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The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is poised to achieve its highly anticipated first light in early 2025, marking the start of an era of transformative observational capabilities. As the observatory nears its first light, the commissioning of the Active Optics System (AOS) becomes increasingly critical. Comprising an open-loop and a closed-loop component, the AOS delivers real-time corrections for the alignment and mirror surface perturbations, ensuring seeing-limited image quality across the 3.5-degree field of view.
In this paper, we present a thorough examination of recent advancements in the AOS at the Rubin Observatory. We begin by detailing the enhancements in the open-loop system, focusing on the improvement of Look-Up Tables (LUTs) for the mirror bending modes and the alignment of optical elements. Next, we discuss the closed-loop control improvements, particularly our novel approach using double Zernike polynomials. This method addresses camera rotation by defining the sensitivity matrix and the reference wavefront with a double Zernike expansion, thereby improving the system’s adaptability to varying observational conditions. Finally, we address improvements made to eliminate degeneracies within the system’s degrees of freedom, and discuss the upcoming verification phases during on-sky testing with the Commissioning Camera (ComCam).
Overall, these initial open-loop verifications and closed-loop algorithmic improvements not only mark significant progress towards full-system verification with LSST Camera, but also refine the capabilities of the AOS, which is key for maintaining long-term operational efficiency and achieving the required image quality.
Among its main scientific goals are the detection of atmospheres of exoplanets and the determination of fundamental physical constants. For this, high radial velocity precision and accuracy are required. Even though the ANDES-spectrograph is designed for maximum intrinsic stability, a calibration and thus a calibration unit is mandatory. To allow for maximum flexibility and modularity the calibration unit is physically split into three calibration units.
We show the design of the calibration units and their individual components, where possible. This includes the electronics, the mechanics, the software supporting and controlling the light guiding and calibration sources.
A safety-driven point of view on the use of industrial technologies: trade-off on the implementation
MAORY stands for Multi-conjugate Adaptive Optics RelaY (the name has been recently changed to MORFEO, which stands for Multiconjugate adaptive Optics For ELT Observations, thus in this article we will use MORFEO), and it is one of the instruments of the European Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). The main function of MORFEO is to relay the light beam from the ELT focal plane to the client instrument (initially MICADO) while compensating, through a multiconjugate adaptive optics system, the effects of the atmospheric turbulence and other disturbances affecting the wavefronts coming from the scientific sources of interest.
The MORFEO instrument is designed and developed by a European consortium composed of INAF (Istituto Nazionale di AstroFisica, Italy), CNRS/INSU (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/ Institut National des Sciences de l’Univers, France), NUIG (National University of Ireland Galway, Ireland) and ESO (European Southern Observatory, Europe).
The opto-mechanical design of MORFEO has been developed in 3 dimensions, using the volume between the ELT output focal plane and the Nasmyth floor. The design uses the available volume in a very efficient way, but this poses constraints on the orientation of the optical elements and adds complexity to the AIT operations. In this paper we describe the strategy of the AIT process which will be performed at INAF-OAS Bologna (Italy), which is conceived to maximize knowledge of the instrument and thereby optimize (and, possibly, minimize) the time requested at Armazones for the AIV operations.
The main scientific instrument of the ASTRI-Horn telescope is an innovative and compact Camera with Silicon- Photomultiplier based detectors and a specifically designed fast read-out electronics based on a custom peak-detector mode. The thermo-mechanical assembly is designed to host both the entire electronics chain, from the sensors to the raw data transmission system and the calibration system, and the complete thermoregulation system.
This contribution gives a high level description of the T/M and electrical design of the Cherenkov Camera, it describes the assembling procedure of its different subsystems and their integration into the complete camera system. A discussion about possible design improvements coming from the problems/difficulties encountered during assembly is also presented. Finally, results from engineering tests conducted in-field are also presented.
To overcome these limitations, we started in 2012 to design a facility aimed at generating a broad (170 x 60 mm2), uniform and low-divergent (1.5 arcsec HEW) X-ray beam within a small lab (∼ 9 x 18 m2), to characterize the ATHENA MM. BEaTriX (the Beam Expander Testing X-ray facility) makes use of an X-ray microfocus source, a paraboloidal mirror, a crystal monochromation system, and an asymmetrically-cut diffracting crystal for the beam expansion. These optical components, in addition to a modular low-vacuum level (10-3 mbar), enable to match the ATHENA SPO acceptance requirements.
The realization of this facility at INAF-OAB in Merate (Italy) is now on going. Once completed, BEaTriX can be used to test the Silicon Pore Optics modules of the ATHENA X-ray observatory, as well as other optics, like the ones of the Arcus mission. In this paper we report the advancement status of the facility.
The ASTRI SST-2M telescope structure and mirrors have been installed at the INAF observing station at Serra La Nave, on Mt. Etna (Sicily, Italy) in September 2014. Its performance verification phase began in autumn 2015. Part of the scheduled activities foresees the study and characterization of the optical and opto-mechanical performance of the telescope prototype.
In this contribution we report the results achieved in terms of kinematic model analysis, mirrors reflectivity evolution, telescopes positioning, flexures and pointing model and the thermal behavior.
In this framework, the Italian ASTRI program, led by the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF), is currently developing a scientific and technological SST dual-mirror end-to-end prototype named ASTRI SST-2M. It is a 4-meter class telescope; it adopts an aplanatic, wide-field, double-reflection optical layout in a Schwarzschild-Couder configuration. The ASTRI SST-2M telescope structure and mirrors have been already installed at the INAF observing station at Serra La Nave, on Mt. Etna (Sicily, Italy).
In this contribution we report about the on-site deployment and the latest results on the opto-mechanical performance test conducted soon after the telescope installation
The next generation of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope will explore the uppermost end of the Very High Energy domain up to about few hundreds of TeV with unprecedented sensitivity, angular resolution and imaging quality.
To this end, the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF) is currently developing a scientific and technological telescope prototype for the implementation of the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) observatory. The Italian ASTRI program foresees the full design, development, installation and calibration of a Small Size 4-meter class Telescope, adopting an aplanatic, wide-field, double-reflection optical layout in a Schwarzschild-Couder configuration.
In this paper we discuss about the technological solutions adopted for the telescope and for the mirrors. In particular we focus on the structural and electro-mechanical design of the telescope, now under fabrication. The results on the optical performance derived from mirror prototypes are here described, too.
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