New developments in instrumentation at the W. M. Keck Observatory

The W. M. Keck Observatory continues to develop new capabilities in support of our science driven strategic plan which emphasizes leadership in key areas of observational astronomy. This leadership is a key component of the scientific productivity of our observing community and depends on our ability to develop new instrumentation, upgrades to existing instrumentation, and upgrades to supporting infrastructure at the observatory. In this paper we describe the as measured performance of projects completed in 2014 and the expected performance of projects currently in the development or construction phases. Projects reaching completion in 2014 include a near-IR tip/tilt sensor for the Keck I adaptive optics system, a new center launch system for the Keck II laser guide star facility, and NIRES, a near-IR Echelle spectrograph for the Keck II telescope. Projects in development include a new seeing limited integral field spectrograph for the visible wavelength range called the Keck Cosmic Web Imager, a deployable tertiary mirror for the Keck I telescope, upgrades to the spectrograph detector and the imager of the OSIRIS instrument, and an upgrade to the telescope control systems on both Keck telescopes

Advances in instrumentation at the W. M. Keck Observatory

In this paper we describe both recently completed instrumentation projects and our current development efforts in terms of their role in the strategic plan, the key science areas they address, and their performance as measured or predicted. Projects reaching completion in 2012 include MOSFIRE, a near IR multi-object spectrograph, a laser guide star adaptive optics facility on the Keck I telescope, and an upgrade to the guide camera for the HIRES instrument on Keck I. Projects in development include a new seeing limited integral field spectrograph for the visible wavelength range called the Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI), an upgrade to the telescope control systems on both Keck telescopes, a near-IR tip/tilt sensor for the Keck I adaptive optics system, and a new grating for the OSIRIS integral field spectrograph

Productivity and impact of large optical telescopes

An attempt is made to provide quantitative measures of the amount of data gathered at large optical telescopes throughout the world and the impact these data have on astronomical research. The data base comprises 1163 papers reporting data from 39 telescopes, published between January 1990 and June 1991, and 4052 citations to them in 1993. Productivity measured in papers per square meter of telescope mirror varies by a factor of six, and impact measured in citations per paper varies by a factor of more than 10. Predictably, high productivity and high impact are associated with telescopes located at good sites and fully supported for many years by organizations with large budgets. Low productivity and low impact are associated with less favorable locations, short periods of operation, and financial stringency. In addition, the most productive telescopes seem to be ones whose users include astronomers from a wide range of geographical locations

Productivity and impact of large optical telescopes

An attempt is made to provide quantitative measures of the amount of data gathered at large optical telescopes throughout the world and the impact these data have on astronomical research. The data base comprises 1163 papers reporting data from 39 telescopes, published between January 1990 and June 1991, and 4052 citations to them in 1993. Productivity measured in papers per square meter of telescope mirror varies by a factor of six, and impact measured in citations per paper varies by a factor of more than 10. Predictably, high productivity and high impact are associated with telescopes located at good sites and fully supported for many years by organizations with large budgets. Low productivity and low impact are associated with less favorable locations, short periods of operation, and financial stringency. In addition, the most productive telescopes seem to be ones whose users include astronomers from a wide range of geographical locations