Isaac Newton Group, La Palma

OBSERVERS' GUIDE

General Editors: D. Carter, U. Sharan & R.E.S. Clegg

With contributions from:
P.S. Bunclark, S.M. Hughes, P.R. Jorden, R.A. Laing S.J. Maddox, W.L. Martin, R.F. Peletier, M. Pettini, D.L. King, E. Terlevich, K.P. Tritton, S.W. Unger, F.G. Watson & S.P. Worswick

July 1994

• Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• General information
  • Introduction
  • El Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos
  • Weather and Observing Conditions
    • Weather and Climate
    • Observing conditions
  • Communications
    • Telephone and Telefax (La Palma)
    • Post
    • Electronic mail
    • Cambridge
  • Applying for Observing Time
    • Apportionment of telescope time
    • Applications for telescope time
    • Preparing an application
    • Service Observing Scheme
  • Preparation for Observing
    • Support Astronomers
    • Documentation
    • Newsletters and up-to-date information
    • Facilities at RGO
  • Travel
    • Visas
    • Which La Palma?
    • Air Travel between the UK and La Palma
    • Air Travel between the Netherlands and La Palma
    • Transportation on La Palma
    • Accommodation on site
    • Freight
  • Observing and after
    • Facilities on site
    • Observing protocol
    • Data ownership
    • The data archive
    • Publication of data
• Telescopes, acquisition and guiding
  • The 4.2-m William Herschel Telescope (WHT)
    • General description
    • Summary of mechanical performance
    • Optics
      • Prime Focus Corrector
    • Telescope control
    • Planning observations
      • Positions, finding charts and offsets
      • Catalogues
      • System catalogues
      • Altazimuth problems
    • Acquisition and guiding
      • Overview
      • Cassegrain acquisition & guider Unit
      • Nasmyth acquisition and guider unit (UES side)
      • The Prime Focus A&G Unit
  • The 2.5-m Isaac Newton Telescope (INT)
    • General description
    • Summary of mechanical performance
    • Optics
    • Telescope control
    • Planning observations
      • Positions, finding charts and offsets
      • Catalogues
      • System Catalogues
    • Acquisition and guiding
      • Overview
      • Finder telescope
      • Cassegrain acquisition and guider Unit
      • Prime focus acquisition and guider unit
  • The 1.0-m Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope (JKT)
    • General description
    • Summary of mechanical performance
    • Optics
    • Telescope control
    • Planning observations
    • Acquisition and guiding
      • Overview
      • Finder telescope
      • Acquisition and guider unit for the f/15 Cassegrain focus (CCD)
      • Acquisition unit for the f/15 Cassegrain focus (non CCD)
      • Acquisition and guider unit for the f/8.06 focus
  • The Guide Star Server System at the ING Telescopes
  • Carlsberg Automatic Meridian Circle
• Overview of instruments
  • The instrument package
  • Instrument control
    • Overview
    • INT and JKT
    • WHT
• Imaging instruments
  • Introduction
  • CCD imaging
    • Overview
    • The JKT CCD Camera
    • INT prime focus unit
    • CCD imaging at the WHT
      • Imaging with TAURUS-2
      • Imaging at the Cassegrain Auxiliary port
      • Imaging with LDSS-2
      • Imaging at the WHT Prime Focus
  • Which system ?
    • Choice of Focal Station
      • Optical performance
      • Optical Distortion
      • Optical performance
      • WHT and INT Prime Focus
    • Signal to noise
    • Quantum Efficiency of the CCDs
    • Cosmetic effects and fringing
  • High-Resolution Imaging
    • Ground Based High Resolution Imaging Laboratory (GHRIL)
      • Optics
  • Imaging Polarimetery
  • Infrared Imaging
• Spectroscopic instruments
  • Overview
  • Faint Object Spectrograph
    • FOS-1
    • FOS-2
    • Performance
      • Efficiency
      • Stability
      • Wavelength resolution and range
      • Calibration facilities
    • Operation
      • FOS-1
      • FOS-2
    • Data Reduction
    • FOS versus ISIS
  • The Richardson--Brealey Spectrograph (RBS)
    • Overview
    • Design
    • Performance
      • Resolution
      • Signal
      • Stability
    • Calibration facilities
  • Grisms on the JKT CCD camera
  • Intermediate Dispersion Spectrograph (IDS)
    • Overview
    • Design
    • Performance
      • Wavelength range and resolution.
      • Stability
      • Throughput
      • Performance of cross-dispersion option
    • Calibration facilities
  • ISIS
    • Overall layout
    • Polarisation optics
    • The slit area
    • Folds and Dichroics
    • Below Slit filters
    • Collimators
    • The ISIS gratings
    • Cameras
    • Cross-Dispersers
    • Throughput
    • Overall performance of the system
    • Stability and radial velocities
    • Scattered Light
    • Wood's Anomalies in the ISIS gratings
  • Low Dispersion Survey Spectrograph - LDSS2
    • Overview
    • Design
    • Performance.
      • Efficiency
      • Wavelength Resolution and Range
      • Multi-object capability
    • Calibration Facilities
  • Utrecht Echelle Spectrograph (UES)
    • Overview
    • Design
    • Performance
      • Scale at the detector
      • Wavelength resolution
      • Wavelength coverage
      • Order separation
      • Throughput
      • Stability
    • Acquisition and guiding
    • Calibration facilities
    • Operation, data acquisition and reduction
  • TAURUS-2
    • Overview
    • Design
    • Performance
      • Field of view
      • Spatial resolution
      • Spectral resolution
      • Throughput
    • Specifying the configuration of TAURUS
      • Choice of etalon
      • The need for order-sorting filters
      • Choice of detectors
  • WHT Prime Focus Spectroscopy Facility
    • Description
      • Autofib-2
      • Fibre feeds
      • WYFFOS
    • Status (Nov. 1994)
      • Autofib-2
      • Fibres
      • WYFFOS
    • Expectations
• Detectors
  • Introduction
  • Charge Coupled Devices (CCDs)
    • Overview
    • General description
    • Design
    • CCD systems on La Palma
    • Performance
      • Efficiency
      • Noise level
      • Saturation level and dynamic range
      • Charge transfer efficiency
      • Cosmetic defects
  • Image Photon Counting System (IPCS)
    • Overview
    • Design
    • Image size and pixel size
    • IPCS Performance
      • Efficiency
      • Noise
      • Saturation characteristics
      • Geometric distortion
      • Granularity
  • Which detector ?
    • General Signal and Noise considerations
    • A comparison between CCD and IPCS
    • Other considerations
      • Detector size
      • Real time data display
      • Time resolution
      • Saturation
      • Cosmic ray events
      • Cosmetic defects
      • Fringing
      • Geometric distortion
• Instruments for photometry and polarimetry
  • Overview
  • Peoples' Photometer (PP)
• Instruments not supported by ING staff
  • General Comments
    • Principal Contacts
  • Photographic Imaging
  • The ISIS Fibre System
    • Guiding system.
    • Aperture plates
    • Observing coordinate determination.
    • Fibre System Performance
  • Manchester Echelle Spectrograph (MES)
    • Overview
    • Design
    • Operation
  • Multi-Purpose Fotometer (MPF)
• Users' own instruments
  • General Comments
  • Optics
    • WHT f/2.8 corrected prime focus
    • WHT f/11 Cassegrain focus
    • WHT f/11 Nasmyth focus direct
    • WHT f/11 Nasmyth focus with optical image derotator
    • WHT f/11 Nasmyth focus with infrared image derotator
    • INT f/3.3 prime focus
    • INT f/15 Cassegrain focus
    • JKT f/15 Cassegrain focus
    • JKT f/8.06 wide field Cassegrain focus
  • Mechanical Mounting
    • WHT f/2.8 corrected prime focus
    • WHT f/11 Cassegrain focus
    • WHT f/11 Nasmyth focus
    • WHT GHRIL Laboratory
    • INT f/3.3 prime focus
    • INT f/15 Cassegrain focus
    • JKT f/15 & f/8.06 Cassegrain foci
  • Acquisition and guidance
  • Electrical and electronic
  • Cooling, cryogenics, vacuum, gas supplies
  • Detectors
• Documentation
  • User manuals
  • Technical notes
• Scheduling aids
• Instrumental throughput
  • Empirical throughputs
    • Spectroscopy
    • Imaging
    • Comparison between theoretical and empirical throughput
  • SIGNAL
  • Theoretical throughputs
  • Atmospheric extinction
• FILTERS
  • Imaging filters
    • Broad band filters - the Kitt Peak Interference Filters (BVRI)
    • Broad band filters - The RGO Glass Broad Band Filters (UBVRIZ)
    • Broadband filters - the Harris set
    • Narrow band filters
      • Specification of the narrow band filters
    • General Remarks
    • Calculating of Focus Offsets
    • Calculation of Central Wavelength
      • Change due to uncollimated light
    • Change due to temperature
  • 125 mm diameter filters for WHT prime focus
  • Special Purpose Filters
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