Contributions by Gemini staff
On the Horizon
New developments in Gemini’s instruments of the future are carrying
the Observatory closer to achieving its goals. GHOST is planning its
critical design review by year’s end. Base Facility Operations work
packages are on schedule. Hamamatsu has completed the new CCDs
for GMOS-N. And the Gemini Instrument Feasibility Study project is
progressing with contract agreements pending.
Progress on GHOST
The Gemini High-resolution Optical SpecTrograph (GHOST) is moving into the project’s
critical design stage this month. The design team — led by the Australian Astronomical
Observatory and also consisting of Canada’s National Research Council-Herzberg and the
Australian National University — has been implementing project-strengthening recommendations made in January by the project’s preliminary design review committee. The
project should be prepared for a critical design review by the end of the year.
Base Facility Science Operations Taking Shape
Gemini’s Base Facility Operations (BFO) project — tasked to design, fabricate, procure, integrate, test, and commission all systems necessary to remotely operate all observatory systems
required for Science Operations from the Base Facilities with little or no human presence at either
summit — is on schedule. The majority of the 19 work packages (including systems to continuously monitor environmental and telescope conditions and to control critical telescope
functions safely, among other tasks) are reaching the end of the design phase before they
enter into the implementation phase; one of the largest (Telescope Systems Remote Switch)
is nearly ready to start the first round of tests. In the coming months we will see some of the
BFO’s staff from Gemini South visit Gemini North to collaborate on the project. Most of the
hardware work should take place towards the end of the second quarter of 2015.
We will deliver new features as the testing and verification milestones are completed, so
that the nighttime staff can begin using them. This will provide us with the opportunity to
22
GeminiFocus
April 2015