Gemini as Pathfinder for21st Century Astronmy

Jean-René Roy

Gran Telescopio Canarias Symposium – 25-26 July 2009

Who are we?Who are we?Where are we ?Where are we ?

Sites 11,000 km apart + Gemini Science Archive in Canada

Mauna Kea

Cerro Pachon

CADC-archiveCADC-archive

Total staff~185

GN = 55%GS= 45%

~1/3 Eng~1/3 Sci~1/3 Admin+ NationalGeminiOffices

4

The universe from two hemispheres

FUNDED BYFUNDED BY United States United Kingdom Canada AustraliaBrazil Argentina

Gemini North, Mauna Kea 4200 m

Gemini South. Cerro Pachon 2900 m

Twin Cassegrain 8 meter optical/infrared telescopes

Optical, near infrared and mid infrared imagers and spectrographs

Adaptive optics and integral field units

… Gemini : one observatory, two telescopes

Since 2000

Gemini North, HawaiiMauna Kea 4200 m

Gemini South, ChileCerro Pachón 2900 m Since 2001

Gemini science niches for the ELTs era

Exoplanetary systemsFine resolution spectral mappingGRBs as first light “digging” sites

Protoplanetary nebula NGC 7029 with GN Laser AO

Gemini ALTAIR/NIRI imaging of HR 8799 exoplanetary system

0.2” “

In 3rd quarter of 2008: a surprising crop of exoplanets!

8 MJup in Beta Pic: VLT-NACO

Gemini N Keck

GeminiHR8799

Gemini Planet Imager

GPI design: instrument being built by large consortiurm (LLNL, HIA, UC Santa Cruz, UCLA, AMNH). To be delivered at Gemini South in 2011.

NIRI+Altair

Models of Young Planet Luminosity

Marley et al. 2006

NICI

11Age

Pla

net L

umin

osit

y (L

sun)

GPI

Integral field spectroscopy

Seth et al. 2008

… flashes from the beginning

Artist view of gamma ray burst

Gamma ray burstare still puzzling us for their progenitor event

supernova explosionof “special” massive stars? or catastrophic merging ofneutron stars/ black holes?

GRB 090423 at z ~ 8.3

• Swift detected GRB 090423 on April 23rd, 2009 at 3h55 am EDT– Follow up with Gemini

GMOS-S & NIRI (also VLT, UKIRT, etc.)

• Photo-spectro z ~ 8.3 !– Very massive star < 625

Myr after Big Bang

• GRB locations = proto-galaxy sites for ELTs

Tanvir et al. 2009, Nature, in press

Joe Jensen

18 May 2009, Kyoto

Queue observing and re-engaging astronomers

with their machines

Queue/Classical at Gemini

• Gemini initial operational model was for 50% “queue”/service and 50% “classical” (PI at the telescope)

• User demand rapidly pushed to Q70-C30 around 2005

– Board/Agencies funded a “100% queue” in 2006-2010

• Staff astronomer at the telescope every night

• Currently queue is more than 90% of the Gemini N& S observing time

Henry Roe

Monitoring weather on Titansince 2003

NIRI/ALTAIR AO imaging monitoring of short-lived clouds(Schaller et al. 2009, Nature in press)

The “queue”

• Optimized execution of programs

– Supernova Legacy Survey could not have been completed as a classical program

• High completion of highest ranked programs

– Roll-over status

• High open shutter efficiency

• … but few astronomers at the telescope!

Ways to bring astronomers to the telescope

• As “classical” observers: we want more!– Several types of observations are still best done under

with the PI at the telescope

• As Visiting Queue Observers (VQO)– Observer (especially PhD students and postdocs) with

programs in the queue are invited to come to the observatory

• No guarantee but we will do every effort to execute some of their observations while they are present

– VQOs will participate in many of the operational activities and to a few nights of queue observation

• Ideal duration of visit 2-4 weeks– Funding of expenses thru the NGOs or supervisor/team

• “Time at the telescope was the most exciting of the visit. On a given night we would take up to six different types of observations: Coronagraphic imaging of exoplanets, Near Infrared (NIR) Integral Field Unit (IFU) observations of compact galaxies, multi-object spectroscopy. Being exposed to such a diversity of observations, I gained a deep appreciation for the difficulty of running such a wide array of instruments. However, the high point of my visit was being present when the last of my 2008B data, NIR observations of four gravitational lenses, were observed.”

Ross Fadely (Rutgers University)*

It is important to find clever ways to keep astronomers engagedwith their machine and the observatory staff.

* Visit at Gemini North in December 2008

Will ELTs be the last machines?

ESO

… No!

• ESO 100 m Overwhelmingly Large telescope is in Phase B (Nov 2005 OWL Review)

• Concepts of single aperture ~50 m or array of km array (e.g. Mountain 1997)

• Currently planned GMT, TMT and E-ELT are not the final machines on the drawing board– Quantum efficiencies of detectors are close to one

– Larger aperture (with image quality) is the only way for higher sensitivity from the ground

Lee Bennett 2004

Doc Ewen 2003

500 m FAST

100 m NRAO GBT

NRL 600 ft

Arecibo 305 m

Interferometry allows knowledge gain with unfilled aperture

Sphere of molecular gas around T Lep (ESO/Le Bouquin)

The surface of Altair

ESO VLTI virtual aperture

Challenges

• Cost effectiveness of ground-based versus space• Societal thresholds or barriers

– Institutional and national science priorities

– Funding constraints• Necessity of large partnerships

– Current market saturated: needs entry of Asian countries

• Benefits (and risks) of partnerships– E.g.UK in/out of Gemini?

• Key technologies– We may get less from NASA, DOE or DoD

– We are more “on our own” with industry

– Partnerships in mitigation strategies and projects • Gemini and Keck joint lasers contract with LMCT

Reflections on partnership and lessons learned

Credit: Tetsuharu Fuse

Subaru-Keck-Gemini: lasers and time exchange

1993-2012 Gemini: a 20 yr international partnership

Gemini members are: United States (50%), United

Kingdom (25%), Canada (15%), Australia (5%) Argentina (2.5%) and Brazil (2.5%)

- Hosts: Chile, Hawaii

Current Gemini International Agreement ends on 31 Dec. 2012. Negotiations for renewed partnership post-2012 have started.

Renewable partnership has advantages but is source of uncertaintyE.g. UK membership ?

Asymmetric partnerships

• Gemini partnership and shares– USA* (50.1%)

– United Kingdom* (23.8%)

– Canada* (15%)

– Australia (6.2%)

– Brazil (2.5%)

– Argentina (2.4%)

• Asymmetry is not an issue– But having partners with too small a share is questionable

• Perception of “voice not heard”

• Impediment to participation in the instrumentation program

• Community could use effectively and productively a larger share of telescope time

– And when a large partner runs into financial difficulty….

* Have veto power on“financial” matters

“Distributed” model for user support: the NGO system

• Each Gemini partner funds/supports/operates a National Gemini Office, including hosts– Handles and controls initial proposal and TAC process

– Provides “first-line” support (e.g. Tier one of HelpDesk)• Phase I and Phase II of proposal support

– Acts as interface between user community and observatory

• Following a “rough start”, Gemini “distributed” system is now much better– Can provide more timely response in a multi-time zone

• Strength, depth and quality of NGO support depend on staff – Staff rotates; small NGOs are challenged by the multiple

instruments and wide capabilities

Multi TAC

• Gemini does not handle nor control the Time Allocation Process, except in its ultimate steps

• NINE TACS (six partners/two hosts/one GemStaff TACs) assess, select and recommend each a ranked list of proposals (each must match weather requirements probability)

• The International TAC receives/merges and recommends a final list to the Gemini director

• Multi-TAC is very fragmented– Impediment to large programs with significant allocation of

time; “joint” programs impacted by multiple jeopardy– Long-term status is almost impossible unless strongly

endorsed by a large partner

2010-2020: the 8-10 m decade

• 2010-2020 = a promising decade with JWST and ALMA coming on line before mid-decade– As HST did, these facilities will have huge impact

scientifically and influence the way ground-based telescopes operate

• PANSTARS, VISTA, LSSTs (and others) will demand rapid/efficient “point-and-shoot” spectroscopic follow up– Current 8-10 m have to become even more “responsive”

• Operational ELTs with instrumentation will come on line late in the coming decade or first half of 2020

• Current generation of 8-10 m has q 10-year window of a scientific “freeway” ahead with a generous discover space

Governance

¡ Muchas gracias y buena suerte al GTC !