The University of Florida mid-infrared camera/spectrometer OSCIR, which has been available as a facility instrument on the 4-m for several semesters, has now been withdrawn. This instrument was made available to our users by an agreement with Charles Telesco under which his team provided visitor support, and received a modest allocation of guaranteed time.
The decision not to renew this agreement was mutual and cordial. OSCIR is headed to Gemini North, and Charlie has expressed the desire to get it back into his lab for necessary modifications. At the same time, the arrival of the Mosaic Imager at 4-m prime focus makes it less operationally attractive to continue installations of the f/30 chopping secondary, which requires dismounting Mosaic.
OSCIR has been used productively by both Florida astronomers and other visitors. It has supported several theses and produced a Newsweek cover story about the discovery of the dust disk around HR4796 -- good press for astronomy. Use at Tololo in both imaging and spectroscopic modes has enabled the Florida team to establish improved protocols for the difficult tasks of mid-IR observing, and they have benefited from expert advice from other users. Since this group is now building the facility mid-IR instrument for Gemini South, CTIO has played a role as a test bed for 8-m instrumentation in addition to supporting good science.
We are sorry to see OSCIR go. It leaves a significant gap in US-accessible instrumentation in the Southern Hemisphere (and the Florida group always brought great snacks for observing!). It will continue in use on Gemini North and Keck. We wish it well.
Ron Probst (rprobst@noao.edu),
Patrice Bouchet (pbouchet@noao.edu)