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Aligning the ZTF science focal plane using stellar images

Duggan, Gina E. and Dekany, Richard and Milburn, Jennifer (2018) Aligning the ZTF science focal plane using stellar images. In: Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VII. Proceedings of SPIE. No.10702. Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE) , Bellingham, WA, Art. No. 107024K . ISBN 9781510619579. https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechAUTHORS:20180717-134553986

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Abstract

The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) is a next-generation, optical, synoptic survey that leverages the success of the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF). ZTF has a large science focal plane (SFP) that needs to be aligned such that all portions of the CCDs are simultaneously placed in focus to optimize the survey’s efficiency. The SFP consists of 16 large, wafer-scale science CCDs, which are mosaicked to achieve 47 deg^2 field of view. The SFP is aligned by repositioning each CCD based on the measured height map, which is a map of the camera’s z position at which each portion of the CCD is in focus. This height map is measured using on-sky stellar images in order to recreate the optical path that will be used throughout the survey. We present our technique for placing the SFP in focus, which includes two different methods to measure the height map of the SFP. The first method measures the height at which a star is in focus by fitting a parabola to each star’s photometric width as the star is moved in and out of focus. The second method measures the height by decomposing a defocused star into its image moments. We will discuss the strengths and limitations of each method and their outputs. By repositioning the CCDs, we were able to reduce the standard deviation of the height map from 33 to 14microns, which improved the survey’s speed by ∼ 81%.


Item Type:Book Section
Related URLs:
URLURL TypeDescription
https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2309994DOIArticle
ORCID:
AuthorORCID
Duggan, Gina E.0000-0002-9256-6735
Additional Information:© 2018 Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship under Grant No. DGE1745301. This work is based on observations obtained with the Samuel Oschin Telescope 48-inch and the 60-inch Telescope at the Palomar Observatory as part of the Zwicky Transient Facility project, a scientific collaboration among the California Institute of Technology, the Oskar Klein Centre, the Weizmann Institute of Science, the University of Maryland, the University of Washington, Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and the TANGO Program of the University System of Taiwan. Further support is provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation under Grant No. AST-1440341.
Funders:
Funding AgencyGrant Number
NSF Graduate Research FellowshipDGE-1745301
NSFAST-1440341
Subject Keywords:ground-based telescopes, instrumentation, ccd cameras, ccd positioning, ccd alignment, metrology
Series Name:Proceedings of SPIE
Issue or Number:10702
DOI:10.1117/12.2309994
Record Number:CaltechAUTHORS:20180717-134553986
Persistent URL:https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechAUTHORS:20180717-134553986
Official Citation:Gina E. Duggan, Richard Dekany, Jennifer Milburn, "Aligning the ZTF science focal plane using stellar images", Proc. SPIE 10702, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VII, 107024K (6 July 2018); doi: 10.1117/12.2309994; https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2309994
Usage Policy:No commercial reproduction, distribution, display or performance rights in this work are provided.
ID Code:87929
Collection:CaltechAUTHORS
Deposited By: Tony Diaz
Deposited On:17 Jul 2018 21:23
Last Modified:16 Nov 2021 00:22

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