| Home > Public Information > ING Newsletter > No. 10, December 2005 > ING Workshop on Adaptive-Optics Assisted Integral-Field Spectroscopy |
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SCIENCE |
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René Rutten* (ING)
In May 2005 a three-day workshop took place on the above subject. The main reason for organising this workshop was the commissioning of the OASIS integral field spectrograph on the WHT and the latest project to augment the use of AO on the WHT with a laser beacon system. Both these developments imply major new possibilities for the use of the telescope. Moreover, the advent of the laser will allow large science programmes to be carried out and the workshop served as a forum to discuss what type of programmes would be most suitable. For these reasons it was timely to get knowledgeable people around the table to discuss the science opportunities (and difficulties) of using such complex instruments.
About sixty participants shared their ideas and experience in this area. Many exciting results and developments were highlighted from other observatories, including Gemini, ESO-VLT, Keck, CFHT and Calar Alto. Also several ideas for large science programmes emerged at the workshop, ranging from surveys of star-forming regions, studies of stellar populations in dense clusters, through a statistical survey of the kinematics in the cores of galaxies. The ideas that were generated indicate that there is indeed much science potential to be exploited. The plan is that once the laser project on the WHT comes to fruition an announcement of opportunity for large key science programmes for the use of adaptive optics will be issued.
The proceedings of this workshop are being printed by Elsevier Publishers as a special issue of New Astronomy Reviews. These proceedings contain several extensive review articles as well as shorter papers on the subject. For anyone interested in this field and in understanding recent achievements as well as future prospects in AO-assisted integral field spectroscopy these proceedings will be an excellent starting point. ¤
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