Progress with 6dF: a multi-object spectroscopy system for all-sky surveys

Frederick G. Watson; Quentin Andrew Parker; Gabriella Bogatu; Tony J. Farrell; Brian E. Hingley; Stan Miziarski

doi:10.1117/12.395490

16 August 2000 Progress with 6dF: a multi-object spectroscopy system for all-sky surveys

Frederick G. Watson, Quentin Andrew Parker, Gabriella Bogatu, Tony J. Farrell, Brian E. Hingley, Stan Miziarski

Proceedings Volume 4008, Optical and IR Telescope Instrumentation and Detectors; (2000) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.395490
Event: Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation, 2000, Munich, Germany

Abstract

6dF is a fully-automated front-end for the multi-object fiber-coupled spectroscopy system of the UK Schmidt Telescope (UKST). It is a magnetic pick-place system with an positioning robot, and it will replace the manually- configured FLAIR front-end that has been operated on the telescope in its present form since 1992. The one-hour reconfiguration time of 6dF makes a range of projects possible that could not be contemplated with FLAIR. Most notable of these is the 6dF Galaxy Survey, a two-part survey of redshifts and peculiar velocities that will become the main task of the Schmidt-Telescope once 6dF is commissioned late in 2000. This will eventually lead to a determination of the large-scale distribution of mass density in the local Universe, which will be a significant achievement for a telescope in the 1-m class. The instrument will be capable of carrying out other survey projects, and 6dF spectroscopy will be the UKSTs main science product for at least the next five years. A notable aspect of 6dF has been the very rapid progress made in its construction by the Anglo-Australian Observatory's Instrumentation Division.

Citation Download Citation

Frederick G. Watson, Quentin Andrew Parker, Gabriella Bogatu, Tony J. Farrell, Brian E. Hingley, and Stan Miziarski "Progress with 6dF: a multi-object spectroscopy system for all-sky surveys", Proc. SPIE 4008, Optical and IR Telescope Instrumentation and Detectors, (16 August 2000); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.395490

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