Gemini staff contributions
Figure 1 (top).
Alan McConnachie of
HAA taking some test
spectra with GHOST in the
HAA integration lab.
Credit: Scot Kleinman
Figure 2 (bottom).
Scott Roberts of HAA
showing Telescope
Scientist Tom Hayward
of Gemini the impressive
outer enclosure for
GHOST.
Credit: Scot Kleinman
On the Horizon
The GHOST project nears completion of a major milestone. Gemini
has released a Request for Proposals to design the Gemini North
Adaptive Optics Imager. The instrument team of MAROON-X are in
Hawai‘i with Gemini staff preparing for commissioning. GIRMOS
passes its Conceptual Design Review. IGRINS is slated to become
available again in 2020. And join the excitement at the 20th
Anniversary Gemini Science Meeting in Seoul, Korea.
GHOST: Project Build Phase Nearing
Completion
The National Research Council Canada’s Herzberg Astronomy and
Astrophysics (HAA) Research Centre is in the final few weeks of the
build phase for the Gemini High-resolution Optical SpecTrograph
(GHOST). HAA staff fine-aligned the spectrograph optics and are
now able to take test spectra (Figure1). The Australian Astronomical
Optics (AAO) group at Macquarie University delivered the science
fiber cable, slit view assembly, and associated electronics to the HAA
in early July. Both groups, along with the Australian National Uni-
versity and Software Design Ideas, have been working together the
past several months to integrate the various hardware, optics, elec-
tronics, and software into a functioning spectrograph (Figure 2).
Now that this major milestone is nearly complete, the combined
teams expect to enter into the test phase in October. If all testing
goes to plan, the team expects to ship shortly after the start of 2020
to Chile, where the AAO-built acquisition unit is ready to connect.
18
GeminiFocus
October 2019