The LT TAC is now accepting proposals for PATT time for observations in Semester 2010B (1st August 2010 to 31st January 2011). Download full details of the 2010B Call for Proposals here (136KB PDF). An abridged version of the Call, containing just the salient points, is given below.
Agreement has been reached between STFC and LJMU that funding for the LT will continue as normal until the mid-point review of the LT grant in 2012. This means that allocation of time can proceed as normal for semesters until that date.
Instruments available for 2010B are:
Beginning in semester 2010A the telescope routinely observes standard stars with RATC only. These standards will be taken in B,V,r,i and z (i.e. g,U and H alpha standards will NOT be taken). NO standards will be taken for remaining instruments (RISE, SuperIRCam, RINGO, FRODOSpec). Observers who wish to obtain standards, apart from those which are routinely observed, will need to include observations of these standards in their own programmes.
The current rms pointing of the LT is 6 arcsec. The current tracking performance provides seeing-limited images (FWHM < 0.8 arcsec) for exposures up to 1 minute without the auto-guider (open loop) and up to 30 minutes with the auto-guider (closed loop). Individual exposures with the auto-guider are limited to 30 minutes.
We welcome applications for all available observing modes, conditions and RA ranges, particularly those that take advantage of the robotic nature of the LT. The PATT time available is spread equally between all observing conditions. Average time tends to be the most over-subscribed. There is much less competition for observations that can be done in good and/or spectroscopic conditions.
Download full details of the 2010B Call for Proposals here (136KB PDF)
The LT will be taken off-sky for scheduled maintenance on Monday 15th March for approximately one week. In addition to general maintenance of the telescope systems, more specific tasks to be undertaken include:
It's hoped the LT will be back on-sky by 22nd March at the latest.
RATCam image of Jupiter as shown on Blue Peter. © 2009 LT Group.Pictured at right is the Jupiter image featured on the show, with the Jovian moons Io (upper, brighter) and Callisto (lower) contrast-enhanced to make them more apparent.
Note: this episode of Blue Peter is available to watch online (by UK viewers only) on the BBC iPlayer website until 11:24 GMT Sunday 14th March 2010.
(Adapted from official announcement from Tanja Karthaus, Secretariat CAT Panel)
The Time Allocation Committee (Comisión de Asignación de Tiempos - "CAT") of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) have issued a call for proposals for Semester 2010B. The deadline for the submission of proposals is 31st March 2010, at 5pm local Canarian time.
To submit a proposal, you have to register at http://cat.iac.es. Please do not register twice, in order to avoid confusion of statistics. If you do not remember your password, you can find instructions about this by entering the CAT programme.
NB: Please check that your proposals contain the latest PDF version you wish to send and that they print correctly before the deadline expires. No replacement or updating of the proposal's scientific content will be made after the deadline, and all those proposals which do not correctly print out will be automatically withdrawn from the evaulation process. Similarly, any proposals with sections left blank that prevent the night-time CAT performing its evaluation will also be automatically rejected.
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