Dr. Alain Smette Profile

Dr. Alain Smette

System Scientist for VLT instrumentation at ESO

SPIE Involvement:

Author

Publications (40)

Proceedings Article | 18 July 2024 Poster + Paper

Poster + Paper

VSTPOL: making the VST a large survey telescope for optical polarimetry

P. Schipani, S. Covino, F. Snik, M. Colapietro, F. Perrotta, S. Savarese, S. Bagnulo, P. Bellutti, G. Capasso, E. Cappellaro, M. Cappi, G. Castignani, S. D'Orsi, J. Farinato, O. Hainaut, D. Hutsemekers, K. Kuijken, A. Magalhaes, D. Magrin, M. Marconi, L. Marty, F. Patat, E. Pian, F. Rigamonti, V. Ripepi, P. Rossettini, R. Sanchez, A. Smette, P. Spanò, R. Tomelleri, G. Umbriaco, A. van Vorstenbosch, G. Verdoes-Kleijn

Proceedings Volume 13096, 130967L (2024) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3019695

KEYWORDS: Polarimetry, Telescopes, Polarization, Atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes, Equipment, Tunable filters, Lenses, Design, Magnetism, Control software

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Proceedings Article | 30 August 2022 Presentation + Paper

Presentation + Paper

Connecting SPHERE and CRIRES+ for the characterisation of young exoplanets at high spectral resolution: status update of VLT/HiRISE

A. Vigan, M. Lopez, M. El Morsy, E. Muslimov, A. Viret, G. Zins, G. Murray, A. Costille, G. P. P. Otten, U. Seemann, H. Anwand-Heerwart, K. Dohlen, P. Blanchard, J. Garcia, Y. Charles, N. Tchoubaklian, T. Ely, M. Phillips, J. Paufique, J.-L. Beuzit, M. Houllé, J. Costes, R. Pourcelot, I. Baraffe, R. Dorn, M. Jaquet, M. Kasper, A. Reiners, A. Smette, L. Blanco, L. Pallanca, A. Carlotti, É. Choquet, D. Mouillet, M. N'Diaye

Proceedings Volume 12185, 121850S (2022) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2629208

KEYWORDS: Optical spheres, Calibration, Finite element methods, Fiber science, Telescopes, Exoplanets, Optics manufacturing, Spectrographs, Spectral resolution, Planets

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Proceedings Article | 29 August 2022 Presentation + Paper

Presentation + Paper

CRIRES+ on sky: high spectral resolution at infrared wavelength enabling better science at the ESO VLT

Reinhold Dorn, Paul Bristow, Jonathan Smoker, Florian Rodler, Matteo Accardo, Andrea Baruffolo, Claudio Cumani, Andreas Haimerl, Artie Hatzes, Marcus Haug, Ulrike Heiter, Renate Hinterschuster, Norbert Hubin, Derek Ives, Matias Jones, Yves Jung, Jean-Paul Kirchbauer, Barbara Klein, Jana Köhler, Heidi Korhonen, Alexis Lavail, Thomas Marquart, Christophe Moins, Ignacio Molina-Conde, Ernesto Oliva, Laurent Pallanca, Luca Pasquini, Jerome Paufique, Nikolai Piskunov, Ansgar Reiners, Dominik Schneller, Ricardo Schmutzer, Ulf Seemann, Ditte Slumstrup, Alain Smette, Jörg Stegmeier, Eric Stempels, Sebastien Tordo, Elena Valenti, Jose Javier Valenzuela, Joel Vernet

Proceedings Volume 12184, 121841F (2022) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2629969

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Calibration, Adaptive optics, Stars, Spectral resolution, Spectrographs, Mirrors, K band, Infrared radiation, Polarization

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Proceedings Article | 13 December 2020 Presentation + Paper

Presentation + Paper

Temperature and humidity profiling radiometer for telluric absorption line correction

Alain Smette, Florian Kerber, Thomas Rose

Proceedings Volume 11449, 114491H (2020) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2562675

KEYWORDS: Humidity, Radiometry, Profiling, Absorption, Atmospheric sciences, Spectroscopes, Astronomy, Radiative transfer, Databases, Telescopes

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Proceedings Article | 13 December 2020 Presentation + Paper

Presentation + Paper

Characterization of the effect of atmospheric parameters on the infrared sky at the VLT

Aleksandra Solarz, Jonathan Smoker, Willem-Jan de Wit, Linda Schmidtobreick, Alain Smette, Julien Milli

Proceedings Volume 11449, 114491I (2020) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2560491

KEYWORDS: Mid-IR, Telescopes, James Webb Space Telescope, Infrared radiation, Principal component analysis, Stars, Spatial resolution, Temperature metrology, Environmental sensing, Error analysis

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Proceedings Article | 13 December 2020 Poster

Poster

A new approach to the absolute spectrophotometric calibration of standard stars: Vega and Sirius

Susana Deustua, John Woodward, Joseph Rice, Steven Brown, Stephen Maxwell, Florian Kerber, Alain Smette, Ralph Bohlin, Clarence Zarobila, Thinh Bui, Steven Grantham

Proceedings Volume 11445, 114453A (2020) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2562046

KEYWORDS: Stars, Calibration, Spectral calibration, Astrophysics, Galactic astronomy, Astronomy, Large telescopes, Visible radiation, Near infrared, Environmental monitoring

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Proceedings Article | 13 December 2020 Presentation + Paper

Presentation + Paper

VLTI status update: tapping into a powerful second-generation instrumentation

Xavier Haubois, Roberto Abuter, Emmanuel Aller-Carpentier, Jaime Alonso, Juan Beltran, Jean-Philippe Berger, Pierre Bourget, Paul Bristow, Luis Caniguante, Bruno Chazelas, Claudia Cid, Ralf Conzelmann, Angela Cortes, Pascaline Darré, Alain Delboulbé, Françoise Delplancke-Ströbele, Diego Del Valle, Roderick Dembet, Reinaldo Donoso, Christophe Dupuy, Sebastien Egner, Frank Eisenhauer, Lorena Faundez, Eloy Fuenteseca, Robert Frahm, Daniel Gaytan, Juan Pablo Gil, Andreas Glindemann, Frédéric Gonté, Jaime Gonzales, Patricia Guajardo, Thibaut Guerlet, Sylvain Guieu, Pablo Gutierrez, Pierre Haguenauer, Pierre van der Heyden, Stefan Huber, Norbert Hubin, Christian Hummel, Lieselotte Jochum, Laurent Jocou, Jean-Paul Kirchbauer, Johann Kolb, Johan Kosmalski, Peter Krempl, Sylvestre Lacour, Jean-Baptiste Le Bouquin, Julien Leclercq, Jean Louis Lizon, Bruno Lopez, Yves Magnard, Anthony Meilland, Alexander Meister, Antoine Mérand, Steffen Mieske, Thibaut Moulin, Juan Osorio, Jürgen Ott, Claudia Paladini, Laurent Pallanca, Marcus Pavez, Luca Pasquini, Célia Pelluet, Isabelle Percheron, Lorenzo Pettazzi, Andrés Pino, Sébastien Poupar, Andrés Ramírez, Javier Reyes, Miguel Riquelme, Thomas Rivinius, Sylvain Rochat, Fernando Salgado, Markus Schöller, Nicolas Schuhler, Pavel Shchekaturov, Christian Stephan, Marcos Suarez, Alain Smette, Richard Tamblay, Mario Tapia, Konrad Tristram, Guillermo Valdes, Christophe Verinaud, Markus Wittkowski, Julien Woillez, Gérard Zins

Proceedings Volume 11446, 1144606 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2561486

KEYWORDS: Telescopes, Adaptive optics, Space operations

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Proceedings Article | 10 July 2018 Presentation + Paper

Presentation + Paper

Connecting ELT to the current VLT operations scheme: how the telescope and instrument operators, as well as other groups at Paranal Observatory, are preparing the staff for the ELT era

Andres Pino Pavez, Stéphane Brillant, Susana Cerda Hernández, Claudia Cid, Xavier Haubois, Steffen Mieske, Julien Milli, Juan Carlos Muñoz-Mateos, Julio Navarrete, Diego Parraguez, Leonel Rivas, Cristian Romero, Alain Smette

Proceedings Volume 10704, 107041M (2018) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2311857

KEYWORDS: Telescopes, Observatories, Adaptive optics, Mirrors, Control systems, Stars, Calibration, Education and training, Workforce training, Physical sciences, Astronomical adaptive optics

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Proceedings Article | 9 July 2018 Paper

Paper

Very accurate cryogenic mechanisms for CRIRES+

Jean Louis Lizon, Barbara Klein, Ignacio Molina-Conde, Ernesto Oliva, Guillem Anglada Escude, Paul Bristow, Reinhold Dorn, Roman Follert, Artie Hatzes, Ulrike Heiter, Derek Ives, Yves Jung, Matt Lockhart, Thomas Marquart, Livia Origlia, Luca Pasquini, Jerome Paufique, Nikolai Pistunov, Ansgar Reiners, Alain Smette, Jonathan Smoker, Ulf Seemann, Eric Stempels, Elena Valenti

Proceedings Volume 10701, 107012R (2018) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2314483

KEYWORDS: Actuators, Cryogenics, Switches, Manufacturing, Mirrors, Cryogenic mechanisms, Sensors, Spectrographs, Connectors, Transducers

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Proceedings Article | 9 August 2016 Paper

Paper

Regaining the FORS: making optical ground-based transmission spectroscopy of exoplanets with VLT+FORS2 possible again

Henri M. Boffin, Elyar Sedaghati, Guillaume Blanchard, Oscar Gonzalez, Sabine Moehler, Neale Gibson, Mario van den Ancker, Jonathan Smoker, Joseph Anderson, Christian Hummel, Danuta Dobrzycka, Alain Smette, Gero Rupprecht

Proceedings Volume 9908, 99082B (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2232094

KEYWORDS: Exoplanets, Exoplanets, Spectroscopy, Spectroscopes, Space telescopes, Telescopes, Stars, Planets, Prisms, Clouds, Atmospheric physics

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Proceedings Article | 3 August 2016 Paper

Paper

VISIR upgrade overview: all's well that ends well

Florian Kerber, Hans Ulrich Käufl, Konrad Tristram, Daniel Asmus, Pedro Baksai, Nicola Di Lieto, Danuta Dobrzycka, Philippe Duhoux, Gert Finger, Christian Hummel, Derek Ives, Gerd Jakob, Lars Lundin, Dimitri Mawet, Leander Mehrgan, Eric Pantin, Miguel Riquelme, Joel Sanchez, Stefan Sandrock, Ralf Siebenmorgen, Jörg Stegmeier, Alain Smette, Julian Taylor, Mario van den Ancker, Guillermo Valdes, Lars Venema

Proceedings Volume 9908, 99080D (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2232441

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Mid-IR, Imaging spectroscopy, Detector arrays, Imaging systems, Image quality, Telescopes, Coronagraphy, Stars, Spectroscopy

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We present an overview of the VISIR instrument after its upgrade and return to science operations. VISIR is the midinfrared imager and spectrograph at ESO’s VLT. The project team is comprised of ESO staff and members of the original VISIR consortium: CEA Saclay and ASTRON. The project plan was based on input from the ESO user community with the goal of enhancing the scientific performance and efficiency of VISIR by a combination of measures: installation of improved hardware, optimization of instrument operations and software support. The cornerstone of the upgrade is the 1k by 1k Si:As AQUARIUS detector array manufactured by Raytheon. In addition, a new prism spectroscopic mode covers the whole N-band in a single observation. Finally, new scientific capabilities for high resolution and high-contrast imaging are offered by sub-aperture mask and coronagraphic modes. In order to make optimal use of favourable atmospheric conditions, a water vapour monitor has been deployed on Paranal, allowing for real-time decisions and the introduction of a user-defined constraint on water vapour. During the commissioning in 2012, it was found that the on-sky sensitivity of the AQUARIUS detector was significantly below expectations. Extensive testing of the detector arrays in the laboratory and on-sky enabled us to diagnose the cause for the shortcoming of the detector as excess low frequency noise. It is inherent to the design chosen for this detector and cannot be remedied by changing the detector set-up. Since this is a form of correlated noise, its impact can be limited by modulating the scene recorded by the detector. After careful analysis, we have implemented fast (up to 4 Hz) chopping with field stabilization using the secondary mirror of the VLT. During commissioning, the upgraded VISIR has been confirmed to be more sensitive than the old instrument, and in particular for low-resolution spectroscopy in the N-band, a gain of a factor 6 is realized in observing efficiency. After overcoming several additional technical problems, VISIR is back in Science Operations since April 2015. In addition an upgrade of the IT infrastructure related to VISIR has been conducted in order to support burst-mode operations. Science Verification of the new modes was performed in Feb 2016. The upgraded VISIR is a powerful instrument providing close to background limited performance for diffraction-limited observations at an 8-m telescope. It offers synergies with facilities such as ALMA, JWST, VLTI and SOFIA, while a wealth of targets is available from survey works like WISE. In addition, it will bring confirmation of the technical readiness and scientific value of several aspects for future mid-IR instrumentation at Extremely Large Telescopes. We also present several lessons learned during the project.

Proceedings Article | 15 July 2016 Paper

Paper

New facilities, new challenges: the telescope and instrument operators evolution at ESO

Andres Pino Pavez, Stéphane Brillant, Susana Cerda, Antoine Mérand, Steffen Mieske, Alain Smette, Cristian Romero

Proceedings Volume 9910, 99101K (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2231058

KEYWORDS: Observatories, Telescopes, Astronomical telescopes, Data acquisition, Observatories, Lanthanum, Space telescopes, Databases, Interfaces, Transparency, Advanced distributed simulations

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Proceedings Article | 11 July 2016 Paper

Paper

Investigating the effect of atmospheric turbulence on mid-IR data quality with VISIR

Mario van den Ancker, Daniel Asmus, Christian Hummel, Hans-Ulrich Käufl, Florian Kerber, Alain Smette, Julian Taylor, Konrad Tristram, Jakob Vinther, Burkhard Wolff

Proceedings Volume 9910, 99102T (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2233701

KEYWORDS: Image quality, Mid-IR, Image quality, Planets, Stars, Transparency, Velocity measurements, Data modeling, Telescopes, Planetary systems, Statistical analysis

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Proceedings Article | 7 August 2014 Paper

Paper

Real-time Strehl and image quality performance estimator at Paranal Observatory

Dimitri Mawet, Alain Smette, Marc Sarazin, Harald Kuntschner, Julien Girard

Proceedings Volume 9148, 91484T (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2057263

KEYWORDS: Adaptive optics, Image quality, Image analysis, Wavefront sensors, Telescopes, Observatories, Infrared radiation, Infrared imaging, Computer simulations, Imaging systems

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Proceedings Article | 6 August 2014 Paper

Paper

Wavelength calibration from 1-5μm for the CRIRES+ high-resolution spectrograph at the VLT

U. Seemann, G. Anglada-Escude, D. Baade, P. Bristow, R. Dorn, R. Follert, D. Gojak, J. Grunhut, A. Hatzes, U. Heiter, D. Ives, P. Jeep, Y. Jung, H.-U. Käufl, F. Kerber, B. Klein, J.-L. Lizon, M. Lockhart, T. Löwinger, T. Marquart, E. Oliva, J. Paufique, N. Piskunov, Eszter Pozna, A. Reiners, A. Smette, J. Smoker, E. Stempels, E. Valenti

Proceedings Volume 9147, 91475G (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2056668

KEYWORDS: Calibration, Absorption, K band, Fabry–Perot interferometers, Spectrographs, Near infrared, Fourier transforms, Spectral resolution, Molecules, Sensors

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Proceedings Article | 6 August 2014 Paper

Paper

SciOps2.0: an evolution of ESO/VLT's science operations model

Christophe Dumas, Henri Boffin, Stéphane Brillant, George Hau, Cédric Ledoux, Antoine Mérand, Steffen Mieske, Andres Pino, Thomas Rivinius, Alain Smette, Andrew Wright

Proceedings Volume 9149, 91491G (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2056926

KEYWORDS: Observatories, Telescopes, Data modeling, Imaging spectroscopy, Adaptive optics, Infrared telescopes, Calibration, Neodymium, Infrared imaging, Thermography

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Proceedings Article | 31 July 2014 Paper

Paper

Instrumentation on Paranal Observatory: how to keep their reliability and performances over their lifetime?

F. Gonté, A. Smette

Proceedings Volume 9149, 914913 (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2057832

KEYWORDS: Imaging spectroscopy, Reliability, Observatories, Image resolution, Spectroscopy, Imaging systems, Telescopes, Adaptive optics, Sensors, Spectroscopes

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Proceedings Article | 31 July 2014 Paper

Paper

VISIR upgrade overview and status

Florian Kerber, Hans-Ulrich Käufl, Pedro Baksai, Nicola Di Lieto, Danuta Dobrzycka, Philippe Duhoux, Gert Finger, Stephanie Heikamp, Derek Ives, Gerd Jakob, Lars Lundin, Dimitri Mawet, Leander Mehrgan, Yazan Momany, Vincent Moreau, Eric Pantin, Miguel Riquelme, Stefan Sandrock, Ralf Siebenmorgen, Alain Smette, Julian Taylor, Mario van den Ancker, Guillermo Valdes, Lars Venema, Ueli Weilenmann

Proceedings Volume 9147, 91470C (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2055172

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Spectroscopy, Mid-IR, Imaging systems, Imaging spectroscopy, Prisms, Coronagraphy, Quantum efficiency, Detector arrays, Stars

Read Abstract +

We present an overview of the VISIR upgrade project. VISIR is the mid-infrared imager and spectrograph at ESO’s VLT. The project team is comprised of ESO staff and members of the original VISIR consortium: CEA Saclay and ASTRON. The project plan is based on input from the ESO user community with the goal of enhancing the scientific performance and efficiency of VISIR by a combination of measures: installation of improved hardware, optimization of instrument operations and software support. The cornerstone of the upgrade is the 1k by 1k Si:As AQUARIUS detector array (Raytheon) which has been carefully characterized in ESO’s IR detector test facility (modified TIMMI 2 instrument). A prism spectroscopic mode will cover the N-band in a single observation. New scientific capabilities for high resolution and high-contrast imaging will be offered by sub-aperture mask (SAM) and phase-mask coronagraphic (4QPM/AGPM) modes. In order to make optimal use of favourable atmospheric conditions a water vapour monitor has been deployed on Paranal, allowing for real-time decisions and the introduction of a user-defined constraint on water vapour. During the commissioning in 2012 it was found that the on-sky sensitivity of the AQUARIUS detector was significantly below expectations and that VISIR was not ready to go back to science operations. Extensive testing of the detector arrays in the laboratory and on-sky enabled us to diagnose the cause for the shortcoming of the detector as excess low frequency noise (ELFN). It is inherent to the design chosen for this detector and can’t be remedied by changing the detector set-up. Since this is a form of correlated noise its impact can be limited by modulating the scene recorded by the detector. We have studied several mitigation options and found that faster chopping using the secondary mirror (M2) of the VLT offers the most promising way forward. Faster M2 chopping has been tested and is scheduled for implementation before the end of 2014 after which we plan to re-commission VISIR. In addition an upgrade of the IT infrastructure related to VISIR is planned in order to support burst-mode operations. The upgraded VISIR will be a powerful instrument providing close to background limited performance for diffraction-limited observations at an 8-m telescope. It will offer synergy with facilities such as ALMA, JWST, VLTI and SOFIA, while a wealth of targets is available from survey work (e.g. VISTA, WISE). In addition it will bring confirmation of the technical readiness and scientific value of several aspects of potential mid-IR instrumentation at Extremely Large Telescopes.

Proceedings Article | 28 July 2014 Paper

Paper

Novel infrared polarimeter for the ESO CRIRES+ instrument

Matthew Lockhart, Nikolai Piskunov, Eric Stempels, Michael Escuti, Ernesto Oliva, Hans-Ulrich Käufl, Ulrike Heiter, Thomas Marquart, Guillem Anglada-Escude, Dietrich Baade, Paul Bristow, Reinhold Dorn, Roman Follert, Domingo Gojak, Jason Grunhut, Artie Hatzes, Michael Hilker, Derek Ives, Yves Jung, Florian Kerber, Barbara Klein, Jean-Louis Lizon, Tom Löwinger, Livia Origlia, Luca Pasquini, Jerome Paufique, Eszter Pozna, Ansgar Reiners, Ulf Seemann, Alain Smette, Jonathan Smoker, Elena Valenti

Proceedings Volume 9147, 91478P (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2056367

KEYWORDS: Polarimetry, Beam splitters, Infrared radiation, Polarization, Sensors, Adaptive optics, Telescopes, Prototyping, Monochromators, Infrared telescopes

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Proceedings Article | 24 July 2014 Paper

Paper

Concept and optical design of the cross-disperser module for CRIRES+

E. Oliva, A. Tozzi, D. Ferruzzi, L. Origlia, A. Hatzes, R. Follert, T. Löwinger, N. Piskunov, U. Heiter, M. Lockhart, T. Marquart, E. Stempels, A. Reiners, G. Anglada-Escude, Ulf Seemann, R. Dorn, P. Bristow, D. Baade, B. Delabre, D. Gojak, J. Grunhut, Barbara Klein, M. Hilker, D. Ives, Y. Jung, H.-U. Kaeufl, F. Kerber, J. Lizon, L. Pasquini, J. Paufique, Eszter Pozna, A. Smette, J. Smoker, E. Valenti

Proceedings Volume 9147, 91477R (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2054381

KEYWORDS: Cameras, Tolerancing, Mirrors, Optical filters, Spectroscopy, Optical components, Optical design, Infrared spectroscopy, Sensors, Coating

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Proceedings Article | 24 July 2014 Paper

Paper

Opto-mechanical design of a new cross dispersion unit for the CRIRES+ high resolution spectrograph for the VLT

Jean Louis Lizon, Barbara Klein, Ernesto Oliva, Tom Löwinger, Guillem Anglada Escude, Dietrich Baade, Paul Bristow, Reinhold Dorn, Roman Follert, Jason Grunhut, Artie Hatzes, Ulrike Heiter, Derek Ives, Yves Jung, Florian Kerber, Matt Lockhart, Thomas Marquart, Livia Origlia, Luca Pasquini, Jerome Paufique, N. Piskunov, Eszter Pozna, Ansgar Reiners, Alain Smette, Jonathan Smoker, Ulf Seemann, Eric Stempels, Elena Valenti

Proceedings Volume 9147, 91477S (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2054800

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Cryogenics, Cameras, Lenses, Spectrographs, Interfaces, Mirrors, Optomechanical design, Optical design, Aluminum

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Proceedings Article | 8 July 2014 Paper

Paper

CRIRES+: a cross-dispersed high-resolution infrared spectrograph for the ESO VLT

R. Follert, R. Dorn, E. Oliva, J. Lizon, A. Hatzes, N. Piskunov, A. Reiners, U. Seemann, E. Stempels, U. Heiter, T. Marquart, M. Lockhart, G. Anglada-Escude, T. Löwinger, D. Baade, J. Grunhut, P. Bristow, B. Klein, Y. Jung, D. Ives, F. Kerber, Eszter Pozna, J. Paufique, H. Kaeufl, L. Origlia, E. Valenti, D. Gojak, M. Hilker, L. Pasquini, A. Smette, J. Smoker

Proceedings Volume 9147, 914719 (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2054197

KEYWORDS: Spectrographs, Infrared spectroscopy, Stars, Sensors, Infrared radiation, Calibration, Adaptive optics, Planets, Magnetism, Absorption

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Proceedings Article | 8 July 2014 Paper

Paper

Better flat-fielding for ground-based UV spectrographs

Florian Kerber, Reinhard Hanuschik, Sabine Moehler, Alain Smette, Jonathan Smoker, Pierre Bourget, Peter Dwyer, Michael Rotschädl

Proceedings Volume 9147, 914743 (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2055179

KEYWORDS: Calibration, Spectrographs, Ultraviolet radiation, Astronomy, Lamps, Xenon, Observatories, Plasma, Signal to noise ratio, Light sources

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Proceedings Article | 8 July 2014 Open Access

Open Access

Paper

Performance of the K-band multi-object spectrograph (KMOS) on the ESO VLT

Ray Sharples, Ralf Bender, Alex Agudo Berbel, Richard Bennett, Naidu Bezawada, Roberto Castillo, Michele Cirasuolo, Paul Clark, George Davidson, Richard Davies, Roger Davies, Marc Dubbeldam, Alasdair Fairley, Gert Finger, Natascha Schreiber, Reinhard Genzel, Reinhold Haefner, Achim Hess, Ives Jung, Ian Lewis, David Montgomery, John Murray, Bernard Muschielok, Jeff Pirard, Suzanne Ramsay, Philip Rees, Josef Richter, David Robertson, Ian Robson, Stephen Rolt, Roberto Saglia, Ivo Saviane, Joerg Schlichter, Linda Schmidtobreik, Alex Segovia, Alain Smette, Matthias Tecza, Stephen Todd, Michael Wegner, Erich Wiezorrek

Proceedings Volume 9147, 91470W (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2055496

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Spectrographs, Astronomical imaging, Telescopes, Calibration, Stars, Electronics, K band, Infrared radiation, Cryogenics

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Proceedings Article | 27 September 2012 Paper

Paper

VISIR upgrade overview and status

Florian Kerber, Hans Ulrich Käufl, Pedro Baksai, Danuta Dobrzycka, Gert Finger, Derek Ives, Gerd Jakob, Eric Lagadec, Lars Lundin, Dimitri Mawet, Leander Mehrgan, Margaret Moerchen, Yazan Momany, Vincent Moreau, Eric Pantin, Miguel Riquelme, Ralf Siebenmorgen, Armin Silber, Alain Smette, Julian Taylor, Mario van den Ancker, Lars Venema, Ueli Weilenmann, Irina Yegorova

Proceedings Volume 8446, 84460E (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.924979

KEYWORDS: Spectroscopy, Sensors, Imaging spectroscopy, Mid-IR, Calibration, Prisms, Coronagraphy, Observatories, Imaging systems, Stars

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Proceedings Article | 24 September 2012 Paper

Paper

The VIMOS upgrade programme

Peter Hammersley, Hans Dekker, Fernando Selman, Paul Bristow, Pierre Bourget, Roland Brast, Roberto Castillo, Mark Downing, Cesar Garcia-Dabo, Nicholas Haddad, Michael Hilker, Carlo Izzo, Jean-Louis Lizon, Christian Lucuix, Vincenzo Mainieri, Steffen Mieske, Dan Popovic, Claudio Reinero, Marina Rejkuba, Chester Rojas, Ruben Sanchez-Janssen, Alain Smette, Josefina Urrutia Del Rio, Javier Valenzuela, Burkhard Wolff

Proceedings Volume 8446, 84465M (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.925132

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Camera shutters, Molybdenum, Calibration, Spectroscopy, Spectroscopes, Charge-coupled devices, Imaging spectroscopy, Quantum efficiency, Visible radiation

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Proceedings Article | 24 September 2012 Paper

Paper

A water vapour monitor at Paranal Observatory

Florian Kerber, Thomas Rose, Arlette Chacón, Omar Cuevas, Harald Czekala, Reinhard Hanuschik, Yazan Momany, Julio Navarrete, Richard Querel, Alain Smette, Mario van den Ancker, Michel Cure, David Naylor

Proceedings Volume 8446, 84463N (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.924340

KEYWORDS: Radiometry, Observatories, Humidity, Clouds, Atmospheric sciences, Calibration, Receivers, Infrared radiation, Profiling, Temperature metrology

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Proceedings Article | 13 September 2012 Paper

Paper

Long-term performance of the VISIR/VLT instrument before the upgrade

Danuta Dobrzycka, Yazan Momany, Lars Lundin, Ralf Siebenmorgen, Hans Käufl, Alain Smette, Florian Kerber, Mario Van Den Ancker

Proceedings Volume 8448, 84481P (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.925348

KEYWORDS: Stars, Spectroscopy, Sensors, Calibration, Imaging systems, Digital filtering, Mid-IR, Observatories, Data acquisition, Data conversion

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Proceedings Article | 13 September 2012 Paper

Paper

Paranal instruments: installation, maintenance, optimization, and operation

Frederic Gonte, Alain Smette

Proceedings Volume 8448, 84481C (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.927171

KEYWORDS: Observatories, Telescopes, Adaptive optics, Calibration, Control systems, Instrumentation engineering, Interferometry, Systems engineering, Laser guide stars, Software development

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Proceedings Article | 7 August 2010 Paper

Paper

Measuring and forecasting of PWV above La Silla, APEX, and Paranal Observatories

A. Chacón, O. Cuevas, D. Pozo, J. Marín, A. Oyanadel, C. Dougnac, L. Cortes, L. Illanes, M. Caneo, M. Curé, M. Sarazin, F. Kerber, A. Smette, D. Rabanus, R. Querel, G. Tompkins

Proceedings Volume 7733, 77334K (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.857542

KEYWORDS: Observatories, Atmospheric modeling, Data modeling, Lanthanum, Error analysis, Meteorology, Satellites, Humidity, Astronomy, Satellite imaging

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Proceedings Article | 5 August 2010 Paper

Paper

Support for site testing of the European Extremely Large Telescope: precipitable water vapor over Paranal

Florian Kerber, Richard Querel, Reinhard Hanuschik, Arlette Chacón, Marta Caneo, Lissette Cortes, Michel Cure, Lizett Illanes, David Naylor, Alain Smette, Marc Sarazin, David Rabanus, Gregory Tompkins

Proceedings Volume 7733, 77331M (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.856390

KEYWORDS: Observatories, Atmospheric modeling, Satellites, Lanthanum, Radiometry, Earth's atmosphere, Infrared telescopes, Astronomy, Spectroscopy, Data modeling

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In support of characterization of potential sites for the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) the European Southern Observatory (ESO), the Institute for Space Imaging Science (ISIS) and the astrometeorology group of the Universidad Valparaiso have jointly established an improved understanding of atmospheric precipitable water vapour (PWV) above ESO's La Silla Paranal Observatory. In a first step, 8 years worth of high resolution near-IR spectra taken with VLT-UVES have been statistically analysed to reconstruct the PWV history above Paranal. To this end a radiative transfer model of Earth's atmosphere (BTRAM) developed by ISIS has been used. A median PWV of 2.1 mm is found for Paranal based on UVES data covering the period 2001-2008. Furthermore we conclude that Paranal can serve as a reference site for Northern Chile due to the stable atmospheric conditions in the region. The median offset between Paranal and Armazones is derived to be 0.3 mm, but local arbitrary variations of a few tenths of a mm between the sites have been found by measurement. In order to better understand the systematics involved two dedicated campaigns were conducted in August and November 2009. Several methods for determining the water column were employed, including radiosonde launches, continuous measurements by infrared radiometer, and VLT instruments operating at various wavelengths: CRIRES, UVES, VISIR and X-shooter. In a first for astronomical instruments all methods have been evaluated with respect to the radiosondes, the established standard in atmospheric research. Agreement between the radiosondes and the IR radiometer (IRMA) is excellent while all other astronomical methods covering a wavelength range from 700 - 20000 nm have also been successfully validated in a quantitative manner. All available observations were compared to satellite estimates of water vapour above the observatory in an attempt to ground-truth the satellite data. GOES can successfully be used for site evaluation in a purely statistical approach since agreement with the radiosondes is very good on average. For use as an operational tool at an observatory GOES data are much less suited because of significant deviations depending on atmospheric conditions. We propose to routinely monitor PWV at the VLT and to use it as an operational constraint to guide scheduling of IR observations at Paranal. For the E-ELT we find that a stand-alone high time resolution PWV monitor will be essential for optimizing the scientific output.

Proceedings Article | 30 July 2010 Paper

Paper

Science data production at ESO: strategy, plans, and lessons learned

Martino Romaniello, Wolfram Freudling, Alain Smette, Christophe Dumas, Pascal Ballester

Proceedings Volume 7737, 773718 (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.856954

KEYWORDS: Data archive systems, Calibration, Observatories, Telescopes, Data acquisition, Software development, Space telescopes, Imaging spectroscopy, Adaptive optics, Data storage

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Proceedings Article | 30 July 2010 Paper

Paper

The VLT rapid-response mode: implementation and scientific results

Paul Vreeswijk, Andreas Kaufer, Jason Spyromilio, Ricardo Schmutzer, Cédric Ledoux, Alain Smette, Annalisa De Cia

Proceedings Volume 7737, 77370M (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.859027

KEYWORDS: Iron, Telescopes, Nickel, Ultraviolet radiation, Absorption, Data modeling, Observatories, Gamma radiation, Clouds, Solids

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Proceedings Article | 21 July 2010 Paper

Paper

Upgrade of VISIR the mid-infrared instrument at the VLT

F. Kerber, H. Kaeufl, M. van den Ancker, P. Baksai, D. Dubreuil, G. Durand, D. Dobrzycka, G. Finger, Ch. Hummel, D. Ives, G. Jakob, E. Lagadec, L. Lundin, G. Marconi, M. Moerchen, Y. Momany, D. Nuernberger, E. Pantin, M. Riquelme, R. Siebenmorgen, A. Smette, L. Venema, U. Weilenmann, I. Yegorova

Proceedings Volume 7735, 77357R (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.857368

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Mid-IR, Telescopes, Astronomy, Observatories, Spectrographs, Infrared radiation, Coronagraphy, Spectral resolution, Infrared telescopes

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The European Southern Observatory (ESO) is preparing to upgrade VISIR, the mid-IR imager and spectrograph at the VLT. The project team is comprised of ESO staff and members of the original consortium that built VISIR: CEA Saclay and ASTRON. The goal is to enhance the scientific performance of VISIR and to facilitate its use by the ESO community. In order to capture the needs of the user community, we collected input from the users by means of a webbased questionnaire. In line with the results of the internal study and the input from the user community, the upgrade plan calls for a combination measures: installation of improved hardware, optimization of instrument operations and software support. The limitations of the current detector (sensitivity, cosmetics, artifacts) have been known for some time and a new 1k x 1k Si:As Aquarius array (Raytheon) will be the cornerstone of the VISIR upgrade project. A modified spectroscopic mode will allow covering the N-band in a single observation. Several new scientific modes (e.g., polarimetry, coronagraphy) will be implemented on a best effort basis. In addition, the VISIR operational scheme will be enhanced to ensure that optimal use of the observing conditions will be made. Specifically, we plan to provide a means to monitor precipitable water vapour (PWV) and enable the user to specify it as a constraint set for service mode observations. In some regions of the mid-IR domain, the amount of PWV has a fundamental effect on the quality of a given night for mid-IR astronomy. The plan also calls for full support by ESO pipelines that will deliver science-ready data products. Hence the resulting files will provide physical units and error information and all instrumental signatures will have been removed. An upgraded VISIR will be a powerful instrument providing diffraction-limited performance at an 8-m telescope. Its improved performance and efficiency as well as new science capabilities will serve the needs of the ESO community but will also offer synergy with various other facilities such as ALMA, JWST, VLTI and SOFIA. A wealth of targets for detailed study will be available from survey work done by VISTA and WISE. Finally, the upgraded VISIR will also serve as a pathfinder for potential mid-IR instrumentation at the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) in terms of technology as well as operations.

Proceedings Article | 19 July 2010 Paper

Paper

New direction in the development of the observation software framework (BOSS)

Eszter Pozna, Alain Smette, Ricardo Schmutzer, Roberto Abuter, Thanh Phan Duc, Paolo Santin

Proceedings Volume 7740, 77401Y (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.857684

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Telescopes, Astronomy, Software frameworks, Spectrographs, Software development, Adaptive optics, Calibration, Lanthanum, Saturn

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Proceedings Article | 25 July 2008 Paper

Paper

CRIRES: commissioning and first science results

Hans Ulrich Käufl, Paola Amico, Pascal Ballester, Eduardo Bendek Selman, Paul Bristow, Mark Casali, Bernard Delabre, Danuta Dobrzycka, Reinhold Dorn, Raul Esteves, Gert Finger, Gordon Gillet, Domingo Gojak, Michael Hilker, Paul Jolley, Yves Jung, Florian Kerber, Barbara Klein, Jean-Louis Lizon, Jerome Paufique, Jean-Francois Pirard, Eszter Pozna, Hugues Sana, Lilian Sanzana, Ricardo Schmutzer, Andreas Seifahrt, Ralf Siebenmorgen, Alain Smette, Jörg Stegmeier, Lowell Tacconi-Garman, Stefan Uttenthaler, Elena Valenti, Ueli Weilenmann, Burkhard Wolff

Proceedings Volume 7014, 70140W (2008) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.787259

KEYWORDS: Calibration, Sensors, Infrared radiation, Spectrographs, Lamps, Telescopes, Observatories, Cryogenics, Adaptive optics, Spectral resolution

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Proceedings Article | 12 July 2008 Paper

Paper

Building up a database of spectro-photometric standard stars from the UV to the near-IR: a status report

J. Vernet, F. Kerber, F. Saitta, V. Mainieri, S. D'Odorico, C. Lidman, E. Mason, R. Bohlin, T. Rauch, V. D. Ivanov, A. Smette, J. R. Walsh, R. Fosbury, P. Goldoni, P. Groot, F. Hammer, M. Horrobin, L. Kaper, P. Kjaergaard-Rasmussen, R. Pallavicini, F. Royer

Proceedings Volume 7016, 70161G (2008) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.788676

KEYWORDS: Stars, Atmospheric modeling, Calibration, Observatories, Ultraviolet radiation, Data modeling, Spectrographs, Absorption, Hydrogen, Point spread functions

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Proceedings Article | 30 June 2006 Paper

Paper

VLT VISIR: controlling data quality and instrument performance

Danuta Dobrzycka, Alain Smette, Michael Sterzik, Lars Lundin, Yves Jung, Ralf Siebenmorgen

Proceedings Volume 6270, 627026 (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.669963

KEYWORDS: Calibration, Sensors, Imaging spectroscopy, Spectroscopy, Stars, Spectroscopes, Data processing, Spectral resolution, Imaging systems, Process control

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Proceedings Article | 30 June 2006 Paper

Paper

Applications of system modeling for VLT instruments

E. Bendek, M. Marchesi, F. Caruso, A. Smette, L. Vanzi, A. Kaufer

Proceedings Volume 6270, 62701A (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.671772

KEYWORDS: Telescopes, Data modeling, Cryogenics, Temperature metrology, Sensors, Systems modeling, Device simulation, Scanners, Control systems, Spectroscopy

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Proceedings Article | 28 June 2006 Paper

Paper

VISIR two years after its installation at the VLT

Pierre-Olivier Lagage, Eric Pantin, Gilles Durand, Alain Smette, Coralie Doucet, Jean Belorgey, Jan-Willem Pel

Proceedings Volume 6269, 626913 (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.672265

KEYWORDS: Cryogenics, Telescopes, Mid-IR, Space telescopes, Photonic integrated circuits, Control systems, Sensors, Atmospheric sensing, Spatial resolution, Spectroscopy

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Showing 5 of 40 publications

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