Adaptive optics in the context of GMT

• Grant number: 17/17702-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: November 01, 2017
• End date: October 31, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Astronomy - Astronomical Instrumentation
• Principal Investigator: Augusto Damineli Neto
• Grantee: Tárcio de Almeida Vieira
• Host Institution: Instituto de Astronomia, Geofísica e Ciências Atmosféricas (IAG). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 11/51680-6 - Exploring the universe: from the galaxies formation to Earth-like planets with the Giant Magellan Telescope, AP.ESP

Abstract

This is a post-doc project to help develop the adaptive optics system of the GMT telescope to its first-light instrument, G-CLEF. This is a novel adaptive system (fiber fed, visible wavelengths spectrograph) and the results of the work must be published in the best international instrumentation journals. In addition, a participation in the upgrade of the SAM module on the SOAR telescope is expected. In 2014, the Institutes of the State of Sao Paulo joined the International Consortium of the "Giant Magellan Telescope" having FAPESP, State of Sao Paulo Research Foundation, as the founder member, with an investment of US$ 40 million. Since then, the GMT Brazil Office has been investigating different ways to collaborate for the construction of the Telescope and the instruments and one of the strategic niches is in the development of Adaptive Optics. The Magellan Giant Telescope is set to be the first of a new generation of "Extremely Large Telescopes". When it is operational in the first half of the next decade, GMT will open up new space for research and discovery and will contribute to understanding and solving key questions in Astrophysics, Cosmology, as well as the study of extrasolar planets. One of the key elements of these new and huge telescopes, as is the case of GMT, is the adoption of very advanced technologies, such as Adaptive Optics (AO), which was originally developed for use in Astronomy, with the objective of correcting distortions that blur images induced in the wavefronts that propagate through Earth's atmosphere. The Fellow must research and develop imaging solutions that use AO technology to provide wavefront corrections that lead to distortion-free images and that work in a large telescope, as is GMT. Parallel to the study of AO systems, the post doctoral fellow will also have to develop computational methods for the study, optimization and evaluation of the performance of optical systems. Research: Advance state of the art optical design under limited supervision, the junior physicist or astronomer will report to the GMT-Brazil project Principal Investigators (PIs). The successful candidate will work with senior physicists, astronomers and engineers (mechanical, optical and electronic) to develop instrumentation for the GMT to support the use of the telescope for the acquisition of the highest quality images of astronomical sources. Although no previous in-depth experience of astronomical instrumentation and systems engineering is required, a keen interest in acquiring such skills within the working environment is essential. The candidate will have thechance to work in a number of projects related to GMT instrumentation. We describe here two of them, but others will also be presented to the successful candidate. The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) includes adaptive optics (AO) as an integral component of its design. In addition to the primary goal ofcompensating for atmospheric turbulence in order to improve angular resolution power, adaptive optics sensors and actuators should be part of the alignment of the different telescope mirrors. This Ground-Layer AO (GLAO) correction is planned to provide improved image quality over a very wide field of view; however, no development work has been done on existing telescopes for these objectives. The first project of the Fellow is to study the proposed phasing system that maintains the relative alignment of the primary and secondary segments of mirrors, eventually helping the GMT on their design studies, but having as main objective its impact on the performance of instruments (both GMACS and G-CLEF). This is an important effort that will help to establish an AO group in São Paulo.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

FAES, DANIEL M.; TOKOVININ, ANDREI; VIEIRA, TARCIO; MELLO, ALEXANDRE; DOMINGUES, MARCIA; ANDRADE, DENIS; QUINT, BRUNO C.; DOS SANTOS, JESULINO B.; CLOSE, LM; SCHREIBER, L; et al. SAMplus: adaptive optics at optical wavelengths for SOAR. ADAPTIVE OPTICS SYSTEMS VI, v. 10703, p. 10-pg., 2018-01-01. (16/16844-1, 11/51680-6, 17/17702-9)