronomers played a pivotal role in tracking an asteroid once feared to pose a risk to Earth. The asteroid, 2024 YR4, was discovered in late December and observed with MegaCam on the first night of the February run. Before the CFHT observations, the asteroid had a 3% probability of colliding with Earth in December 2032. Thanks to the MegaCam data and observations from other facilities, the likelihood dropped to just 0.28% and is now 0.001%. https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2025/02/20/hawaii-astronomers-asteroid-impact-probability-decreases/


MegaCam and its wide field of view also enabled another major discovery within our solar system, this time thanks to the work of Canadian astronomers. In March, a team from the University of British Columbia that includes Brett Gladman announced that Saturn now has 128 additional moons. Repeated monitoring of the sky around Saturn between 2019 and 2021 revealed the existence of the newly discovered irregular satellites. https://phas.ubc.ca/2025-discovery-more-saturnian-moons


Soon


The 14th CFHT Users’ Meeting will be held May 26 – 28 at Lac-à-L’Eau-Claire, in Québec. Although the abstract submission deadline has passed, registration is still open until April 1st. We are getting close to capacity for in-person attendance, so register quickly to save your seat if you’d like to join us in person! Remote participation is also possible. The Scientific Organization Committee is currently working on the program, which will include 2 or 3 sessions to prepare the Community Survey. The first session will present, on Monday, the scope, context, and process for the CS. Sessions on the following days will enable discussions among participants.


Canadian Gemini Office News


By Eric Steinbring (Canadian Gemini Office, National Research Council Herzberg Astronomy & Astrophysics)


Calls for Proposals


Another springtime (in the northern hemisphere) brings three opportunities for Canadians to propose for time:


Although not so much for Gemini-South, there has been a somewhat concerning trend towards fewer Canadian requests for Band 1+2 time (statistically, getting the best 60% of conditions) in the North, which may be for several reasons, such as competing instruments and opportunities. For reference, Figure 1 is a plot of the oversubscription for available Canadian time on both North (blue) and South (red) in the last few years. Recall also that it is smart to imagine whether relaxed, Band 3 conditions (so the usable 80% of time) can help achieve your science – even if it means asking for more time to get the job done. There is a special section of the proposal to describe exactly this strategy for consideration by the TAC. If instead, Band-4 conditions (essentially just needing the dome to be open!) would work, you can always try a Poor Weather proposal.



Relatedly, there was a nice uptick recently in Canadian requests for the FT program, including for instruments in the North. Note that FT is a separate (quick) proposal system that does not go through CanTAC, and involves 10% of Canadian Gemimi time. FT can be a very good fit when a proposal needs a fairly modest amount of time and would benefit from not waiting until the bigger full-semester Call. Remember that there is always Director’s Discretionary time available (currently up to 5% per telescope) for those things that cannot wait, and are scientifically important enough not to. And finally, it is worth mentioning a couple of new instrument modes on Subaru requestable via exchange time are AO3k (the new adaptive optics deformable mirror) and the availability of PFS (Prime Focus Spectrograph). Good luck with all of your proposals.


Strategic Planning Survey


Farther off on the horizon is to imagine what Gemini should look like in the 2030s. Gemini is now formulating a new Strategic Vision plan, guided by the needs of the user community, together with all the partners and community stake-holders. What are your scientific priorities for Gemini, and how should Observatory operations change (if at all) to better work towards those? What new capabilities do you think should be built to achieve those? Your thoughts on this long-range plan for the next decade are sought. Go to https://www.gemini.edu/about/gemini-strategic-planning for more, and fill in the survey at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScEkv2fiXwPZYXD05zBIo3eMhVF8jPwgHDWWYRdouKxSakxIg/viewform. It is open until 12 June 2025. Make sure your voice is heard!

Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE) – Last Update for Now


By Pat Hall (York University), MSE Management Group member


In December 2024, the CFHT Board of Directors made the following recommendation: 

The Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer remains an exciting and competitive concept. The Board appreciates the efforts of all those who have worked over the years to help define MSE’s technical and scientific readiness. MSE’s timeline is, however, strongly delayed, and at the present time the Observatory’s priority must be to ensure it continues to operate as a scientifically effective facility into the 2030s. For this reason, The Board does not approve any additional allocation of internal funds towards MSE activities, beyond those absolutely necessary to responsibly and safely bring current activities to a stop. The ultimate realization of MSE in some form currently remains the best plan for the long term future of CFHT. The Observatory, through consultation with the SAC and the User community may, however, explore alternatives to MSE that achieve compelling science that utilizes the unique site on Mauna Kea. The Board remains committed to achieving a scientifically productive future for CFHT beyond 2033, building on its long tradition of excellence and the outstanding work of the CFHT staff.


Following this recommendation, CFHT is winding down all MSE activities. The Board acknowledges that MSE in some form remains the current best plan for the CFHT site under the new astronomy lease at Maunakea. Support from the current and future CFHT community will be essential to determine what future capabilities the CFHT will have. 


The near-term future of CFHT will include Community Surveys and (https://www.cfht.hawaii.edu/en/science/CommunitySurvey/) starting in 2027 at the earliest, possibilities for which will be discussed in detail at the next CFHT Users’ Meeting, May 26-28, in Quebec. (https://www.cfht.hawaii.edu/en/news/UM2025/). In response to the board’s recommendation on alternative instrumentation to MSE, interpreted as potential upgrades to CFHT prior to MSE’s implementation, the community was invited to present ideas and will discuss technological upgrades and alternatives at the upcoming CFHT Users Meeting’s instrumentation session.


The science case for wide-field 8-meter-class spectroscopy in general, and MSE in particular, remains compelling. Meanwhile, such spectroscopy is becoming a reality with PFS on Subaru, and work toward proposed dedicated facilities continues in the form of the ESO WST project (https://arxiv.org/abs/2405.12518) and the Spectroscopic Stage-5 Experiment (https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.07923). Partnership with those initiatives might be a way to involve CFHT in a future dedicated 8-meter class spectroscopic facility, if supported by the CFHT community.


Speaking personally as someone who has been an advocate for MSE since 2013, I know that the MSE scientific community worldwide made great efforts to secure funding to start this project sooner rather than later. I thank everyone in Canada and elsewhere who has worked on them to date.  

ngVLA Update


By Erik Rosolowsky (University of Alberta), Joan Wrobel (NRAO)


Prototype Antenna Dish Lift


The construction of the ngVLA prototype antenna was streamed live from New Mexico, USA on February 6. Viewers worldwide watched as the 18m dish was successfully lifted onto its pedestal. Missed the live stream?  Watch a replay! The image below shows the installed antenna. The prototype will be used for design characterization.



VLA+VLBA to ngVLA Transition Option Concepts

An external and international committee, the Transition Advisory Group (TAG), was asked to make recommendations regarding option concepts for a VLA/VLBA to ngVLA transition. On January 14 the TAG posted its draft report. The report recommends full VLBA operations and maintaining VLA operations as long as possible, including a maximal receiver suite and changing array configurations. If it is impossible to maintain the VLA up to the late stages of ngVLA construction, the TAG proposes a reduced receiver suite (L-C-S-X-K) as a first fallback and a fixed array configuration as a second fallback.


The TAG co-chairs announced the posting during Session 183 at the AAS 245 Winter meeting. Comments were sought from the 70+ session participants. The TAG is now collecting comments from the broader community until mid-April. Comments may be emailed to ngvla-transition-feedback@listmgr.nrao.edu. The TAG will consider all comments as it develops its final advisory report to NRAO, due later in the year.


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