README web version of /home/usg/OPS/MTS/readme_xml/readme_80076500

Principal Investigator Email Address

• thatte@astro.ox.ac.uk

Estimated Total Execution Time (hours, including overheads)

• 3 hours 58 mins

General Description

• This program aims at the direct detection of exo-planets around nearby
   young stars using the spectral deconvolution technique. SINFONI is the only instrument
   currently capable of carrying out such a search. The program requires a mosaic of
   4 pointings for each star, so as to increase the Field of View in the smallest pixel
   scale to a reasonable value. With observations of bright targets at the finest pixel
   scale, the observations are completely photon noise limited. Thus, there is no need
   for any sky measurements. The most critical part is to center the target precisely
   in the smallest pixel scale (to an accuracy of 1 or 2 pixels) at the end of the
   acquisition process. Otherwise the object peak might well be outside the FoV in
   some exposures.
  The program is fairly straightforward to execute. All that is required is very good
   seeing. Please optimise the AO system to provide the highest Strehl possible, as
   the very best Strehl is crucial to the success of this program.

Waiver Requests

• A Waiver Request was submitted to allow SINFONI_ifs_acq_NGSfast to be
   used on Beta Pic for which acquisition in the coarsest pixel scale might lead to
   some persistence effects on the detector. The Waiver request ID is 080.C-0765A.01
   However, Beta Pic saturates the detector even with the smallest DIT and smallest
   pixel scale, so it is not doable in service mode. Hence it has been excluded, and
   the waiver request is no longer necessary.

Critical Observing Condition Constraints

• Please try to provide the best possible seeing. Long coherence times and
   therefore more stable conditions are more critical than a good seeing value.

Time-Critical Aspects

• none

Special Execution Requirements

• none

Special Calibration Information

• Please make sure that a telluric is observed at the same pixel scale as
   the science observations. The spectral resolution of SINFONI changes with spaxel
   scale (as does the instrumental profile as a function of lambda), and if some planetary
   candidate is found, the telluric is critical to obtain a good spectrum.
  Please also take many dark / flat exposures. For these very high SNR observations,
   the number of darks / flats can often limit the SNR of the science result. I have
   stuck to the standard DIT times to make this easier.

ToO Information

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ToO Activators List

• ---(Empty)---

Is this a Pre-imaging run ?

• false

Pre-imaging Requirements

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Source(s) of Pre-imaging

• ---(Empty)---

Pre-imaging sources not listed above

• ---(Empty)---

Do all your OBs comply with the instrument-specific requirements listed
 on the instrument-specific Phase 2 web page ?

• YES

If this is a pre-imaging run, did you select PRE-IMAGING for the Observing
 Category for each Observing Template ?

• N/A

Do all your finding charts comply with both the general and instrument-specific
 Phase 2 Web Pages ?

• YES

If you submitted OBs for standard stars, did you specify the magnitude
 and spectral type of all standard stars in the OBs ?

• N/A

Have you included OBs for any calibrations that you need but which are
 not part of the Calibration Plan ?

• N/A

If you are observing Moving Targets, have you attached suitable ephemeris
 files to your OBs?

• N/A

If you have preferences which OBs should be executed first, did you make
 use of the User Priority field in the OBs ?

• YES

If this is a run that requires coordinated observations with other facilities,
 did you give proper instructions in the Time-Critical Aspects Section ?

• N/A

Did you indicate the magnitude of the brightest object in the field in
 each SINFONI OB?

• YES

If you are using the AO: Did you indicate for every OB the magnitude
 of the guide star, and its distance to the target (if any)?

• YES

If you submitted OBs for standard stars, did you use the provided StandardStar
 templates?

• N/A

If you are using a specific offset pattern or position angle: did you
 check carefully the definition in the manual?

• YES

Did you make really sure that none of your OBs ever saturates the detector?

• YES

If you are using the AO: did you enter the correct Strehl Ratio (on-axis,
 K-band) AND the seeing value in the constraint set?

• YES