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Future, past and present of PB 301 at AIP

Thomas GranzerLeibniz-Institut für Astrophysik Potsdam (AIP)

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STELLA

• First robotic, high-resolution spectrograph in the world.

• Consists of two telescopes, SES & WiFSIP.

• Routine operation of SES since 2006, WiFSIP since 2010.

• 2nd generation instrumentation & hardware upgrade planned.

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STELLA (cont.)

• STELLA: 22 ref. Publications (2001)• Liverpool Telescope: 68 ref. Pub. (2001)• Faulkes Telescopes: 51 ref. Pub. (2004)• MoNeT: 7 ref. Pub. (2004)• REM: 41 ref. Pub. (2001)• Las Cumbres: 7 ref. Pub. (2008)• ROTSE I-III (a-e): 52 ref. Pub (2001)• Fairborn observatory, T1- T16: 49 ref. Pub. (2001)

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AGW@LBT

• 4 AGWs delivered (2007-11)• Used for commissioning of

TCS, LUCI & MODS.• Guiding cadence 2.5sec.• FWHM < 0.35arcsec.• Shack-Hartmann mask with

15x15 sub-apertures.• Wavefront sensor updates

every 30sec.

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ARGOS for LBT

• AIP builds tip-tilt sensors for the LBT laser guide star facility.

• 6 lasers to create reference stars (ground layer AO).

• Tip-Tilt signal from natural star.• Tip-Tilt at several hundred Hz.• Photon counting Avalanche

Photo Diode, fiber fed.• Installation and commissioning

2014.

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STELLA@Monet

• Since July 2013 the two MoNeT Telescopes use the STELLA Control System.

• Possible target input file exchange.• May be used for joint projects (imaging)

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PEPSI & SDI

• Merge SCS with SDI– Take advantage of

robotic scheduling– Also to issue

calibrations@day?• Precursor for VATT

robotization

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GREGOR@night

• First automated operation of telescope Dec. 2012.

• Need hardware for dome control.

• Use as an RV machine.

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New facility >2015

• ~2m 'light bucket'

• RV-machine for satellite follow-up

• Together with Bocum at base of Cerro Armazones?

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Network after Song/Las Cumbres?

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The Extragalactic Distance Scale

• The effect of metallicity on the Cepheid PL-relation using the near-IR surface brightness method

– ESO Large programme on-going for 20 SMC Cepheids

• Determining the distance to the LMC to better than 1% using eclipsing binaries

– Calibrate the near-IR surface brightness relation for late type stars. STELLA rv curves for galactic eclipsers with accurate Hipparcos parallaxes (GAIA!)

– Problem to get new V and K band light curves for bright sources, Polish group considers to built a V and K photometer for the 1m Swope. STELLA?

• RR Lyrae stars with near-IR surface brightness method and GAIA, again problem to get V and K light curves for bright (nearby) sources

• Calibrating the Cepheid PL relation using the maser galaxy IC10 (LBT w. LBC ongoing)

J. Storm

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Achievements/research plans

• 2nd stage of STELLA/WiFSIP pipeline working for color photometry.

• IC4756 science case mostly resolved, reobservation scheduled (paper in prep.)

• IC4756, NGC2236: Stellar activity in CoRoT OCs. (2014)

• GREGOR@night redesign (-2016)

• SOCS data reduction (-2017)

• Stellar activity of PLATO field stars (2022-)

J. Weingrill

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Impressions during retreat

• Quest for polarimetric capabilities either at STELLA and/or GREGOR raised by at least two people.

• More targets for long-term activity monitoring requested to have statistical leverage on testing theoretical models.

• Overall speaking, we ARE building the right instruments for branch-I research.