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Further Advancements of the PARI Optical Ridge Telescopes for Education and Public Outreach

Further Advancements of the PARI Optical Ridge Telescopes for Education and Public Outreach. M. W. Castelaz, J. D. Cline Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute www.pari.edu. A Not-For-Profit Public Foundation. AAS 203rd Meeting. 8 January 2004 . S ession 118.04 Reaching Out: EPO.

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Further Advancements of the PARI Optical Ridge Telescopes for Education and Public Outreach

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  1. Further Advancements of the PARI Optical Ridge Telescopes for Education and Public Outreach M. W. Castelaz, J. D. ClinePisgah Astronomical Research Institute www.pari.edu A Not-For-Profit Public Foundation AAS 203rd Meeting. 8 January 2004. Session 118.04 Reaching Out: EPO

  2. Introduction Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute(PARI)isa not-for-profit public foundation dedicated to providing research and educational access to radio and optical astronomy for a broad cross-section of users. N The PARI campus is relatively free of light and radio interference. PARI is located on 200 acres in the Pisgah National Forest in western North Carolina

  3. PARI Optical Ridge • Location: Optical observatories are 500 m from the PARI Main Campus and runs East-West with sharp N-S drop-offs • Altitude 910 m, Latitude 35O 11.8’ N, Longitude 82O 52.3’ W • Horizon: Lowest point is 0.25O and highest point is 5O • Skies: Average of three nights per week for spectroscopy, differential photometry, astrometry • Ideal for long-term and survey work

  4. PARI Optical Observatories 1. Optical Afterglow Gamma Ray Burst (UNC-Chapel Hill) 10. University 0.5 m Telescope (Future) N 2. Stellar (PARI) 3,4. Atmosphere, Solar & Lunar 9. Wide Field 1.1 m Telescope (Future) 5. SPACE (PARI Supporters) 8. Polaris (PARI) 6. Low Mass Binary Star Survey (UNC-Chapel Hill) 7. Webcams (PARI) Latitude 35O 11.8’ N, Longitude 82O 52.3’ W, Altitude 910 m

  5. Near-Infrared Afterglow Gamma Ray Burst Principal Investigators: Melissa Nysewonger and Dan Reichart (UNC-Chapel Hill) Telescope: 0.30 m, f/10, 68.7 arcsec/mm Camera: Cooled Indigo Systems Alpha NIR InGaAs CCD Mode of Operation: Robotic/Remote Research: Investigate infrared wavelengths of GRBs to find emission from dark bursts, called "dark" because they have no detectable optical afterglow Education: Observatory for use by high school teachers and students. In collaboration with Morehead Planetarium, Chapel Hill. Also, doctoral candidate thesis research.

  6. Near-Infrared Afterglow Gamma Ray Burst FOV:10.3 arcmin x 8.8 arcmin2.0 arcsec/pix CCD Camera:Near-IR, 0.9-1.7 um320 x 256 pixels30 um square pixels12-bit A/D

  7. 2. Stellar Observatory Principal Investigators: D. Cline & M. Castelaz (PARI) Telescope: 0.30 m, f/10, 68.7 arcsec/mm Camera: SBIG ST10XME + BVRI, SBIG Self-Guiding Spectrometer with 600 g/mm gratings Mode of Operation: Remote Research: Five year observation campaign measuring optical low resolution spectra (120 Å/mm) and photometry covering complete light curves of four Mira variables. Education: Undergraduate research experiences observing and modeling of Mira variable spectra.

  8. Stellar Observatory CCD Camera:2184 x 1472 pixels6.8 um square pixels16-bit, 9 e- rms FOV:17.1 arcmin x 11.5 arcmin0.47 arcsec/pix

  9. 3. Atmosphere Principal Investigators: Cline (PARI) Telescope: 12.7 cm, f/10, 162 arcsec/mm Camera: SBIG STV Mode of Operation: Robotic Research: Continuously monitor seeing and atmospheric transparency in the Pisgah National Forest. Education: Environmental studies students have access to atmospheric conditions. The conditions are published to the internet.

  10. 4. Solar & Lunar Principal Investigators: Cline & Castelaz Telescope: 12.7 cm, f/3.3 with focal reducer, 535 arcsec/mm Camera: SBIG STV Mode of Operation: Robotic Research: Recordsunspots Education: General public and K-12 science studies from live images of the Sun and Moon

  11. Atmosphere and Solar/Lunar Telescopes Each CCD Camera:656 x 480 pixels7.4 um square pixels16-bit Atmosphere Solar/Lunar FOV:15.8 arcmin x 9.6 arcmin1.2 arcsec/pix FOV with f/3.3 focal reducer:52.1 arcmin x 31.7 arcmin4 arcsec/pix

  12. 5. Supporters of the PARI Astronomy Center for Education (SPACE Observatory) Principal Investigators: Joe Phillips Telescope: 0.25 m, f/10, 82.5 arcsec/mm Camera: SBIG ST7XME Mode of Operation: Remote Research: PARI has access for target-of-opportunity events such as gamma ray bursts. Education: Supporters of PARI and amateur astronomers use this telescope remotely, on a subscription basis.

  13. SPACE Observatory FOV:9.5 arcmin x 6.3 arcmin0.74 arcsec/pix CCD Camera:756 x 510 pixels9 um square pixels16-bit, 15 e- rms

  14. 6. Low Mass Binary Star Survey Principal Investigators: Mercedes Lopez-Morales, Chris Clemens (UNC-Chapel Hill) Telescope: 0.24 m, f/10, 103 arcsec/mm Camera: Apogee Ap-10 + VRI filters Mode of Operation: Robotic Research: Three-year optical survey to find detached low mass eclipsing binaries and use them to make direct measurements of masses and radii. Education: Doctoral candidate thesis research.

  15. Low Mass Binary Star Survey FOV:47 arcmin x 31 arcmin1.4 arcsec/pix CCD Camera:2048 x 2048 pixels14 um square pixels14-bit, 15 e- rms

  16. 7. Webcams Principal Investigators: PARI Staff Telescope: Telescopes are video lenses Camera: Each position is a CCD video camera Mode of Operation: Robotic Research: These cameras are for education/public outreach. Education: Eight Webcams show the PARI campus and observatories and sky conditions live at www.pari.edu.

  17. 8. Polaris (PARI) Principal Investigators: Cline & Castelaz Telescope: 0.25 m, f/6.3, 130.9 arcsec/mm Camera: SBIG STV + BVRI filters Mode of Operation: Robotic Research: Dedicated to multi-year, continuous phase coverage photometry of Polaris, a Cepheid with variations in period and minimum & maximum amplitude. Education: Undergraduate research experiences observing the light curve of Polaris.

  18. Polaris Observatory CCD Camera:656 x 480 pixels7.4 um square pixels16-bit FOV:10.6 arcmin x 7.8 arcmin0.97 arcsec/pix

  19. 9. Wide Field 1.1 m Telescope Principal Investigators: PLANNED: PARI Telescope: 1.1 m f/4.4 prime focus Camera: TBD … telescope has 150mm dia. flat field Mode of Operation: Remote • Education: • All data to be published on Internet for education/public outreach. • Also, undergraduate and graduate research. • Research: • Near-Earth Asteroid Monitoring • Supernova Survey • Gamma-Ray burst follow-up • Spectrographic measurements

  20. 10. University Remote Principal Investigators: PLANNED: Consortium Telescope: 0.50 m Camera: TBD Mode of Operation: Remote Research: Dedicated to use by universities that invest in the observatory for their astronomy students and faculty. • Education: • Undergraduate research • Classroom use

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