Night-time operations diagnostics at the Hobby-Eberly Telescope

Craig E. Nance; James R. Fowler; Paul Tom Worthington

doi:10.1117/12.392511

25 July 2000 Night-time operations diagnostics at the Hobby-Eberly Telescope

Craig E. Nance, James R. Fowler, Paul Tom Worthington

Proceedings Volume 4010, Observatory Operations to Optimize Scientific Return II; (2000) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.392511
Event: Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation, 2000, Munich, Germany

Abstract

The Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) is an innovative, low cost 9- meter class telescope that specializes in queue mode spectroscopy. To observe astronomical targets, the HET uses a unique focal tracker system that employs complex robotic mechanisms to accurately point and track. In this contribution, we describe the electro-mechanical subsystems that have been designed and installed to monitor and diagnose this unique telescope's operations modes. These subsystems are designed to maximize the fraction of night-time hours that are devoted to science operations, optimizing the telescope's scientific output by quickly detecting problems and minimizing engineering overhead.

Citation Download Citation

Craig E. Nance, James R. Fowler, and Paul Tom Worthington "Night-time operations diagnostics at the Hobby-Eberly Telescope", Proc. SPIE 4010, Observatory Operations to Optimize Scientific Return II, (25 July 2000); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.392511

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