FORS (FOcal Reducer and Low Dispersion Spectrograph), a multi-mode optical instrument mounted on the Very Large Telescope's (VLT) UT1 Cassegrain focus, gets a new look. The upgrade, known as FORS-Up (FORS-Upgrade), is being carried out by ESO and INAF-OATs, and includes, beside replacement of some optical components, the replacement of all the motors, the development of a new calibration unit, the adoption of a new detector, and the design of a control electronics based on the new ELT standards. The refurbishment work has started on the twin spectrograph FORS1, decommissioned in 2009 which was sent to the integration premises of the Astronomical Observatory of Trieste. After resuming the final design of the control electronics, this paper presents the PLC software implementation and the current state of the electronics integration with the new mechanics carried out at INAF-OATs. It also focuses on the ELT-based software and hardware solutions that have been adopted to meet the performance and safety requirements for the motorized functions that control the multiobject spectroscopy blades and the scientific exposure shutter and require customized applications.
KEYWORDS: Solar processes, Data archive systems, Polarization, Space weather, Polarimetry, Physics, Data modeling, Coronagraphy, Satellite navigation systems, Observatories
The TSRS was a set of two multi-channel solar radio polarimeters which performed continuous surveillance of the decimetric and metric coronal radio emissions with high time resolution. TSRS was operational in Trieste (Italy) under the management of the INAF Astronomical Observatory of Trieste from 1969 to 2010 when a lightning stroke irreparably compromised its operations. Starting from that moment, all the services related to it, including the archive system, were abandoned due to lack of funds and resources. An Heritage Archive (TSRS-HA) has been preserved with the available digitized data and this contribution describes how it was planned to refurbish archive and service for such a heritage resource following current common FAIR principles adherence and new technologies.
KEYWORDS: Equipment, Control software, Spectroscopes, Control systems, Telescopes, Astronomical instrumentation, Telescope instrument control software, Software development
FORS2 (FOcal Reducer/low dispersion Spectrograph) is a multimode (imaging, polarimetry, long slit and multi-object spectroscopy) optical instrument mounted on the Cassegrain focus of the UT1 of ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Its versatility and large wavelength range (330-1100 nm) make it one of the most requested instruments at the VLT. To keep it operational for at least the next 15 years, the FORS upgrade project (FORS-Up), a collaboration between ESO and INAF-OATs, was started: the twin spectrograph FORS1, decommissioned in 2009, has been sent to Europe and is currently undergoing a complete refurbishment in the integration hall of the Astronomical Observatory of Trieste. Once the upgrade is finished, FORS1 will replace FORS2 at the VLT. In this paper, we report the status of the work currently in progress on the control software: the original one is based on the VLT standards, and it is now being reimplemented within the new ELT (Extremely Large Telescope) software framework. New GUIs have been designed for FORS, which give the user in-depth control over the instrument; new templates for observational, engineering and maintenance procedures have been developed; hardware components have been configured, either as standard devices or as special devices (requiring customized solutions). The upgrade will ensure the continued operation of FORS and represent an invaluable testbed for the new ELT software framework.
The IBIS 2.0 project upgrades the Interferometric BIdimensional Spectrometer, which was operated at the Dunn Solar Telescope of the National Solar Observatory from 2003 to 2019, for installation at a new telescope at the Teide Observatory. The instrument combines two tunable Fabry-P´erot interferometers, narrowband interference filters, a polarimetric unit, fast cameras, and a suitable control for the acquisition of high-resolution spectropolarimetric data of the solar atmosphere in the 580–860 nm spectral range with short exposures at high cadence under a remote control. The project underwent several phases. We provide an update on the design progress of the instrument and the status of the project, with special emphasis on the challenges arising from the vertical setup required by the new installation. IBIS 2.0 is expected to contribute to a better knowledge of plasma properties at different heights in the solar atmosphere.
ESO is in the process of upgrading one of the two FORS (FOcal Reducer/low dispersion Spectrograph) instruments – a multi-mode (imaging, polarimetry, long-slit, and multi-object spectroscopy) optical instrument mounted on the Cassegrain focus of Unit Telescope 1 of ESO’s Very Large Telescope. FORS1 was moved from Chile to Trieste, and is undergoing complete refurbishment, including the exchange of all motorised parts. In addition, new software is developed, based on the Extremely Large Telescope Instrument Control Software Framework, as the upgraded FORS1 will be the first instrument in operations to use this framework. The new Teledyne e2V CCD has now been procured and is undergoing testing with the New Generation Controller at ESO. In addition, a new set of grisms have been developed, and a new set of filters will be purchased. A new internal calibration unit has been designed, making the operations more efficient.
FORS2 is a multi-mode (imaging, polarimetry, long slit and multi-object spectroscopy) optical instrument mounted on the Very Large Telescope (VLT) UT1 Cassegrain focus. It operates in the wavelength range of 330-1100 nm and, with the dismissed FORS1, is one of the most demanded instruments of the VLT in the astronomical community. After many years of operations (FORS1 was one of the first instruments installed at the VLT), an upgrade of the control system is absolutely required. Carried out by ESO and the Astronomical Observatory of Trieste, the upgrade will be applied to the decommissioned FORS1 instrument, that, when fully integrated, will replace FORS2 on the telescope. The upgrade will comprise the replacement of all the motors, the development of a new calibration unit, the adoption of a new ESO detector controller, and the design of a new control electronics based on Beckhoff PLC. Care will be given to the management of the motorized stages, about 50, avoiding MOS (Multi-Object Spectroscopy) slits and focal plane collision problems. The upgraded FORS will also be the first instrument to test the brand new ESO ELT instrument control framework, even if within the VLT environment. This paper will resume the design of FORS control electronics presented at the instrument Final Design Review. The new electronics layout, based on PLCs, and the motor’s control software management will be also described.
The International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA) has developed and built, in the last two decades, an ecosystem of distributed resources, interoperable and based upon open shared technological standards. In doing so the IVOA has anticipated, putting into practice for the astrophysical domain, the ideas of FAIR-ness of data and service resources and the Open-ness of sharing scientific results, leveraging on the underlying open standards required to fill the above. In Europe, efforts in supporting and developing the ecosystem proposed by the IVOA specifications has been provided by a continuous set of EU funded projects up to current H2020 ESCAPE ESFRI cluster. In the meantime, in the last years, Europe has realised the importance of promoting the Open Science approach for the research communities and started the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) project to create a distributed environment for research data, services and communities. In this framework the European VO community, had to face the move from the interoperability scenario in the astrophysics domain into a larger audience perspective that includes a cross-domain FAIR approach. Within the ESCAPE project the CEVO Work Package (Connecting ESFRI to EOSC through the VO) has one task to deal with this integration challenge: a challenge where an existing, mature, distributed e-infrastructure has to be matched to a forming, more general architecture. CEVO started its works in the first months of 2019 and has already worked on the integration of the VO Registry into the EOSC e-infrastructure. This contribution reports on the first year and a half of integration activities, that involve applications, services and resources being aware of the VO scenario and compatible with the EOSC architecture. Within the H2020 ESCAPE project, the "CEVO" WP has one task to deal with this challenge of integrating an existing, mature, distributed e-infrastructure to a forming, more general one. CEVO has already worked on the integration of the VO Registry into the EOSC e-infrastructure. This contribution reports on the full first year of integration acitivities.
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