Transcript
NATIONAL OPTICAL ASTRONOMY OBSERVATORY
QUARTERLY SCIENTIFIC REPORT (2) FY 2015 1 January–31 March 2015
These two images illustrate how difficult it is to spot dwarf galaxy candidates in Dark Energy Camera (DECam) images. The lefthand image is a snapshot of DES J0335.6-5403, a celestial object found with DECam. It is the most likely of the newly discovered candidates to be a galaxy, according to DES scientists. This object sits ~100,000 light-years from Earth and contains very few stars—only about 300 could be detected with DES data. The right-hand image shows the detectable stars that likely belong to this object, with all other visible matter blacked out. Dwarf satellite galaxies are so faint that it takes an extremely sensitive instrument like DECam to find them. More analysis is required to confirm if any of the newly discovered objects are in fact galaxies. Caption and Image Credit: Fermilab/Dark Energy Survey Submitted to the National Science Foundation Pursuant to Cooperative Support Agreement No. AST-0950945, Article 3-A Cooperative Agreement No. AST-0809409
Also published on the NOAO Web site: http://www.noao.edu NOAO is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation
National Optical Astronomy Observatory Quarterly Scientific Report (2) FY 2015 (1 January 2015 – 31 March 2015) Submitted to the National Science Foundation
Pursuant to Cooperative Support Agreement No. AST-0950945 27 April 2015
Contents 1 NOAO DIVISIONS ................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 NOAO South ...................................................................................................... 1 1.1.1 Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory .......................................... 1 1.1.2 NOAO South Engineering & Technical Services ............................... 6 1.1.3 NOAO South Facilities Operations ..................................................... 8 1.1.4 NOAO South Computer Infrastructure Services ................................. 9 1.2 NOAO North .................................................................................................... 11 1.2.1 Kitt Peak National Observatory......................................................... 11 1.2.2 NOAO North Engineering & Technical Services ............................. 13 1.2.3 NOAO North Central Facilities Operations ...................................... 14 1.2.4 NOAO North Computer Infrastructure Services ............................... 16 1.3 NOAO System Science Center ........................................................................ 17 1.3.1 System User Support ......................................................................... 17 1.3.2 Science Data Management ................................................................ 19 1.3.3 System Community Development ..................................................... 22 1.3.4 Time Allocation Committee .............................................................. 26 1.4 NOAO System Technology Center .................................................................. 27 2 NOAO-WIDE PROGRAMS ............................................................................................... 29 2.1 Office of Science .............................................................................................. 29 2.2 Education and Public Outreach ........................................................................ 29 2.3 NOAO Director’s Office .................................................................................. 33 2.4 Risk Management ............................................................................................ 35 3 OBSERVING PROGRAMS SEMESTER 2015A ............................................................. 37 3.1 Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory....................................................... 37 3.2 Kitt Peak National Observatory ....................................................................... 42 3.3 Gemini Observatory ......................................................................................... 45
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NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
3.4
Community Access to Private Telescopes....................................................... 52 3.4.1 Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy .............................. 52 3.4.2 Australian Astronomical Observatory .............................................. 53
4 USAGE OF ARCHIVED DATA ........................................................................................ 54 5 GRANTS .............................................................................................................................. 55 6 NOAO SAFETY REPORT FOR Q2 ................................................................................. 56 6.1 North................................................................................................................ 56 6.2 South................................................................................................................ 57
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1 NOAO DIVISIONS 1.1
NOAO SOUTH
The NOAO South (NS) division is responsible for operations, maintenance, and development for all NOAO activities in Chile. For program management purposes, these activities are separated into the following subprograms:
Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory
NOAO South Engineering & Technical Services
NOAO South Central Facilities Operations
NOAO South Computer Infrastructure Services
1.1.1
Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory
Program Highlights Science During this reporting period, three groups announced the discovery of a total of ten new Milky Way satellites found using data obtained with the Dark Energy Camera (DECam) on the Blanco 4-m telescope (Figure 1). One group, consisting of Sergey Koposov and colleagues from the University of Cambridge (Koposov et al. ArXiv 1503.02079), reports nine new objects, while the group of Keith Bechtol and the Dark Energy Survey (DES) collaboration (Bechtol et al. ArXiv 1503.02584) announce the independent discovery of eight of these objects. Both groups made their discoveries us-
Figure 1: New dwarf satellites (red dots) of the Milky Way independently discovered using Dark Energy Survey (DES) data by Koposov et al. and Bechtol et al. Previously known dwarf satellites are marked as blue dots. The grey outline shows the footprint of the DES Y1A1 data used for the search. The inset shows suspected members of one of the candidate objects selected based on their location in the color magnitude diagram. (Image credit: Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory/Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory/Dark Energy Survey/Infrared Processing and Analysis Center/California Institute of Technology/University of Massachusetts.)
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NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
ing gri-band images obtained during the first season of DES observations. While Bechtol et al. employed stacked images and co-add catalogs from the first internal DES data release (referred to as Y1A1), Koposov et al. searched publicly released DES images obtained from the NOAO Science Archive. The additional object discovered by Koposov et al. lies within the DES year one footprint, but outside the area included in the Y1A1 catalog. Spurred by these discoveries, the third group of Martin et al. (ArXiv 1503.06216) searched images obtained for the NOAO Survey program “Survey of the Magellanic Stellar History” (SMASH: PI D. Nidever) finding a tenth satellite. The candidate objects can be unambiguously identified from the DECam data alone as statistically significant arcminute-scale regions of an over-density of individual stars with colors consistent with an old (>10 GYr), metal-poor stellar population (Figure 2). The objects were found using a variety of search techniques that included visual inspection of DES images, thresholding stellar density maps, scanning with optimized spatial filters, and automated matched filter maximum-likelihood algorithms. The newly discovered satellites span a wide range of absolute magnitudes (MV from –2.2 mag to –7.4 mag), physical sizes (10 pc to 170 pc), and heliocentric distances (30 kpc to 380 kpc). Based on their morphology, three of the objects (Reticulum II, Eridanus II, and Tucana II) discovered by Koposov et al. and Bechtol et al. and a fourth object (Hydra II) discovered by Martin et al. can already be identified as dwarf galaxies. The remaining six objects may be ultra-faint satellite galaxies similar to Segue-1, or they may be globular clusters; spectroscopic observations are required for differentiation.
Figure 2: Stellar density and color magnitude diagrams for DES J0335.6-5403 (Reticulum II) from Bechtol et al. Top left: Spatial distribution of stars with g < 24 mag that are within 0.1 mag of the isochrone displayed in the lower panels. The field of view is 1.5 × 1. 5 degrees centered on the candidate, and the stellar distribution has been smoothed with a Gaussian kernel with standard deviation 0.027 degrees. Top center: Radial distribution of stars with g–r < 1 mag and g < 24 mag. Top right: Spatial distribution of stars with high membership probabilities within a field of view of 0.5 × 0.5 degrees. Small gray points indicate stars with membership probability less than 5%. Bottom left: The color-magnitude distribution of stars within 0.1 degree of the centroid is indicated with individual points. The density of the field within a 1-degree annulus is represented by the background two-dimensional histogram in grayscale. The red curve shows a representative isochrone for a stellar population with T = 13.5 Gyr and Z = 0.0001 located at the best distance modulus listed in the upper left panel. Bottom center: Binned significance diagram representing the Poisson probability of detecting the observed number of stars within the central 0.1 degree for each bin of the colormagnitude space given the local field density. Bottom right: Color-magnitude distribution of high membership probability stars.
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NOAO DIVISIONS
Several of the new satellites are in close proximity to the Magellanic Clouds, which suggests that they may be, or once were, satellites of those galaxies. In particular, Koposov et al. suggest that Reticulum II, Horologium I, and Eridanus III are aligned with the orbital plane of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and form part of the entourage of the LMC, while Tucana II, Phoenix II, and Grus I most likely comprise part of the entourage of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) and that all of these objects trail behind the Magellanic Clouds in their orbit. Interestingly, Martin et al. find that the distance of Hydra II would locate it within the leading arm of the Magellanic stream. The most distant of the objects, Eridanus II, is located on the periphery of the galaxy and is comparable in absolute magnitude and size to the Leo T classical dwarf galaxy. Koposov et al. find that its color magnitude diagram shows a number of bright blue stars indicative of a young blue loop, in addition to the expected old population. They also suggest that a fuzzy object in the same direction might be an unresolved globular cluster associated with the dwarf galaxy. The internal dynamics of dwarf galaxies can only be explained if they contain substantial amounts of Dark Matter. Their relative proximity and location at high galactic latitudes, which places them against a relatively simple background, make them attractive targets for searches for -rays resulting from dark matter annihilation. A paper by Geringer-Samath et al., including the Cambridge team (ArXiv 1503-02320), reports the detection of excess -ray emission with significance >3.7 from the direction of Reticulum II, the closest of the newly discovered dwarf galaxies, using public archival data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT). Conversely in a joint paper, the FermiLAT and DES collaborations (Drlica-Wagner et al. ArXiv 1503-02632) report no significant excess of -ray emission toward any of the eight new dwarf galaxies found by Bechtol et al., including Reticulum II. This second paper used the same Fermi-LAT data but a newer version of the analysis code, which should lead to improved sensitivity. Clearly, further analysis will be required to reconcile these two high-profile results. The above results were based on only the first season of DES data, which covered less than half the full survey footprint and reached only 40% of the sensitivity of the final survey. Thus, these results only foreshadow what will be possible once the full data set is in hand. Instrumentation/Management During the second quarter (Q2) of FY15, the focus of CTIO’s efforts continued to be on improvements to the Blanco 4-m and Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) 4.1-m telescopes, supporting the second observing season of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) and the use of DECam by the open-access community, and preparing for the arrival of the near-infrared spectrograph TripleSpec4 (TS4). The second DES season ended on 15 February 2015. During January and the first half of February, one full night and the first half of 35 nights, equivalent to 18.5 full nights, were dedicated to DES. This completed the second season allocation of 105 nights. During this time, a total of 3089 images were collected for the wide-field survey, 98% of those images were judged to be of survey quality. In addition, 480 images were obtained for the supernova fields, and 97% of those images were accepted. In comparing the second season to the first, the DES team reported both a significant improvement in the delivered image quality and an increase in the shutter-open fraction (a measure of observing efficiency), attributable to the FY14 improvements to the telescope and its thermal environment. These improvements have allowed the survey to make up some of the ground lost due to bad weather and early instrument problems, so that progress on the wide-field survey is only 10% behind the original target as of the end of the second season. The Blanco telescope and DECam have proven to be a very reliable and robust system, with only 11 hours (1.7%) of observing time being lost due to technical problems of any kind in Q2. During the reporting period, 51 nights where scheduled for 15 programs submitted to the NOAO Time Al-
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NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
location Committees, 10 nights were scheduled for 3 Chilean programs, and 5 nights were scheduled for 2 programs under the time trade agreement with the Australian Astronomical Observatory. Four engineering nights were used to obtain data to refine the telescope’s pointing model and the look-up tables for the active optics system. Sixty-five participants attended the “DECam Community Workshop 2015” held March 11–13, in Tucson. The DECam workshop was held immediately after the related NOAO-sponsored conference “Tools of Astronomical Big Data.” Many participants attended both meetings. The workshop brought DES and NOAO experts on the instrument and its data products together with current and potential users of DECam and/or of the publicly available DES and community images stored in the NOAO Science Archive. The presentations, 14 invited and 14 contributed, covered instrument performance, characteristics of the data, analysis techniques, data reduction pipelines, and the NOAO Science Archive. They also showcased early science results from DES and community programs. Three roundtable discussions provided a forum for users to ask questions and give feedback on the instrument, the community data reduction pipeline, and the NOAO Science Archive. The completed detector packages for the TS4 were shipped to the US in January 2015. This followed the completion of work carried out by NOAO South Engineering & Technical Services (NS ETS) staff in Chile to test and characterize these devices. Several NOAO South staff traveled to Cornell University in February to participate in the final integration of the instrument (Figure 3). In particular, the NOAO South detector team helped install the detectors in the instrument dewar and verify their performance against measurements made in Chile. This visit culminated with a successful pre-shipment acceptance test of the entire instrument. The completed instrument will be shipped to Chile in early April and installed on the telescope for an in- Figure 3: Final integration of the near-IR spectrograph in the laboratory at Cornell University by initial six-night engineering and test run start- TripleSpec4 strument team members from Cornell and NOAO South. ing April 29. Fabrication of the instrument Left to Right: C. Henderson (Cornell), M. Bonnatti handling cart and the interface needed to (NOAO), T. Herter (Cornell, on ladder), R. Alvarez, M. mount TS4 at the ƒ/8 focus of Blanco was Warner (NOAO), and S. Shields (Cornell). (Image credit: completed during this reporting period (see P. Schurter/NOAO/AURA/NSF.) Figure 4 on page 6). Status of FY15 Milestones
Develop a program of regular preventative maintenance for the Blanco 4-m telescope and its key, supporting infrastructure, and implement it starting in Q2 of FY15. Status: Implementation of the basic framework for scheduling and tracking periodic maintenance activities within the JIRA issue reporting and tracking system was completed in Q1. During the balance of the year, maintenance procedures for key components of the telescope and supporting infrastructure will be reviewed, updated, and incorporated within this system. The systems incorporated in Q2 include the new M1 active support system and the air-conditioning equipment and other components of the dome cooling system.
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NOAO DIVISIONS
Refurbish or replace the secondary backup generator, secondary frequency converter, and associated transfer switches in the Cerro Tololo powerhouse to ensure robust operation of this critical equipment for the next decade. Planning and prioritization will be carried out in Q1 of FY15 with procurement starting in Q2 as funding permits. Status: Work continued this quarter on specifying and obtaining quotes for a new generator and frequency converter and associated switchgear. An order for the generator should be placed in the third quarter (Q3) of FY15.
Support the second season of observations for the Dark Energy Survey (DES), which runs from mid-August 2014 through early February 2015. Hold a workshop in March 2015 to promote the effective use by the community of the images collected during the first DES season. Status: Completed. The second season of the Dark energy survey was completed on 15 February 2015. During the 18.5 full-night equivalents scheduled for DES in Q2 of FY15, 3089 images were collected for the wide-field survey. Of those, 98% were judged to be of survey quality. For the supernova program, 480 images were obtained, and 97% of those were accepted. The “DECam Community Workshop 2015” held March 13–16, in Tucson, was attended by 65 participants from DES, NOAO, and the user community. Twenty-eight presentations covered the properties of the instrument and its data, DES and community data reduction pipelines, the NOAO Science Archive, and early science results from DES and community programs.
Prepare for the delivery of the TripleSpec4 (TS4) near-infrared spectrograph, in January 2015, and commission it on the Blanco 4-m telescope during Q3 and Q4 of FY15. Status: Fabrication and assembly of TS4 at Cornell University was completed, although it ran a few months over schedule. Several NOAO South staff traveled to Cornell in February where they participated in the final integration of the instrument and witnessed the successful preshipment test. Fabrication of the telescope interface and instrument handling cart also was completed during Q2. CTIO is ready to receive the instrument and install it on the Blanco telescope in April.
Develop during Q1 of FY15 conceptual designs and resource estimates for the steps needed to increase observing efficiency at the SOAR telescope, including improvement of the guide star selection software, addition of an acquisition camera to the Goodman Spectrograph, and implementation of closed-loop control of focus and astigmatism, and propose them to the SOAR board for funding. It is anticipated that, given a favorable finding decision, one or two of these measures can be implemented during FY15, the others being carried over to FY16. Status: Fabrication and assembly of the acquisition camera for the Goodman spectrograph was begun during the reporting period with an anticipated completion time that will allow installation and test on the telescope to be carried out during the fourth quarter (Q4) of FY15. Work began on the design of the opto-mechanical modifications to the guider to allow its use as a loworder wave-front sensor, thus permitting closed-loop control of focus and astigmatism.
To strengthen post-run scientific support of users of the SOAR telescope, carry out a survey during Q1 of FY15 of previous users of NOAO time to determine what factors have limited their ability to publish quickly, and use this as the basis for planning and prioritization of improvements to be implemented during the remainder of the year. Status: No progress during this reporting period.
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NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
Implement succession plans for key staff who will transition fully or on a shared basis to LSST. Recruitment to replace the transitioning staff will take place in Q1 of FY15 with cross training and knowledge transfer occurring over the remainder of the year. Status: The NOAO South Deputy Director will take on the additional role of Head of Facilities, providing leadership for a process of restructuring and renewal of the group. A process to replace the head of NOAO South Computer Infrastructure Services is underway, but will continue into Q3. Discussions continued with LSST concerning additional staff who may transition from CTIO to LSST on a full- or part-time basis, as construction activity ramps up, to allow the timely recruitment of additional staff and to ensure critical knowledge is retained.
Host the third annual La Serena School for Data Science during one week in August 2015 in collaboration with AURA, LSST, and Chilean institutional partners. Status: Preparation began during Q2 for the 2015 school, which will be held 15–22 August 2015 in La Serena. The list of professors was updated and the curriculum was reviewed and revised at a face-to-face meeting in Tucson. A key professor who moved to a job at Amazon was replaced by a professor of the Harvard Institute for Applied Computational Science. The school was promoted at the NOAO booth during the January 2015 American Astronomical Society (AAS) meeting; the school attracted interest from many candidates. An announcement was posted on the website http://www.aura-o.aura-astronomy.org/winter_school/. Applications for the 2015 school will open on April 1 and close on May 15.
1.1.2
NOAO South Engineering & Technical Services
Program Highlights During this reporting period, the NOAO South Engineering and Technical Services (NS ETS) group provided engineering and technical support for science operations of the CTIO telescopes, helping with problem diagnosis and resolution and regular maintenance of the optical, mechanical, electronic, and software systems of the telescopes and instruments. They also participated in projects to upgrade the performance of the telescopes and to install and test new instrumentation. The near-infrared spectrograph TripleSpec4 (TS4) was a major focus of activity by NS ETS in Q2. Following testing and characterization by NS ETS staff, the infrared (IR) detectors and their associated control electronics were shipped to Cornell University in January for installation in the instrument. A team from NS ETS traveled to Cornell in February to participate in the integration of the instrument and witness the pre-shipment acceptance test (see Figure 3 on page 4). Fabrication of the instrument-to-telescope interface adapter and the instrument handling cart also was completed during Q2 in the La Serena instrument shop (Figure 4), while the control electronics for the calibration lamps system were completed in the Figure 4: NOAO-S machinists V. Robledo and V. Pinto (left to right) put finishing touches to the teleelectronics laboratory. TS4 will be shipped from scope interface and instrument handling cart for Cornell to Chile in mid-April and installed on the TripleSpec4 in the La Serena machine shop. telescope for a first engineering run on April 29.
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NOAO DIVISIONS
NS ETS worked on various improvement projects for the SOAR telescope during this reporting period. The upgrade to the SOAR Telescope Control System (TCS) continued to make steady progress, with coding of the core modules now nearing completion and testing due to start in Q3. The optics of the SOAR guide cameras were modeled with Zemax software, and their performance was checked against measurements made at the telescope; this work provides the foundation for modification of the cameras to serve as low-order wavefront sensors. Fabrication of parts for the Goodman Spectrograph acquisition camera was begun in the instrument shop. The electronics laboratory was extensively remodeled during Q2. The clean room was refurbished. This included a complete rework of the system of ducts and filters that supply the room with clean air to improve cleanliness and reduce the effort required to prepare the room each time it is used. The whole laboratory was repainted, and workspaces were reorganized to create an area for handling larger instruments and an office for the Electronics Section manager. Two other NS ETS offices were painted and re-carpeted as part of a program of progressive refurbishment that will continue during the remainder of the year. Status of FY15 Milestones
Complete the Blanco telescope primary mirror active optics improvement project in Q1 of FY15. Status: Completed in Q1. Measurements continue to be made regularly during engineering time to refine the look-up tables used to drive the system and to monitor the resulting delivered image quality.
Refurbish the Blanco aluminizing tank in Q3 of FY15 and optimize its control parameters (work to be completed in Q1 of FY16) to ensure stable, reliable, and reproducible deposition of a good-quality coating in time to re-aluminize the Blanco primary mirror during calendar year 2016. Status: Work to document the existing hardware continued during this quarter. The focus was on the vacuum system. The vacuum pumps were thoroughly cleaned and refurbished. A visit was made to a contractor in Santiago to learn about the techniques and equipment needed to use CO2 ice for cleaning the inside of the coating chamber.
Repair the Blanco mirror elevator in Q4 of FY15 following the similar work being carried out at the Mayall telescope during FY14. Status: No progress during this reporting period.
Build the new handling cart for the Blanco Cassegrain cage in Q2 of FY15, the design of which was completed in FY14. Status: No progress during this reporting period.
Complete during Q1 of FY15 the evaluation and costing of improvements to the drive mechanism and emergency brake for the Blanco dome shutter, building on similar work being carried out at the Mayall telescope and Anglo-Australian Telescope. Implementation will begin in Q2 of FY15 but is expected to continue into FY16 depending on the design finally adopted. Status: No progress during this reporting period.
Complete upgrading the SOAR Telescope Control System (TCS) to the same standard as the recently upgraded TCS of the Blanco 4-m telescope in Q4 of FY15.
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NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
Status: Steady progress continued to be made with coding substantially completed for the TCS Kernel and Application modules, and coding for the operator graphical user interface was begun. The test phase is expected to begin on schedule in June 2015. 1.1.3
NOAO South Facilities Operations
Program Highlights The NOAO South Facilities Operations (NS FO) group is responsible for operations, maintenance, and long-term stewardship of the physical infrastructure shared by the facilities hosted by AURA Observatory (AURA-O) in Chile. This includes support buildings, housing, and miscellaneous other facilities in La Serena and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón. Construction of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), which started in Q2 of FY15, is impacting significantly the infrastructure usage on the mountain: producing more traffic on the mountain roads, requiring longer operating hours for the gate, and increasing water consumption on Cerro Pachón. NS FO has adjusted its frequency of services to meet the demands of LSST construction and will continue to do so during the coming years. At the end of March, a severe electrical storm affected operations on the AURA-O site. The road was damaged in several places, and repairs are underway. Lightning struck the power lines interrupting the commercial power to both mountains. Commercial power to the facilities on Cerro Pachón was restored within a few days after the storm. However, repairs to a damaged step-down transformer and frequency converter on Cerro Tololo will continue into Q3, leaving the facilities there running on generator power for an extended period. Status of FY15 Milestones
Improve the reliability of the electric power transmission infrastructure for both mountains by installing contacts/connectors at the junction between the commercial power company and AURA lines, at the bifurcation of the lines to Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón, and on each summit in Q2 of FY15. Status: This project was approved as a contingency project by the Advisory Committee that represents the AURA tenants. The project will be carried out in Q4 of FY15 if funds are available. In parallel, the option to rent the equipment from the electricity company, CONAFE, is being explored.
Provide separate utility metering in Q3 of FY15 for all tenants on Cerro Tololo, and implement a Web-based database for utility consumption to improve the accuracy of billing to users. Status: No progress during this reporting period. Plans for placing additional electricity and water meters were developed, and the materials were purchased. The electricity meters will be installed during Q3, followed by the installation of the water meters. The Web-based database was implemented and has been in full use since the beginning of FY15.
Complete repairs to the roof of the La Serena office building in Q1 of FY15, addressing the roof sections over the Engineering & Technical Services and SOAR offices. Status: The roof over the NOAO South library in La Serena was replaced in March. Meanwhile, a new contractor was found to repair the roof over the NS ETS wing, as the original contractor was not able to carry out the work. A contract was let, and the work will start in April 2015.
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NOAO DIVISIONS
Install a new heating and air conditioning system for the La Serena offices and laboratories in Q2 of FY15. Status: No progress during this reporting period.
Remodel the La Serena machine shop in Q4 of FY15 to provide a covered, well-ventilated area for welding and painting and to provide a direct entrance to the shop superintendent’s office without passing through the machine shop proper, for safety reasons. Status: Quotes were received in Q2 for remodeling the La Serena machine shop. These quotes are being evaluated.
Support the ramp-up in LSST construction activity on Cerro Pachón, incrementing the capabilities of the Facilities Operations group as needed by the end of Q4 of FY15 in order to meet increased demand for the group’s services and the need for more frequent road maintenance. Status: LSST construction started this quarter. In support of this, an additional truck driver was hired to be able to transport enough water to Cerro Pachón to meet the LSST demand of 70 m3 per week.
1.1.4
NOAO South Computer Infrastructure Services
Program Highlights The NOAO South Computer Infrastructure Services (NS CIS) group provides information technology (IT) support for NOAO personnel and facilities in Chile and supports the backbone communications and network infrastructure for all AURA-O facilities in Chile. NS CIS provides the network infrastructure support necessary to maintain reliable connectivity between the mountaintops (Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón) and La Serena as well as between La Serena and the rest of the world. To meet the greatly increased demand for bandwidth from the mountains to La Serena by new tenant programs such as KASI and T80-S and the operation of DECam at Blanco, NS CIS purchased a new, low cost ( 1 Supernovae and Their Massive Cluster Hosts”
GEM-NQ GEM-SQ
0.85 2.55
V. Rapson (T), J. Kastner (Rochester Institute of Technology), M. Millar-Blanchaer (University of Toronto): “Polarimetric Imaging of the Protoplanetary Disks TW Hya and V4046 Sgr”
GEM-SQ
0.6
A. Rudy (T), C. Max (UC Santa Cruz): “Giant Flares and Non-Thermal Activity in the Crab Nebula”
GEM-NQ
0.35
G. Sardane (T), D. Turnshek, S. Rao (U. of Pittsburgh): “Mapping Cool, Metal-Rich Gas around z < 0.08 Galaxies”
GEM-NQ
3.01
A. Seth, C. Ahn (T) (U. of Utah), S. Mieske (ESO), R. McDermid (Macquarie University), W. Boschi (Max-Planck-Institute für Astronomie), H. Baumgardt (University of Queensland), J. Strader (Michigan State U.), M. den Brok (U. of Utah), L. Spitler (Macquarie University), N. Neumayer (Max-Planck-Institute für Astronomie), A. Romanowsky (San Jose State U.), I. Chilingarian (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), M. Hilker (ESO): “A Survey of Massive Black Holes in Ultracompact Dwarf Galaxies”
GEM-NQ
1.27
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NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
Gemini Telescopes: 2015A Approved Programs for US Time (56) and Theses (29)3
Telescope
Nights
A. Seth, US Lead Scientist for A. Feldmeier (T) (ESO), A. Seth (U. of Utah), N. Neumayer (Max-Planck-Institute für Astronomie), M. Kissler-Patig (Gemini Observatory South), R. Schoedel (CSIC), M. Hilker, H. Kuntschner (ESO), N. Luetzgendorf (European Space Agency (ESTEC)), T. de Zeeuw (ESO), J. Walcher (Leibniz-Institut für Astrophysik), A. MastrobuonoBattisti, H. Perets (Technion-Israel Institute of Technology): “The Milky Way Nuclear Star Cluster as a Benchmark for the Structure and Build-Up of Galactic Nuclei”
GEM-SQ
3.76
M. Wilson (T) (U. of Arizona), H. Chen (U. of Chicago), A. Zabludoff (U. of Arizona), F. Zahedy (G) (U. of Chicago): “Spatially Resolving the Circumgalactic Medium at z = 0.2–0.9”
GEM-N
2
Gemini Telescopes: 2015A Approved Foreign Programs for US Time (1) and Theses (2)
Telescope
Nights
B. Miller (Gemini Observatory South), T. Puzia (Pontifícia Universidad Católica de Chile), R. Sanchez-Janssen (Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics): “Globular Cluster Spectroscopy of dEs in the Local Volume”
GEM-NQ
2
R. Sung (T), S. Lai, T. Hsieh (G) (NTHU): “Mass Accretion Rate of Very Low Luminosity Objects”
GEM-SQ
0.09
R. Sung (T), S. Lai, T. Hsieh (G) (NTHU): “Mass Accretion Rate of Very Low Luminosity Objects”
GEM-NQ
0.25
Telescope
Nights
CHARA
2
Telescope
Nights
M. Kishimoto (Kyoto Sangyo University), R. Antonucci (UC Santa Barbara), S. Hoenig (University of Southampton), F. Millour (Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur), K. Tristram (ESO), G. Weigelt (Max-Planck-Institute für Radioastronomie): “Scrutinizing AGN Thermal Emission at the Highest Spatial Resolution”
CHARA
2
I. Mendigutia, R. Oudmaijer (University of Leeds): “The H(alpha) Line Forming Region of Herbig Ae/Be Stars”
CHARA
1
Foreign Thesis Programs (2)
3.4 COMMUNITY ACCESS TO PRIVATE TELESCOPES 3.4.1 Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy CHARA Telescope: 2015A Approved US Programs (1) E. Baines (Naval Research Laboratory), M. Dollinger, A. Hatzes, E. Guenther (Thüringer Landessternwarte Tautenberg), M. Hrudkovu (Isaac Newton Group): “CHARA Array Measurements of Five Stellar Oscillators”
CHARA Telescope: 2015A Approved Foreign Programs (2)
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OBSERVING PROGRAMS SEMESTER 2015A
3.4.2 Australian Astronomical Observatory Anglo-Australian Telescope: 2015A Approved US Programs (4) and US Theses (1)4
Telescope
Nights
J. Cummings (Johns Hopkins U.), J. Kalirai, P. Tremblay (STScI), D. Geisler, F. Mauro (Universidad de Concepción), C. Deliyannis (Indiana U.): “Survey of High-Mass White Dwarfs in Nearby Open Clusters”
AAT
2
C. Deliyannis (Indiana U.), B. Anthony-Twarog, B. Twarog (U. of Kansas), J. Cummings (Johns Hopkins U.), J. King (Clemson U.), A. Steinhauer (State University of New York Geneseo): “Li and Na in NGC 6752: Constraints for Big Bang Nucleosynthesis, Mixing on the Red Giant Branch, and Multiple Globular Cluster Populations”
AAT
2
M. Geha (Yale U.), R. Wechsler (Stanford U.), R. Muñoz (Universidad de Chile), E. Tollerud (Yale U.), B. Weiner (U. of Arizona): “The SAGA Project: Searching for Dwarf Galaxy Satellites around Milky Way Analogs”
AAT
3
E. Young, L. Young, M. Buie, C. Olkin (Southwest Research Institute): “A Bright Occultation by Pluto Immediately Preceding the New Horizons Flyby”
AAT
1
AAT
2
US Thesis Programs (1) J. Rodriguez (T), M. Lund (G) (Vanderbilt U.), J. Pepper (Lehigh U.), K. Stassun (Vanderbilt U.), K. Colon (Lehigh U.), R. Siverd (O) (Vanderbilt U.), D. James (CTIO), R. Kuhn (G) (SAAO), J. Labadie-Bartz (G) (Lehigh U.): “Confirming the Brightest Transiting Exoplanets from KELT-South with High- Precision Radial Velocities from AAT”
4
Key: (T) = Thesis Student; (G) = Graduate; (U) = Undergraduate; (O) = Other
53
NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
4 USAGE OF ARCHIVED DATA The first two tables below illustrate access to and usage of reduced data in the NOAO Science Archive (R2) from NOAO Survey programs. The table on the left shows the data download volume in gigabytes, the number of files retrieved and the number of unique visitors (for that month) who downloaded archive data through the ftp site. The table on the right shows the Web activity logged from the NOAO Science Archive Web site. It includes users (visitors) collecting additional information before or after downloading data, as well as visualization of the data online. NOAO Science Archive Web Site Activity
Archive Data Retrieval Activity (ftp) Retrieved (GB)
Date
Files Retrieved
Unique Visitors
Date
Bandwidth (GB)
Pages Viewed
Unique Visitors
Jan 2015
0.10873
120
9
Jan 2015
502.64
19,657
791
Feb 2015
3.28
35
10
Feb 2015
25.49
4,468
941
Mar 2015
32.66
175
6
Mar 2015
116.47
11,013
1,181
36.05
330
25
644.60
35,138
2,913
Total:
Total:
The NOAO Portal provides principal investigators (PIs) access to their raw data from all instruments and to pipeline-reduced products from the Mosaic instruments at the CTIO and KPNO 4meter telescopes and the NEWFIRM instrument. The metadata are stored in a searchable Archive, which allows discovery and retrieval from the NOAO Portal (portal-nvo.noao.edu). After the requisite proprietary period (usually 18 months), the data become accessible to the general public. Portal Data Retrieval Activity (ftp) Date
Bandwidth (GB)
Jan 2015
9,483.79
51,983
64
Jan 2015
1.21
13,805
304
Feb 2015
5,220.64
34,793
68
Feb 2015
0.91705
23,077
353
8,336.57
95,960
103
Mar 2015
16.02
181,970
1,160
23,041.00
182,736
235
18.15
218,852
1,817
Mar 2015 Total:
Pages Viewed
NVO Portal Data Retrieval Activity
Unique Visitors
Date
Total:
54
Bandwidth (MB)
Pages Viewed
Unique Visitors
5 GRANTS The following table lists the grants received by NOAO staff from non-NSF agencies during the second quarter of FY 2015. Principle Investigator
Awarding Agency
Title
Budget Period of Amount Performance
Mark Dickinson
JPL
The Distant, Dusty Universe: Spectroscopic Confirma$19,000 tion of Herschel-Selected IR-Luminous Galaxies at z > 3 (NASA Keck 2015A Proposal No. 105)
1/26/2015 – 9/30/2015
Arjun Dey
JPL
A Protocluster at z = 3.78 (NASA Keck 2015A Proposal No. 112)
1/26/2015 – 9/30/2015
Abbreviations used: IR Infrared JPL Jet Propulsion Laboratory NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration
55
$16,000
NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
6 NOAO SAFETY REPORT FOR Q2 6.1
NORTH
During the second quarter of FY15, the following safety activities occurred on Kitt Peak and at the Tucson offices: Kitt Peak
The “Kitt Peak Emergency Manual” was updated, reviewed, and sent to all employees.
Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for all chemicals used in various locations on Kitt Peak were compiled both electronically and in hard copy form and made available to all employees.
Mobile crane inspections were completed for Kitt Peak.
In February, the first wild fire of the season was located very close to Kitt Peak, and emergency measures were put into place. This was the starting point for improving the Wildfire Emergency Plans with input from Kitt Peak staff and Wildland Fire Management Office; the plans are ready to implement.
Kitt Peak and Tucson staff were involved in the DESI Panel review.
The “Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) Manual Tucson/Kitt Peak” was implemented, and a copy was sent to all staff.
The fire panels at both Kitt Peak and Tucson locations are being updated. This work will continue into Q3.
The removal, cleaning, aluminizing, and reinstalling of the 10 Solar mirrors was completed safely.
A Kitt Peak staff Emergency Medical Technician provided training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use of the automated external defibrillator (AED) to all interested staff.
Tucson
The NOAO North safety manager represented NOAO at the annual St. Mary’s Hospital Member Meeting to review any changes in the contract with St. Mary’s Hospital.
The OSHA 300-A Log is no longer a requirement for AURA/NOAO unless there is a fatality or major injury, although a request came from the Department of Labor to fill out a 2015 report.
Hazardous waste material was removed from the Tucson location.
There was a Quarterly Safety Council meeting for both NOAO North and South.
The formal procedure of writing and formatting a Job Hazard Analysis to be used at NOAO North was begun.
ODI lifts were completed safely at both the Kitt Peak and Tucson locations.
Enhanced safety precautions were implemented at the Tucson facility after a member of the staff was attacked off-site.
56
NOAO SAFETY REPORT FOR Q2
6.2
SOUTH
There were two accidents on the observatory access road during the reporting period; both were properly investigated, and appropriate corrective actions were taken:
On January 25, an NOAO South staff member driving down from Cerro Pachón at the end of the working day apparently fell asleep at the wheel and ran off the side of the road against an embankment. Fortunately, the driver suffered no injuries in the accident. The vehicle, a Subaru station wagon, suffered significant damaged and will not be repaired as it was on the list for replacement this year due to its age. The driver involved was required to attend a refresher course on safe driving and prohibited from driving observatory vehicles for one month. A reminder was sent to all staff about safe driving practices and, especially, the importance of not driving when tired and not driving alone when possible.
On February 8, the relative of an NOAO South staff member driving down after an approved visit to Cerro Tololo lost control of the vehicle due to excess velocity and drove off the side of the road. The driver and passengers only suffered minor injuries. The vehicle and one of the observatory’s emergency radios suffered damage. Procedures for granting permission for visits to the observatory and ensuring that visitors are made aware of and acknowledge the precautions required when driving on the access road were reviewed and revised, and additional measures were adopted to ensure the procedures are being followed.
In addition to the specific measures taken following each of these accidents, a general review of road safety procedures at the observatory is underway. This will include the issuance of an updated set of driver safety regulations, a renewed campaign for staff awareness, and stricter monitoring of transit times with sanctions imposed for infringement. The installation of Global Positioning System (GPS) monitors in all observatory vehicles is being evaluated. There was also one work related accident during the reporting period that was fully investigated:
A staff member exiting from the TELOPS office building on Cerro Tololo tripped and fell, straining her ankle. She required a 14-day medical license. The scene of the accident was reviewed in order to determine if any corrective actions were necessary, but none were identified.
During this reporting period, considerable progress was made with the plans and preparations for remediation of asbestos in the Blanco telescope building. An in-house team was trained and equipped to carry out minor clean-up and removal tasks. A local building contractor with specialist experience was selected to carry out the majority of the work, which includes repair and sealing of small areas where damaged fireproofing material has exposed friable asbestos, erection of protective siding to prevent similar damage in the future, and a thorough clean-up of all areas after the treatment process using appropriate methods. The final work plan is being reviewed and refined prior to issuing a contract. The application to obtain the required approvals for the work was submitted to the local health authorities. The only outstanding task is the installation of a shower for use by workers; that will be completed in April, after which the local authorities will do an on-site inspection and review of the work plan. During this reporting period, the NOAO South safety and environmental engineer participated in and/or led a series of preventive and coordination activities that are summarized below:
In February and March, she participated in meetings and a site visit by contractor Veracruz to plan and obtain estimates for the asbestos remediation effort in the Blanco telescope building.
She met with the local Health Ministry (SEREMI de Salud) to discuss and answer questions regarding the planned asbestos remediation work as part of the process to obtain the necessary
57
NOAO QUARTERLY REPORT FY 2015 (2)
permits. The final step in the permitting process will be an on-site inspection by the SEREMI de Salud, scheduled for April.
She coordinated the installation by NS FO of new road signs at various locations on the mountains and in La Serena.
During February, she coordinated the removal and proper disposal of chemical waste and obsolete electronics from laboratories on Cerro Tololo and in La Serena.
In March, She coordinated and supervised the installation of fall-protection lifelines inside the Blanco building by safety equipment contractor MSA. Work to install external lines is planned for Q3.
In March, she helped supervise work of NS FO staff on the remodeling of the “two-units” building on Cerro Pachón, which is being converted into a first aid clinic. She also prepared the documentation required for its authorization by the SEREMI de Salud.
She participated in the review and revision of the road safety regulations (February) and the winter emergency plan (March)
She coordinated training by external organizations on: o
Defensive driving in high mountain areas, conducted by ACHS (February)
o
Legal responsibilities of supervisors, conducted by ACHS (February)
o
Risk prevention and legal responsibilities for safety committees, conducted by ACHS (March)
She continued the monthly meetings with representatives of the service provider for the mountain emergency medical service, ESACHS, coordinating through them the work of the paramedics. She also directly supervised the nurse stationed on Cerro Tololo, who is an NOAO South employee.
She conducted safety orientations for several new and temporary replacement staff members, the students of the CTIO REU and Prácticas de Investigación en Astronomía programs, the Chilean work experience (práctica) students, and staff of external contractors.
She held regular inspections of work areas, purchased and revised personal protective equipment, supervised the safety of larger maintenance tasks and engineering shut-downs at the telescopes by observatory staff and work carried out by external contractors.
She participated in regular meetings of the Comité Paritario de Higiene y Seguridad (Chilean workers safety committee), monthly safety coordination meetings with other AURA program safety officers, and the quarterly meeting of the NOAO safety council.
She participated in the regular weekly coordination meetings for construction work, including blasting, on the LSST site and a special series of meetings to coordinate preparation for the ceremony to mark the laying of the first stone, helping to coordinate additional paramedic support from ESACH for the event.
58
