Project overview and update on WEAVE: the next generation wide-field spectroscopy facility for the William Herschel Telescope

Year: 2014

Type: conference-paper

Abstract: We present an overview of and status report on the WEAVE next-generation spectroscopy facility for the William Herschel Telescope (WHT). WEAVE principally targets optical ground-based follow up of upcoming ground-based (LOFAR) and space-based (Gaia) surveys. WEAVE is a multi-object and multi-IFU facility utilizing a new 2-degree prime focus field of view at the WHT, with a buffered pick-and-place positioner system hosting 1000 multi-object (MOS) fibres, 20 integral field units, or a single large IFU for each observation. The fibres are fed to a single spectrograph, with a pair of 8k(spectral) x 6k (spatial) pixel cameras, located within the WHT GHRIL enclosure on the telescope Nasmyth platform, supporting observations at R~5000 over the full 370-1000nm wavelength range in a single exposure, or a high resolution mode with limited coverage in each arm at R~20000. The project is now in the final design and early procurement phase, with commissioning at the telescope expected in 2017.

Source: Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE

DOI: 10.1117/12.2055132

Institutions: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, University of Oxford, University of Groningen, Isaac Newton Group, Observatoire de Paris, Galaxies, Etoiles, Physique et Instrumentation, Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, University of Cambridge

Language: English

Topic: Astronomy and Astrophysical Research

Subfield: Instrumentation

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Nederlandse Onderzoekschool Voor Astronomie, Science and Technology Facilities Council

OpenAlex ID: W2043935654