The GTC project: from commissioning to regular science operation. Current performance and first science results

Bibcode
2010SPIE.7733E...3A
DOI
10.1117/12.857372
Álvarez, P.; Castro, J.; Rutten, R.; van der Hoeven, M.; Alvarez-Iglesias, C. A.; Pérez-García, A. M.
Bibliographical reference

Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes III. Edited by Stepp, Larry M.; Gilmozzi, Roberto; Hall, Helen J. Proceedings of the SPIE, Volume 7733, pp. 773305-773305-14 (2010).

Advertised on:
7
2010
Number of authors
6
IAC number of authors
3
Citations
0
Refereed citations
0
Description
The GTC (Gran Telescopio Canarias) is an optical and IR telescope, with a 10,4 meter segmented primary, installed at the Observatorio del Roque de Los Muchachos (ORM) on the island of La Palma. GTC commissioning started in July 2007 when First Light was achieved. GTC regular scientific operations started at the beginning of 2009 with its first science instrument: OSIRIS, a visible camera with tunable filter and low-resolution multi-object spectroscopic capability. Since that time science operation and telescope and instrument development activities alternate in using the available telescope time. Later in 2010 the second science instrument will be commissioned: CanariCam, a thermal-IR camera and low-resolution spectrograph with polarimetric and coronagraphic capabilities. This paper presents the telescope commissioning process, the problems encountered and shows some of the performance aspects. First science results will also be presented to demonstrate the current capabilities of the GTC facility.
Type
Non-refereed

It may interest you

  • Non-refereed
    The TESS TTV Follow-up Program: Revealing Volatile-Rich Terrestrial Planets Around M Stars
    Models predict that water-rich planets may be common around low-mass stars, but definitive evidence for the existence of water worlds has remained elusive. Recent JWST observations of sub-Neptune sized planets orbiting nearby M dwarfs found atmospheres enriched in CH4, CO2 and H2O, but the enrichment mechanism is debated. To answer this question
    Greklek-McKeon, Michael et al.

    Advertised on:

    7
    2024
    Bibcode
    2024tsc3.confE..21G
    Citations
    0
  • Non-refereed
    The instrumentation plan of the 10.4m GTC telescope
    The 10.4m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) was designed to be a versatile telescope, able to serve a wide scientific community. To this aim, various focal stations have been equipped, including a Cassegrain, two Nasmyth foci, and four folded-Cassegrain stations. This allows an ambitious instrumentation plan to be developed. We present the latest
    Corradi, Romano L. M. et al.

    Advertised on:

    7
    2024
    Bibcode
    2024SPIE13096E..0HC
    Citations
    0
  • Non-refereed
    Design and fabrication of fold mirror (M3) system for New Robotic Telescope
    The New Robotic Telescope (NRT) is an autonomous telescope that can operate multiple instruments at the Cassegrain focal station and the straight-through port. The optical beam is directed to the ports by a fold mirror subsystem in the focal station assembly. The fold mirror is elliptical in shape, manufactured by Instituto Nazionale di Astrofisica
    Ranjbar, Ali et al.

    Advertised on:

    8
    2024
    Bibcode
    2024SPIE13094E..2HR
    Citations
    0