Previous Article
Next Article
Table of Contents

Response to the 1994 KPNO Users Committee Report (1Jun95)
(from Director's Office, NOAO Newsletter No. 42, June 1995)

Kitt Peak National Observatory usually derives great benefit from the wisdom
and advice of its Users Committee, and 1994 was no exception. We very much
appreciate the thoughtful attention the Users Committee gives to the issues
confronting KPNO. The format of the 1994 meeting provided an opportunity
for a real dialog between the Committee and the Observatory staff; the advice
of the Users Committee has been an important part of our planning for FY
1996 and beyond.

The Users Committee endorsed the four central concepts of the long term
vision for Kitt Peak developed through the NOAO 2000 process:

1)  the emphasis on scientific capabilities,

2)  the concept of complementing rather than competing with the Gemini 8-m
telescopes,

3)  the unification of the NOAO Instrumentation Program, and

4)  our initiatives to build new, modern telescopes at Kitt Peak. And the
Committee stressed that continued access to telescopes and state-of-the-art
instruments remains the single most important job of KPNO. These concepts
will continue to guide our planning.

The Users Committee also noted its concerns about aspects of the NOAO 2000
report. They felt our planning placed too much emphasis on KPNO as a
support facility for Gemini, and that we had not fully addressed how important
scientific capabilities would be provided under various options for new
facilities on Kitt Peak. The Committee offered specific advice to guide our
long term planning, and their recommendations are being folded into our plans.
Specifically, the Committee recommended that we maintain significant
capability for wide field, optical imaging, that we provide the capability for
monitoring programs and calibration studies requiring substantial telescope
time, and that we consider carefully the impact of changes in operations on
graduate student training. The Committee recommended explicitly that a new
2-m class telescope be included in the planning to address these concerns. We
have done so, and a progress report is included elsewhere in this Newsletter.

The Users Committee agreed with the decision to close the 1.3-m telescope
this spring, given the reality of the budget and the beginning of operations of
the WIYN telescope. They urged that we make the closing of the telescope as
painless as possible for users. We attempted to do that by moving several
highly ranked programs to the 2.1-m telescope, and by scheduling four
programs using SQIID or the photoelectric photometer to completion on the
1.3-m telescope before it closed. The Committee stressed that they do not wish
to see additional telescopes closed before replacement facilities become
available. The Committee approved the proposed additional instrument
retirements and urged us to make those changes also as painless as possible to
the community by giving advance notice and by making an effort to see that
ongoing programs can be completed.

As noted in the March 1995 NOAO Newsletter, the KPNO staff, as well as the
staff throughout Tucson, was reduced by nearly 10%. The changes required
because of these staff reductions include:

      o The 1.3-m telescope has been closed.

      o KPNO Mountain Manager Bruce Bohannan has assumed responsibility
        for supervision of the Observing Technicians.

      o The Instrument Assistants have assumed day-to-day responsibility for
        monitoring instrument performance and coordinating response to any
        problems that arise.

      o Hal Halbedel has assumed overall responsibility for the Kitt Peak
        Safety Program.

      o Start-up and technical assistance at small telescopes will be reduced.

      o The number of instrument changes will be reduced through instrument
        retirements and further block scheduling.

      o Dining room services have been reduced.

Cuts in other NOAO/Tucson divisions led to a reduction in shuttle service to
and from the mountain and a reduction in programmer support for Kitt Peak.

The Users Committee told us that "KPNO must give top priority to continuing
to operate the remaining small telescopes." If followed literally, this advise
would be a substantial shift from our existing priorities of WIYN and the 4-m
telescopes. Fortunately, the Users Committee also recommended that we make
an effort to change the style of operation of the small telescopes to lower the
cost of operating them in order  to keep them open until replacements can be
built. They recommended that the 2.1-m telescope be run by observers rather
than an operator, that less start-up assistance be provided on the smaller
telescopes, and that creature comforts be cut before more telescopes are closed.
We have implemented their recommendations starting with the fall semester
1995.

The Users Committee also urged us to continue to experiment with new
programs like Save-the-Bits, the queue scheduling experiments, the WIYN
queue program, and Key Projects in order to enhance scientific services and
opportunities for the community. The WIYN telescope and WIYN queue
program are about to go into operation, and we hope that the new service
observing program on the small telescopes will also provide new opportunities
for users.

In response to the Users Committee suggestions concerning graduate student
training and observing time for theses, we have advertised (in the last issue of
the Newsletter) a program for graduate students to gain observing experience
on Kitt Peak. We will be pursuing this program more vigorously for the fall
semester. We are exploring the possibility of allocating longer observing
blocks to graduate students on the small telescopes so that students can
complete theses in a timely way.

The Users Committee also made two recommendations concerning instrument
improvements on Kitt Peak: that the new camera for the GoldCam CCD
spectrograph should receive high priority and that we move with all haste to
procure a blue grating for the bench spectrograph on the WIYN telescope. We
now expect that the camera for Goldcam should be available for testing on the
telescope by the beginning of 1996. The blue grating will be purchased as
soon as its performance characteristics are available from Milton Roy. The
Committee also urged the completion of the Mosaic Imager, the Phoenix high
resolution IR spectrometer, and the design and construction of the GRASP IR
four-color spectrometer/imager to replace SQIID and COB. Those projects are
receiving high priority and should be completed on schedule. The Committee
also recommended that IRIM not be decommissioned for use at the Starfire
Optical Range 3.5-m telescope, and we are seeking alternate means to support
that collaboration. IRIM will remain at Kitt Peak until GRASP is
commissioned. Following the suggestions of the Users Committee, we will also
seek further collaborations with other groups in the community for new
instruments. The replacement of the 4-m R-C spectrograph may be a good
opportunity for such collaboration, as would adaptive optics.

Finally, the Users Committee applauded the effort of the KPNO staff to take
on new roles---KPNO remains a truly world class facility through the dedicated
effort of the staff. The Committee was pleased with the evaluation of the
future of KPNO prepared by the staff which resulted in the NOAO 2000
planning document. They urged us now to reach out to the community and to
listen to the needs of our constituents. And they urged you, the users of Kitt
Peak National Observatory, to redouble efforts to speak out as advocates for
your facilities and as a source of suggestions and improvements to our
program.

Caty Pilachowski

Previous Article
Next Article
Table of Contents