Planning the installation of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument on the NOAO Mayall telescope
Abstract
The NOAO Nicholas U. Mayall 4-meter telescope located at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona is to be the host facility for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). DESI will record broadband spectra simultaneously for 5000 objects distributed over a 3-degree diameter field of view; it will record the spectra of approximately 20 million galaxies and quasi-stellar objects during a five-year survey. This survey will improve the combined precision of measurement on the dark energy equation of state today (w0) and its evolution with redshift (wa) by approximately a factor of ten. Installation of DESI on the telescope is a complex procedure, involving a complete replacement of the telescope top end, routing of massive fiber cables, and installation of banks of spectrographs in an environmentally-controlled lab area within the dome. Furthermore, assembly of the instrument and major subsystems must be carried out on-site given their size and complexity. A detailed installation plan is being developed early in the project in order to ensure that DESI and its sub-systems are designed so they can be safely and efficiently installed, and to ensure that all telescope and facility modifications to enable installation are identified and completed in time.
- Publication:
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American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #225
- Pub Date:
- January 2015
- Bibcode:
- 2015AAS...22533604A