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This 4-day workshop will
look at the science drivers for AO-fed, optical through mid-infrared
imaging spectrographs on large ground-based telescopes. It will
encompass instrumentation for both the current generation of 8m-class
telescopes and future Extremely Large Telescopes. It is very timely, as
AO systems are now starting to deliver on the substantial investment
made in them worldwide. The workshop will consider the impact of
entirely new technologies and old concepts revisited.
Many of the
invited talks will be given by astronomers who work at the interface of
cutting-edge science and innovative instrumentation; others have been
chosen for their “big picture” approach to scientific
questions. The relevant technologies will include IFUs, image slicers,
MEMs, tunable filters, 3D detectors, smart focal planes, etc. The
workshop will introduce a number of technologies for the first time and
discuss their far reaching scientific potential: such technologies
include photonic OH suppression and integrated photonic spectrographs
at near and mid-IR wavelengths.
The ultimate goal of the
workshop is to cross-fertilise the imaginations of astronomers and
instrumentalists in order to inspire the next generation of innovative
astronomical instruments. The workshop format will be relaxed, with a
generous afternoon break, to allow delegates and their families to
enjoy the magnificent coral reef environment of Dunk Island.
Some of the questions
that we would like to address are:
- What are the science drivers for AO-assisted imaging
spectroscopy from sub-seeing to the diffraction limit?
- What are the main science drivers for
ultra-deep exposures (>1 Msec)?
- What are the primary sources of
systematics (e.g. rotating spider) in such exposures?
- Is there a compelling case for mid-IR
imaging spectroscopy from the ground?
- Several AO variants are now under
development: what science motivates these different
- approaches (e.g. MOAO) and do we have
properly optimized instruments to match?
- Have we reached the limit of dynamic
range and minimizing light scatter (e.g. extremely
- bright laser guide stars)?
- Is there a strong case for contiguous
integral-field formats bigger than 300×300 (e.g. VLT
- MUSE) or for formats that are highly
configurable (e.g. Honeycomb)?
- What are the limitations for AO-fed
instruments (other than AO) and how might these be
- overcome a decade from now?
- What opportunities are there for new
approaches to reduce the cost of ELT instruments?
- What are the expected science gains from
ELTs compared to JWST?
- What are the synergies between ELTs and
JWST/ALMA/SKA/ConX-XEUS?
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