Since the start of science operations in 1993, the twin 10-meter W. M. Keck Observatory (WMKO) telescopes have continued to maximize their scientific impact to produce transformative discoveries that keep the U.S. observing community on the frontiers of astronomical research. Upgraded capabilities and new instrumentation are provided though collaborative partnerships primarily with the Caltech and University of California instrument development teams and through additional collaborations with the University of Notre Dame, the University of Hawaii, Swinburne University of Technology, industry, and other organizations. This paper summarizes the status and performance of observatory infrastructure projects, technology upgrades, and new additions to the suite of observatory instrumentation. We also provide a status of instrumentation projects in early and advanced stages of development that will achieve the goals and objectives summarized in the 2023 Keck Observatory strategic plan. Developed in collaboration with the WMKO science community, the Keck strategic plan sets our sites on 2035 and meets goals identified in the Astro2020 Decadal Survey.
The Keck Wide Field Imager (KWFI) is a 1-degree field of view imager optimized to take advantage of the UV performance of the W.M. Keck Observatory located atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii. The project is an international collaboration between Swinburne University, ANU, AAO-Macquarie, Caltech, UC Observatories, and W.M. Keck Observatory. KWFI fills the 8m-class capability gap for deep, blue wide-field imaging and rapid-response follow-up necessary for many science cases, including cosmic reionization, transient astronomy at all wavelengths and messengers, and space mission main science aims. The instrument has a high-throughput, UV-sensitive design with an all-fused silica 4-lens element corrector system that operates from 300 – 1000 nm and achieves 0.4” 80% encircled energy diameter rms over the FOV within each photometric band. In 2022, we reported on the conceptual design of the imager that includes fast (~10 s) filter exchange of its 600 mm narrowband and broadband filters, fast (seconds) image processing and source identification, and CCD and CMOS detectors. More recently, the team has advanced the development of a Deployable Secondary Mirror (DM2), which will work with KWFI. The DM2 is a 1.4-meter lightweight, remotely deployable hexagonal secondary mirror to allow fast switching between KWFI and any Cassegrain or Nasmyth Instruments to enable rapid spectroscopic follow up of identified sources. We report here on the DM2 conceptual design, progress on the imager design, testing of the prototype filter exchange mechanism, and the interface of KWFI and the DM2 with the 30-year-old Keck Telescope.
Since the start of science operations in 1993, the twin 10-meter W. M. Keck Observatory (WMKO) telescopes have continued to maximize their scientific impact and to produce transformative discoveries that keep the observing community on the frontiers of astronomical research. Upgraded capabilities and new instrumentation are provided though collaborative partnerships with Caltech, the University of California, and the University of Hawaii instrument development teams, as well as industry and other organizations. This paper summarizes the performance of recently commissioned infrastructure projects, technology upgrades, and new additions to the suite of observatory instrumentation. We also provide a status of projects currently in design or development phases and, since we keep our eye on the future, summarize projects in exploratory phases that originate from our 2022 strategic plan developed in collaboration with our science community to adapt and respond to evolving science needs.
The Keck Wide Field Imager (KWFI) is a 1-degree field of view imager optimized to take advantage of the superb UV performance of the W.M. Keck Observatory (WMKO) located atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii. The project is an international collaboration between Swinburne University, ANU Macquarie University, Caltech, UC Observatories, and W.M Keck Observatory. KWFI is an all-fused silica 4-lens element corrector that operates over u,g,r,i, and z photometric bands from 300 – 1000 nm where the design achieves 0.5” 80% encircled energy diameter rms over the FOV within each photometric band. The KWFI collaboration is completing an 18-month conceptual design phase and is preparing to issue the most critical, long-lead-time procurements to address the critical path to first-light operations, following a public/private fundraising model. Our technically paced schedule, driven by corrector lens figuring, is expected to culminate in KWFI First Light in Summer 2027. We report here on the instrument concept and the progress towards a significant new capability for the WMKO.
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