Current ELTs use comparatively thick segmented mirrors with a support structure / warping structure of significant mass. In this publication we present a method to develop Segmented Thin Shell Mirrors that are intended to be supported by multiple actuators mounted on a backing structure. This enables active and or adaptive segmented mirrors for a variety of applications. Starting with a circular Adaptive Secondary Mirror face sheet, the pre and post waterjet cutting surface form error was measured and compared. The difference between the two is 17.7 μm peak-to-valley and 3.7 μm rms. The error is gradual and can easily be compensated by pre-loading the actuators that support and actively deform the mirror.
The degradation of large rotating cryogenic structures such as the Central Wheel Mechanism for MICADO, particularly in terms of wear and friction, has not been fully understood. This work aims to address this gap by developing computational and experimental tools to tackle these issues. By developing a numerical model and subsequently validating it with an experimental cryogenic setup, we aim to quantify the wear and the evolution of friction in some of the MICADO cryogenic rotating components.
In mid-2025, the initial sub-systems for METIS, the Mid-Infrared E-ELT Imager and Spectrometer, are anticipated to reach the system-level Assembly, Integration, and Testing (AIT) facility at Leiden University. The AIT process is projected to extend over three years. Throughout this period, the comprehensive testing and calibration of the entire METIS system will be conducted. The preparation for integration encompasses diverse aspects, including the planning of various assembly, integration, and verification steps. This involves the development of the integration facility, provision of support equipment, and ensuring the readiness of all requisite software to facilitate the instrument's efficient qualification. As subsystems are nearing completion, also the AIT facility is being finalized, with an expected delivery date of end-July 2024.
4MOST is a versatile spectroscopic facility soon to be installed on the ESO VISTA Telescope at Paranal. Prior to shipment to Chile, our team is conducting a comprehensive characterization of the instrument in a controlled laboratory setting. This preparatory phase is crucial for ensuring the fulfilment of both technical specifications and some key user requirements. The goal of this verification campaign is to obtain characterization data which will benchmark the performance of the spectrographs and the calibration unit against established metrics. The data primarily tests the spectral performance of the three spectrographs, the stability of the system, including the calibration unit, as well as the fiber throughput, which are pivotal for the success of 4MOST’s ambitious science goals. Additionally, the verification contains a selection of user requirements, ensuring the instrument’s readiness for the diverse scientific objectives it aims to enable. The results from these tests inform the observational strategy for future normal science operations. In this paper we outline the undertaken preparatory work, the applied testing procedures, and the anticipated implications of these tests, and their results, in the context of the final verification at the telescope, commissioning and normal science operations. This initial test phase marks a critical juncture in the 4MOST project timeline, setting the stage for a successful commissioning.
The main goal of the third iteration of the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS3) is to search for Earth-like planets over a ten-year programme. As part of this search, spectropolarimetric observations have been envisioned foreseeing the need for new ways to reduce stellar activity jitter which obscures the 10 cm/sec radial velocity signal of such planets. HARPS3 has thus been designed with an insertable polarimetric sub-unit. This sub-unit consists of two superachromatic polymer retarders, one quarter-wave and one half-wave, to separately detect all Stokes parameters of a target, as well as a polarimetric beam splitter to separate the parallel polarimetric beams by 30 mm to feed the science fibers. In this paper we report on the currently nonfunctional polarimetric sub-unit of the HARPS3 spectrograph and discuss the upgrade expected before commissioning that will fix current issues. We discuss the possible observation schedule of polarimetric observations for the Terra Hunting Experiment and the potential impacts of polarimetric observations on mitigating stellar radial velocity jitter.
The Calibration Unit for 4MOST is providing hundreds of highly stable sharp spectral features with high power and mimicking the sky over the focal plane. The heart of the system is a combination of a bright broadband lamp and a Fabry-Perot etalon that provides a regular comb of spectral lines. 120 integrating spheres are distributed in 4 Light sabre linear arrays. These Light sabres are attached to the telescope spider struts and provide unvignetted illumination to the telescope focal plane. We describe the final design, the alignment, and the results of the testing.
Ground-based thermal-infrared observations have a unique scientific potential, but are also extremely challenging due to the need to accurately subtract the high thermal background. Since the established techniques of chopping and nodding need to be modified for observations with the future mid-infrared ELT imager and spectrograph (METIS), we investigate the sources of thermal background subtraction residuals. Our aim is to either remove or at least minimise the need for nodding in order to increase the observing efficiency for METIS. To this end we need to improve our knowledge about the origin of chop residuals and devise observing methods to remove them most efficiently, i.e. with the slowest possible nodding frequency. Thanks to dedicated observations with VLT/VISIR and GranTeCan/CanariCam, we have successfully traced the origin of three kinds of chopping residuals to (1) the entrance window, (2) the spiders and (3) other warm emitters in the pupil, in particular the VLT M3 mirror cell in its parking position. We conclude that, in order to keep chopping residuals stable over a long time (and therefore allow for slower nodding cycles), the pupil illumination needs to be kept constant, i.e. (imaging) observations should be performed in pupil-stabilised, rather than field-stabilised mode, with image de-rotation in the post-processing pipeline. This is now foreseen as the default observing concept for all METIS imaging modes.
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