Developments in fiber-positioning technology for the WEAVE instrument at the William Herschel Telescope

Ellen Schallig, Ian J. Lewis, James Gilbert, Gavin Dalton, Matthew Brock, Don Carlos Abrams, Kevin Middleton, J. Alfonso L. Aguerri, Piercarlo Bonifacio, Esperanza Carrasco, Scott C. Trager, Antonella Vallenari

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

    2 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    WEAVE is the next-generation wide-field optical spectroscopy facility for the William Herschel Telescope (WHT) on La Palma in the Canary Islands, Spain. It is a multi-object "pick-and-place" fibre-fed spectrograph with a 1000 fibre multiplex behind a new dedicated 2° prime focus corrector. The WEAVE positioner concept uses two robots working in tandem in order to reconfigure a fully populated field within the expected 1 hour dwell-time for the instrument (a good match between the required exposure times and the limit of validity for a given configuration due to the effects of differential refraction). In this paper we describe some of the final design decisions arising from the prototyping phase of the instrument design and provide an update on the current manufacturing status of the fibre positioner system.

    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationGround-Based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI
    EditorsLuc Simard, Christopher J. Evans, Hideki Takami
    PublisherSPIE
    ISBN (Electronic)9781510601956
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2016
    EventGround-Based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI - Edinburgh, United Kingdom
    Duration: 26 Jun 201630 Jun 2016

    Publication series

    NameProceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering
    Volume9908
    ISSN (Print)0277-786X
    ISSN (Electronic)1996-756X

    Conference

    ConferenceGround-Based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI
    Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
    CityEdinburgh
    Period26/06/1630/06/16

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