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Developments at ING the isaac Newton Group in the next decade 2012 June 6

Developments at ING the isaac Newton Group in the next decade 2012 June 6. Marc Balcells Director, Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes (ING). Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes. ING operates three telescopes for UK, NL, ES Oldest, largest ORM user institution At ORM since 1982

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Developments at ING the isaac Newton Group in the next decade 2012 June 6

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  1. Developments at INGthe isaac Newton Group in the next decade2012 June 6 Marc Balcells Director, Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes (ING) The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  2. Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes • ING operates three telescopes for UK, NL, ES • Oldest, largest ORM user institution • At ORM since 1982 • ~40 staff, 25 years operating telescopes • Leading scientific production at ORM The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  3. http://www.ing.iac.es/astronomy/observing/instruments.html Current Instrumentation WHT developed as versatile telescope with easy switching between focal stations The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  4. Program of Visiting Instruments Successful program of easy deployment of private instruments • SAURON • PNS • PlanetPol • ExPo • INTEGRAL • ULTRACAM • FastCam • GHaFaS • SPIFS Future • PAUCam • AOLI Lucky Imager The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  5. Test-bed for E-ELT technologies CANARY system for multi-object adaptive optics (MOAO) for EAGLE (E-ELT) Durham, UKATC, Paris-LESIA, Marseille, ING Phase A (NGS) successful Now preparing Phase B, 4 LGS, open loop. Details in Tim Morris’s talk, this session The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  6. Training • ING resident student programme • 4 PhD students spend 1 yr at ING • Manage and support all INT observations • Many PhD students learn to be astronomers at ING • 2012-13 student selection now closed…. • http://www.ing.iac.es/astronomy/science/studentship.html The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  7. Collaboration with GTC • ING-GTC technical cooperation • MoU signed 2011 • ING-GTC Telescope and Instrumentation Network • Collaboration projects • Joint technical projects underway • Potential for growth The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  8. WHT oversubscription • UK oversubscr: 2.5 - 3 • Has remained high after UK accession to ESO • Note VLT 8-m oversubscr: 3.2 The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  9. Plans for next decade The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  10. 4m in 10m era • Do what you can do better than the 10m • Wide field astronomy The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  11. Arrangements for future: discussions STFC, NWO, IAC • ING-UK-NL-IAC-GTC working group, 2010-11 • Proposed framework for new La Palma Agreements. • STFC Council recently supported this model, • Press release 30 May 2012 • http://stfc.ac.uk/News+and+Events/39092.aspx • Negotiations with Spain to start this year. • Funding initially guaranteed to March 2015. • Proposal includes transfer of telescope ownership to Spain, and a strategic science plan: The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  12. Strategic planning 2013-2022 http://www.ing.iac.es/about-ING/strategy/ • Two disctinct phases • 2013-2016 • 2017-2022 The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  13. 2013-2016 • WHT remains a general-purpose telescope • Introduce long-term programmes • Upgrade survey instruments • Maintain • Students, technology programmes, visitor instruments • Future visitor instruments PAUCam (2013); AOLI (2014) • Build, commission WEAVE • Talk by Scott Trager, WEAVE PS The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  14. Long-term programmes • Expect increase telescope productivity • If demmanded by the community • Requires changes in TAC processes • Common UK, NL, ES TAC for long programmes • Upgrade ‘survey’ instruments • AF2/WYFFOS in preparation for WEAVE • Also ISIS, LIRIS, … The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  15. Science – 2013-2017 ING’s edge • Will be largest UK optical telescope in the North • Diverse, quality instrumentation, multiple modes, flexible response • Superb site • New visitor instrument, PAUCam, for cosmology surveys • Upgrades • WYFFOS MOS instrument • Long-term programmes London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  16. 2013-2017 – dark energy • Diagnostics: BAO’s, z-space distortions, weak-lensing magnification • Require large numbers of galaxy distances • Strengths: • PAUCam • SNe Ia follow-up (ISIS) • Pan-STARRS, PTF • Compete/complement BOSS, DES London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  17. PAUCam • Use full FOV of existing PFC • 36 narrow-band filters (10 nm) • For acccurate photoz • 18 Hamamatsu 2kx4k CCDs • Delivery 2013 • Visitor but open access London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  18. 2013-2017 – galaxy evolution • LOFAR • Low frequencies, 10-250 MHz • One of the few remaining windows • Key Projects- Radio Continuum Surveys • Cluster, Infall: redshifts, typing with AF2, PAUCam LOFAR stations Chilbolton Effelsberg London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  19. LOFAR transients • Potential to reveal new classes of phenomena • WHT rapid response, target of opportunity WHT/ACAM London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  20. 2013-2017 – frontier, compact objects • Compact binary stars • Involving BH, NS. Mini-quasars. • GRBs • Probes of high-z universe; reionization; Pop-III • Leading UK groups • NIR polarisation capabilities: magnetic field of envelope • WHT covers where LT does not reach Eclipsing binary P=78min WHT/ISIS + QUCAM London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  21. 2013-2017 – exoplanets WHT/LIRIS Kepler field (decl +44 deg). SuperWASP (lat +28 deg) Characterisation of exoplanet atmospheres • Chemical composition through transmission spectroscopy • ISIS QUCAM, Ultracam: ultra fast low-noise spectroscopy E Pallé et al.Nature459, 814-816 (2009) doi:10.1038/nature08050 London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  22. 2017-2022 – Science with WEAVE • Science of the WEAVE central programme • 50% - 70% time to WEAVE surveys • Or up to 100%? • 1500 – 2000 nights • Gaia follow-up 700 nights • Galaxy evolution ~ 800 nights • Cosmology ~500 nights London 2012 Feb 28 - Operation of the ING 2013 and beyond

  23. Realising the Astronomy of the Future • The WHT will contribute to UK astronomy • Northern sky access • Multi-wavelength exploitation of large space missions (Gaia, Herschel, Kepler) and ground-based facilities/surveys (LOFAR, VISTA, UKIDSS) • Technology development for E-ELT (EAGLE/CANARY) • Training of next generation of astronomers • STFC Council support suggests this vision addresses fundamental needs of UK astronomy. The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

  24. THANKS The ING in the Next Decade - Philip Wetton Workshop 2012

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