Data reduction pipeline for emir, the near-IR multi-object spectrograph for GTC

EMIR (Balcells et al. 2000) is a near-infrared wide-field camera and multi-object spectrograph being built for the GTC. The Data Reduction Pipeline (DRP) will be optimized for handling and reducing near-infrared data acquired with EMIR.

Local luminous infrared galaxies. I. Spatially resolved observations with the Spitzer infrared spectrograph

We present results from the Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph spectral mapping observations of 15 local luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs). In this paper, we investigate the spatial variations of the mid-IR emission which includes fine structure lines, molecular hydrogen lines, polycyclic aromatic features (PAHs), continuum emission, and the 9.7 μm silicate feature. We also compare the nuclear and integrated spectra. We find that the star formation takes place in extended regions (several kpc) as probed by the PAH emission, as well as the [Ne II]12.81 μm and [Ne III]15.56 μm emissions. The behavior of the integrated PAH emission and 9.7 μm silicate feature is similar to that of local starburst galaxies. We also find that the minima of the [Ne III]15.56 μm/[Ne II]12.81 μm ratio tends to be located at the nuclei and its value is lower than that of H II regions in our LIRGs and nearby galaxies. It is likely that increased densities in the nuclei of LIRGs are responsible for the smaller nuclear [Ne III]15.56 μm/[Ne II]12.81 μm ratios. This includes the possibility that some of the most massive stars in the nuclei are still embedded in ultracompact H II regions. In a large fraction of our sample, the 11.3 μm PAH emission appears more extended than the dust 5.5 μm continuum emission. We find a dependency of the 11.3 μm PAH/7.7 μm PAH and [Ne II]12.81 μm/11.3 μm PAH ratios with the age of the stellar populations. Smaller and larger ratios, respectively, indicate recent star formation. The estimated warm (300 K

EChO. Exoplanet characterisation observatory

A dedicated mission to investigate exoplanetary atmospheres represents a major milestone in our quest to understand our place in the universe by placing our Solar System in context and by addressing the suitability of planets for the presence of life. EChO—the Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory—is a mission concept specifically geared for this purpose. EChO will provide simultaneous, multi-wavelength spectroscopic observations on a stable platform that will allow very long exposures. The use of passive cooling, few moving parts and well established technology gives a low-risk and potentially long-lived mission. EChO will build on observations by Hubble, Spitzer and ground-based telescopes, which discovered the first molecules and atoms in exoplanetary atmospheres. However, EChO’s configuration and specifications are designed to study a number of systems in a consistent manner that will eliminate the ambiguities affecting prior observations. EChO will simultaneously observe a broad enough spectral region—from the visible to the mid-infrared—to constrain from one single spectrum the temperature structure of the atmosphere, the abundances of the major carbon and oxygen bearing species, the expected photochemically-produced species and magnetospheric signatures. The spectral range and resolution are tailored to separate bands belonging to up to 30 molecules and retrieve the composition and temperature structure of planetary atmospheres. The target list for EChO includes planets ranging from Jupiter-sized with equilibrium temperatures T_ eq up to 2,000 K, to those of a few Earth masses, with T _eq \u223c 300 K. The list will include planets with no Solar System analog, such as the recently discovered planets GJ1214b, whose density lies between that of terrestrial and gaseous planets, or the rocky-iron planet 55 Cnc e, with day-side temperature close to 3,000 K. As the number of detected exoplanets is growing rapidly each year, and the mass and radius of those detected steadily decreases, the target list will be constantly adjusted to include the most interesting systems. We have baselined a dispersive spectrograph design covering continuously the 0.4–16 μm spectral range in 6 channels (1 in the visible, 5 in the InfraRed), which allows the spectral resolution to be adapted from several tens to several hundreds, depending on the target brightness. The instrument will be mounted behind a 1.5 m class telescope, passively cooled to 50 K, with the instrument structure and optics passively cooled to \u223c45 K. EChO will be placed in a grand halo orbit around L2. This orbit, in combination with an optimised thermal shield design, provides a highly stable thermal environment and a high degree of visibility of the sky to observe repeatedly several tens of targets over the year. Both the baseline and alternative designs have been evaluated and no critical items with Technology Readiness Level (TRL) less than 4–5 have been identified. We have also undertaken a first-order cost and development plan analysis and find that EChO is easily compatible with the ESA M-class mission framework.

The first extrasolar planet discovered with a new-generation high-throughput Doppler instrument

We report the detection of the first extrasolar planet, ET-1 (HD 102195b), using the Exoplanet Tracker (ET), a new-generation Doppler instrument. The planet orbits HD 102195, a young star with solar metallicity that may be part of the local association. The planet imparts radial velocity variability to the star with a semiamplitude of 63.4 ± 2.0 m s^-1 and a period of 4.11 days. The planetary minimum mass (m sin i) is 0.488MJ ± 0.015M_J. The planet was initially detected in the spring of 2005 with the Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) 0.9 m coudé feed telescope. The detection was confirmed by radial velocity observations with the ET at the KPNO 2.1 m telescope and also at the 9 m Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) with its High Resolution Spectrograph. This planetary discovery with a 0.9 m telescope around a V = 8.05 magnitude star was made possible by the high throughput of the instrument: 49% measured from the fiber output to the detector. The ET's interferometer-based approach is an effective method for planet detection. In addition, the ET concept is adaptable to multiple-object Doppler observations or very high precision observations with a cross-dispersed echelle spectrograph to separate stellar fringes over a broad wavelength band. In addition to spectroscopic observations of HD 102195, we obtained brightness measurements with one of the automated photometric telescopes at Fairborn Observatory. Those observations reveal that HD 102195 is a spotted variable star with an amplitude of ~0.015 mag and a 12.3 ± 0.3 day period. This is consistent with spectroscopically observed Ca II H and K emission levels and line-broadening measurements but inconsistent with rotational modulation of surface activity as the cause of the radial velocity variability. Our photometric observations rule out transits of the planetary companion.

Library of high-resolution UES echelle spectra of F, G, K and M field dwarf stars

We present a library of Utrecht echelle spectrograph (UES) observations of a sample of F, G, K and M field dwarf stars covering the spectral range from 4800 Å to 10600 Å with a resolution of 55000. These spectra include some of the spectral lines most widely used as optical and near-infrared indicators of chromospheric activity such as Hβ, Mg I b triplet, Na I D_1, D_2, He I D_3, Hα, and Ca II IRT lines, as well as a large number of photospheric lines which can also be affected by chromospheric activity. The spectra have been compiled with the aim of providing a set of standards observed at high-resolution to be used in the application of the spectral subtraction technique to obtain the active-chromosphere contribution to these lines in chromospherically active single and binary stars. This library can also be used for spectral classification purposes. A digital version with all the spectra is available via ftp and the World Wide Web (WWW) in both ASCII and FITS formats.

MEGARA: the future IFU and MOS of the 10.4 M GTC

In these proceedings we summarize the characteristics and current status of MEGARA, the future optical IFU and MOS for the 10.4 m GTC. MEGARA is being built by a Consortium led by the UCM (Spain) that also includes the INAOE (Mexico), the IAA-CSIC (Spain) and the UPM (Spain). The MEGARA IFU offers two different bundles, one called LCB with a field-of-view of 14 x 12 arcsec^2 and a spaxel size of 0.685 arcsec yielding spectral resolutions between R=6000-19000 and another one called SCB covering 10 x 8 arcsec^2 with 0.48 arcsec spaxels and resolutions R=8000-25000. The MOS component allows observing up to 100 targets in 3.5x3.5 arcmin^2. In September 2010 MEGARA was selected as the next optical spectrograph for GTC. Its PDR is scheduled for March 2012 with First Light on 2015.

MEGARA control system

MEGARA (Multi-Espectrografo en GTC de Alta Resolucion para Astronomia) is an optical Integral-Field Unit (IFU) and Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) designed for the GTC 10.4 m telescope in La Palma. The MEGARA Control System will provide the capabilities to move the different mechanisms of the instrument, to readout the data from the detector controller and the necessary routines for the Inspector Panels, the MEGARA Observing Preparation Software Suite, the Data Factory and the Sequencer strategies.

Making observations with GTC/MEGARA easier: the MEGARA observing preparation software suite

MEGARA (Multi-Espectrografo en GTC de Alta Resolucion para Astronomia) is an optical Integral-Field Unit (IFU) and Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) designed for the GTC 10.4 m telescope in La Palma. Its relatively complex layout makes necessary a set of tools to facilitate the observation preparation to the user. The MEGARA Observing Preparation Software Suite (MOPSS) consists on three software components designed to assist observers to optimally plan their observations with GTC/MEGARA: the Exposure Time Calculator, the Image Simulator, and the Fiber MOS Positioning tool. We describe these software tools and the status of their prototypes up to the date.

Integral field spectroscopy and multi-wavelength imaging of nearby spiral galaxies: NGC 5668 as a pilot case for MEGARA

MEGARA (Multi-Espectrógrafo en GTC de Alta Resolución para Astronomía) is an optical Integral-Field Unit (IFU) and Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) designed for the GTC 10.4 m telescope in La Palma. MEGARA will be a 3rd generation instrument for GTC. It is led by the University Complutense of Madrid with the collaboration of INAOE, IAA, UPM and comprises more than 50 researchers from a large number of institutions worldwide.

The AGN, star-forming, and morphological properties of luminous ir-bright/optically-faint galaxies

We present the active galactic nucleus (AGN), star-forming, and morphological properties of a sample of 13 MIR-luminous (∫_24 700 μJy) IR-bright/optically-faint galaxies (IRBGs, ∫_24/f_R≲ 1000). While these z ∼ 2 sources were drawn from deep Chandra fields with >200 ks X-ray coverage, only seven are formally detected in the X-ray and four lack X-ray emission at even the 2σ level. Spitzer InfraRed Spectrograph (IRS) spectra, however, confirm that all of the sources are AGN-dominated in the mid-IR, although half have detectable polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) emission responsible for ∼25% of their mid-infrared flux density. When combined with other samples, this indicates that at least 30%–40% of luminous IRBGs have star formation rates in the ultraluminous infrared galaxy (ULIRG) range (∼100–2000 M_⨀ yr^−1). X-ray hardness ratios and MIR to X-ray luminosity ratios indicate that all members of the sample contain heavily X-ray obscured AGNs, 80% of which are candidates to be Compton thick. Furthermore, the mean X-ray luminosity of the sample, log L_2–10 keV(erg s^−1) ∼44.6, indicates that these IRBGs are Type 2 QSOs, at least from the X-ray perspective. While those sources most heavily obscured in the X-ray are also those most likely to display strong silicate absorption in the mid-IR, silicate absorption does not always accompany X-ray obscuration. Finally, ∼70% of the IRBGs are merger candidates, a rate consistent with that of sub-mm galaxies (SMGs), although SMGs appear to be physically larger than IRBGs. These characteristics are consistent with the proposal that these objects represent a later, AGN-dominated, and more relaxed evolutionary stage following soon after the star-formation-dominated one represented by the SMGs.

Local luminous infrared galaxies: Spatially resolved mid-infrared observations with Spitzer/IRS

Luminous Infrared (IR) Galaxies (LIRGs, L_IR=10^11-10 L_⨀) are an important cosmological class of galaxies as they are the main contributors to the co-moving star formation rate density of the universe at z=1. In this paper we present a guaranteed time observation (GTO) Spitzer InfraRed Spectrograph (IRS) program aimed to obtain spectral mapping of a sample of 14 local d<76Mpc LIRGs. The data cubes map, at least, the central 20arcsec X 20arcsec to 30 arcsec X 30 arcsec regions of the galaxies, and use all four IRS modules covering the full 5-38 μ m spectral range. The final goal of this project is to characterize fully the mid-IR properties of local LIRGs as a first step to understanding their more distant counterparts. In this paper we present the first results of this GTO program. The IRS spectral mapping data allow us to build spectral maps of the bright mid-IR emission lines (e.g., [Ne II] 12.81 μ m, [Ne III]15.56 μ m, [S III] 18.71 μ m, H_2 at 17 μ m), continuum, the 6.2 and 11.3 μ m polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) features, and the 9.7 μ m silicate feature, as well as to extract 1D spectra for regions of interest in each galaxy. The IRS data are used to obtain spatially resolved measurements of the extinction using the 9.7 μ m silicate feature, and to trace star forming regions using the neon lines and the PAH features. We also investigate a number of active galactic nuclei (AGN) indicators, including the presence of high excitation emission lines and a strong dust continuum emission at around 6 9.7 μ m . We finally use the integrated Spitzer/IRS spectra as templates of local LIRGs. We discuss several possible uses for these templates, including the calibration of the star formation rate of IR-bright galaxies at high redshift. We also predict the intensities of the brightest mid-IR emission lines for LIRGs as a function of redshift, and compare them with the expected sensitivities of future space IR missions.