NOAO > Observing Info > Proposals > Keck Community Access
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NOAO > Observing Info > Proposals > Keck Community Access |
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As a result of awards made through the NSF's Telescope System Instrumentation Program (TSIP), observing time is being allocated to the astronomical community on the two 10-meter telescopes of the W.M. Keck Observatory on Mauna Kea. The current agreement will expire at the end of the 2009B observing semester.
Community access will continue in the upcoming 2009B semester, during which a minimum of fourteen classically-scheduled nights will be available to new programs. This is twice the total that was available in recent semesters. Any scientist may propose without regard to nationality or preferred access through other channels.
Due to a trade of Gemini Michelle time, up to five nights of Keck-I time with HIRES are available to the Gemini community in 2009B. Investigators wishing to compete for the US share of this time should simply apply for Keck-I/HIRES time on the NOAO proposal form. Such proposals will automatically be considered for both the TSIP and Gemini allocations.
All current facility-class instruments and modes (which now includes interferometry) are available for community access. WMKO maintains instrument pages on their website, including links to instrument manuals, FAQs, etc. Please also check their page with special notes for next semester.
Time will be awarded through the usual NOAO proposal process, with the same proposal form, policies, and due dates as for other NOAO-coordinated facilities.
Investigators may request telescope time on any combination of facilities available through NOAO, including Keck, in a single proposal. Proposals will be reviewed by the NOAO TAC, and those approved will be forwarded to WMKO for scheduling. Notifications of awarded time will be sent in conjunction with those for other NOAO-coordinated facilities.
Procedures and forms for applying for telescope time can be found at http://www.noao.edu/noaoprop/.
New in 2008: All community-access proposers are now required to fill out Keck's Proposal Cover Sheet Form, available after creating an account on the W.M. Keck Observatory Observer Login Page. Completing this form will ensure that the Keck Observatory has accurate information in their system during the scheduling process. Please complete and submit this online form by the regular NOAO proposal deadline. The cover sheets will be used at Keck, but not seen by the NOAO TAC, so be sure to include all requested contact and program information on both the NOAO and Keck forms.
Dave Bell serves as NOAO contact for investigators with questions regarding community access to the Keck telescopes and proposal preparation. You may reach him by sending email to keck@noao.edu. For instrumentation questions (only), you may also directly contact the "CARA Contact" listed on the Keck Instruments page.
All data obtained under this program may be placed in NOAO's data archives and made publicly available under the same ground rules as data obtained at NOAO telescopes.
Any publication that results from TSIP-allocated time on the Keck telescopes should acknowledge the NSF TSIP program, in addition to Keck acknowledgments. The requested wording for TSIP acknowledgements is:
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NOAO is operated by the
Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA),
Inc. under cooperative agreement with the
National Science Foundation.
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NOAO > Observing Info > Proposals > Keck Community Access |
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