ARC 3.5-m Instrument News Page

Apache Point Observatory
New Mexico, USA

ARC 3.5-m Instrument News

Note: Comments in bold are to catch the readers attention as the most relevant for their upcoming science observations

News Worthy Items

ARCES is available. See below for more information.
DIS is available. See below for more information.
AGILE is NOT available. See below for more information.
ARCTIC is available. See below for more information.
KOSMOS is available. See below for more information.
NICFPS is available. See below for more information.
Triplespec is available. See below for more information.

Current Status

Instrument issues which our users should be aware of before taking data. For historical information go here. For future instrumentation or planned upgrades go here.

AGILE

2023-09-25: Instrument CCD thermal electric cooler (TEC) failed on Sunday. We have been unable to bring it back at this time. The camera is unavailable for use until cooling can be restored.
2023-09-18: Instrument CCD thermal electric cooler (TEC) failed on Sunday. We have been unable to bring it back at this time. The camera is unavailable for use until cooling can be restored.
2023-09-11: Instrument CCD thermal electric cooler (TEC) failed on Sunday. We have been unable to bring it back at this time. The camera is unavailable for use until cooling can be restored.
2023-09-04: Instrument CCD thermal electric cooler (TEC) failed on Sunday. We have been unable to bring it back at this time. The camera is unavailable for use until cooling can be restored.
2023-08-28: Instrument CCD thermal electric cooler (TEC) failed on Sunday. We have been unable to bring it back at this time. The camera is unavailable for use until cooling can be restored.
2023-07-14: Instrument CCD thermal electric cooler (TEC) failed on Sunday. We have been unable to bring it back at this time. The camera is unavailable for use until cooling can be restored.
2023-07-10: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed.
2023-07-03: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed.
2023-06-26: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed.
2023-06-19: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed.
2023-06-12: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed. Swapping timing cards did not improve performance
2023-06-05: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed. Swapping timing cards did not improve performance
2023-05-30: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed. Swapping timing cards did not improve performance
2023-05-22: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed. We swapped timing cards with the spare this week.
2023-05-15: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed.
2023-05-08: Instrument is operating nominally, however an occasional restart of the heartbeat is needed.
2023-04-24: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-04-17: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-04-10: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-04-03: Instrument is operating nominally. There was no problem with the heartbeat but an intermittent one that has existed since instrument delivery.
2023-03-27: Instrument has developed a problem with the exposure trigger /instrument timing board (heartbeat). We are investigating. Do not believe it is hardware related, but software. The issue appears intermittent.
2023-03-20: Instrument has developed a problem with the exposure trigger /instrument timing board (heartbeat). We are investigating. Do not believe it is hardware related, but software. The issue appears intermittent.
2023-03-13: Instrument has developed a problem with the exposure trigger /instrument timing board (heartbeat). We are investigating. Do not believe it is hardware related, but software.
2023-03-06: Instrument has developed a problem with the exposure trigger /instrument timing board (heartbeat). We are investigating.
2023-02-27: Instrument has developed a problem with the exposure trigger /instrument timing board (heartbeat). We are investigating.
2023-02-20: Instrument is operating nominally. December 2021 a system update lead to the dropping of fitsheaders. We believed we found a work around however it may have had unintended consequences with the instrument timing board (heartbeat). Still investigating.
2023-02-13: Instrument is operating nominally. December 2021 a system update lead to the dropping of fitsheaders. Undetermined when this will get solved. Suspect it has to do with NFS mounting differences of the same disk on different systems.
2023-02-06: Instrument is operating nominally. December 2021 a system update lead to the dropping of fitsheaders. Undetermined when this will get solved. Suspect it has to do with NFS mounting differences of the same disk on different systems.
2023-01-30: Instrument is operating nominally. December 2021 a system update lead to the dropping of fitsheaders. Undetermined when this will get solved. Suspect it has to do with NFS mounting differences of the same disk on different systems.
2023-01-23: Instrument is operating nominally. December 2021 a system update lead to the droppingof fitsheaders. Undetermined whenthis will get solved.
2023-01-17: Instrument is operating nominally. December 2021 a system update lead to the droppingof fitsheaders. Undetermined whenthis will get solved.
2022-12-12: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-12-05: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-11-28: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-11-21: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-11-14: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-11-07: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-10-31: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-10-24: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-10-17: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-10-10: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-10-03: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS i nformation. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-09-26: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-09-19: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-09-12: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-09-06: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-08-29: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-08-22: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-08-15: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-08-01: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-07-25: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-07-18: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-07-11: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-07-05: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2022-06-27: Instrument is operating nominally. Since this past December, the fits headers were missing telescope and WCS information. We believe it is a network file system problem. Hopefully this has been resolved soon.
2012-01-24: APO still does not recommend taking dome flats with AGILE. More information can be found here.

ARCES

2022: Most recent interorder ratio plot can be found here.
2023-09-25 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are dropping more quicklybut are still in an acceptable range (see IOL plots).
2023-09-18 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are dropping more quicklybut are still in an acceptable range (see IOL plots).
2023-09-11 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are dropping more quicklybut are still in an acceptable range (see IOL plots).
2023-09-04 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are dropping more quicklybut are still in an acceptable range (see IOL plots).
2023-08-28 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are dropping more quicklybut are still in an acceptable range (see IOL plots).
2023-07-14 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are dropping more quicklybut are still in an acceptable range (see IOL plots).
2023-07-10 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are dropping more quickly (see IOL plots).
2023-07-03 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are slowly dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-06-26 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are slowly dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-06-19 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are slowly dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-06-12 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-06-05 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-05-30 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-05-22 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have turned around and are dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-05-15 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have turned around and are dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-05-08 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have turned around and are dropping (see IOL plots).
2023-04-24 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have turned around (see IOL plots).
2023-04-17 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-04-10 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-04-03 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-03-27 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-03-20 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-03-13 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-03-06 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-02-27 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to have leveled off (see IOL plots).
2023-02-20 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2023-02-13 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2023-02-06 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2023-01-30 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2023-01-23 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2023-01-17 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-12-12 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-12-05 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-11-28 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-11-21 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-11-14 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-11-07 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-10-31 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off (but may still be climbing very slowly). The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-10-24 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off (but may still be climbing slowly). The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-10-17 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-10-10 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-10-03 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-09-26 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios appear to be leveling off. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred).
2022-09-19 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are back on the rise in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good and back to March peaks. The best ratios we have experienced since 2019.
2022-09-12 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are back on the rise in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good and back to March peaks. The best ratios we have experienced since 2019.
2022-09-06 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are back on the rise in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good and back to March peaks. The best ratios we have experienced since 2019.
2022-08-29 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are back on the rise in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good and back to March peaks. The best ratios we have experienced since 2019.
2022-08-22 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are back on the rise in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.
2022-08-15 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are declining in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.
2022-08-01 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are declining in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.
2022-07-25 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are declining in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.
2022-07-18 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are declining in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.
2022-07-11 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are declining in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.
2022-07-05 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are declining in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.
2022-06-27 The instrument is operating nominally. IOL ratios are declining in the bluest orders but are still quite acceptable. The change has been rather slow (which is preferred). The quick dip and return the first half of June coincided with a hot spell and the then a start of monsoon season which brought cooler weather and a short increase in the IOL ratio. IOL ratios are still quite good.

ARCTIC

2023-09-25: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-09-18: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-09-11: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-09-04: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-08-28: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-07-14: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-07-10: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-07-03: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-06-26: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-06-19: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-06-12: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-06-05: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-05-30: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-05-22: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-05-15: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-05-08: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-04-24: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable at some point while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-04-20: Installed new opticalbaffle on the NA2 mirror cover petal that will now allow for taking dome flats with ARCTIC. Disregard the warning at theend of this section from 2021 about cover flats.
2023-04-17: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable this week while the components are cleaned and relubricated.
2023-04-10: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. The diffuser will be unavailable this week while the componentsare cleaned and relubricated.
2023-04-03: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. There was a dropped quad over the weekend that was recovered.
2023-03-27: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-03-20: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-03-13: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-03-06: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. Was a report that the diffuser was not spinning. Investigation revealed could not reproduce the problem. Maybe cold weather related.
2023-02-27: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier. There was a quad drop this weekend that the obs-spec was able to recover from.
2023-02-20: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-02-13: Dropped quad this weekend that has been difficult to recover from. If tonights operator still is unable to bring it back I will attempt to recover it this week. Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-02-06: Dropped quad this weekend that has been difficult to recover from. If tonights operator still is unable to bring it back I will attempt to recover it this week. Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-01-30: Dropped quad this weekend that has been difficult to recover from. If tonights operator still is unable to bring it back I will attempt to recover it this week. Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-01-23: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2023-01-17: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2022-12-12: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2022-12-05: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2022-11-28: Instrument is operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2022-11-21: Instrument has hada few quad dropouts around the time of end of servicing the vacuum last week. It appears to be operating nominally except for the few water spots still on the fore optics mentioned earlier.
2022-11-15: Camera is been cooled after a last minute ion pump change. Have balanced the bias levels on all 4 quadrants in the three readout modes.
2022-11-14: Camera warmed and on vacuum pump to address soft vacuum and poor behaving ion pump. It is not available for use until servicing complete early next week.
2022-11-10: Camera warmed and on vacuum pump to address soft vacuum and poor behaving ion pump. It is not available for use until servicing complete early next week.
2022-11-07: The camera dewar vacuum appears to have softened some. CCD temperatures are still stable but I may need to put the camera on the pump this week. There are condensation droplets, possibly on the back side of L1 or the front of L2. We have increased the purge air but there still are residue visiable in the UL quadrant of an image. Unfortunately, the water droplets can notbedone at the same time as the vacuum servicing this time. There is currently no schedule for when the next servicing of the instrument and cleaning of the optics will take place. We do not recommend you use flats from previous runs (as the condensation pattern may be changing) and take new flats if possible. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle isinthe process of a redesign.
2022-10-31: There are condensation droplets, possibly on the back side of L1 or the front of L2. We have increased the purge air but there still are residue visiable in the UL quadrant of an image. There is currently no schedule for when the next servicing of the instrument and cleaning of the optics will take place. We do not recommend you use flats from previous runs (as the condensation pattern may be changing) and take new flats if possible. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle isinthe process of a redesign.
2022-10-24: There are condensation droplets, possibly on the back side of L1 or the front of L2. We have increased the purge air but there still are residue visiable in the UL quadrant of an image. There is currently no schedule for when the next servicing of the instrument and cleaning of the optics will take place. We do not recommend you use flats from previous runs and take new flats if possible. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle isinthe process of a redesign.
2022-10-17: There are condensation droplets that appeared last week. We have increased the purge air but there still are residue visiable in the UL quadrant of an image. We do not recommend you use flats from previous runs and take new flats if possible. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle isinthe process of a redesign.
2022-10-10: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle isinthe process of a redesign.
2022-10-03: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle isinthe process of a redesign.
2022-09-26: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle isinthe process of a redesign.
2022-09-19: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle was installed but we found an interference issue with the eyelid. Back to redesign.
2022-09-12: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle was installed but we found an interference issue with the eyelid. Back to redesign.
2022-09-06: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle was installed but we found an interference issue with the eyelid. Back to redesign.
2022-08-29: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle was installed but we found an interference issue with the eyelid. Back to redesign.
2022-08-22: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle was installed but we found an interference issue with the eyelid. Back to redesign.
2022-08-15: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later. The supplemental baffle was installed but we found an interference issue with the eyelid. Back to redesign.
2022-08-01: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later.
2022-07-25: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later.
2022-07-18: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later.
2022-07-11: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later.
2022-07-05: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later.
2022-06-27: Instrument is operating nominally. For those using the new diffuser interface in TUI, the command "arctic status" may be needed to update your window after changing instrument configurations. We are looking into a soultion. The diffuser upgrades are available in 2.6.1a2 and later.
2021: APO does not recommend taking dome flats with ARCTIC. We are working on designing a supplemental baffle to correct the problem with cover flats. Currently cover flats produce a gradient across the flat field that is dependant on telescope position (altitude) and rotator angle.

DIS

2023-09-25: Last week the red camera had a few temperature warmups. THis is likely from partial blockage of the cold head (Ice in the PCC lines). The red compressor was recharged and it took about 2 days for temperatures to stabilize. The affect to contamination on the redcamera has not been determined. Contamination ion the side of DIS is still rather poor. Red side looks good. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-09-18: Contamination on blue side of DIS is still rather poor. Red side looks good. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-09-11: Contamination on blue side of DIS is still rather poor. Red side looks good. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-09-04: Contamination on blue side of DIS is still rather poor. Red side looks good. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-08-28: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable. This past week andweekend very warm ambient temperatures was causing the Red camera to run quite warm (>220K). The past two days CCD temp has dropped somebecause of cooler weather but red camera is still running around 190K.
2023-07-14: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable. This past week andweekend very warm ambient temperatures was causing the Red camera to run quite warm (>220K). The past two days CCD temp has dropped somebecause of cooler weather but red camera is still running around 190K.
2023-07-10: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-07-03: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-06-26: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-06-19: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-06-12: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-06-05: Contamination on both sides of DIS are now rather poor. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-05-30: The red side of DIS has now shown the expected rate of change of improvement. It is still poor but improving at a greater rate. There has been not much change on the blue side. Russet considers it to be borderline usable. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-05-22: The red side of DIS has now shown the expected rate of change of improvement. It is still poor but improving at a greater rate. There has been not much change on the blue side. Russet considers it to be borderline usable. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-05-15: The red side of DIS has now shown the expected rate of change of improvement. It is still poor but improving at a greater rate. There has been not much change on the blue side. Russet considers it to be borderline usable. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-05-08: The red side of DIS has now shown the expected rate of change of improvement. It is still poor but improving at a greater rate. There has been not much change on the blue side. Russet considers it to be borderline usable. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-04-24: The red side of DIS has improved some more but only a little. There has been not much change on the blue side. Russet considers it to be borderline usable. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-04-17: The red side of DIS has improved some more but only a little. There has been not much change on the blue side. Russet considers it to be borderline usable. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-04-10: The red side of DIS has improved some more but only a little. There has been not much change on the blue side. Russet considers it to be borderline usable. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is still questionable.
2023-04-03: The red side of DIS has improved but only a little. The blended core+shoulders profile went from 24 pixels wide in February to 20 pixels wide tonight. 5 minutes on spectro standard Feige 66 gave counts only a few thousand above background, where we would normally expect about 20K. I consider it to be borderline usable. The blue side of DIS is still pretty much at its worst, with shoulders distinct from the core but very close and very broad. I consider this to be probably not usable for science. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-03-27: Contamination appears to be bad on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression is improving and is borderline usable for science. Blue is still quite bad and likely will not be usable for more science cases. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-03-20: Contamination appears to be bad on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression is improving and is borderline usable for science. Blue is still quite bad and likely will not be usable for more science cases. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-03-13: Contamination appears to be bad on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression is improving and is borderline usable for science. Blue is still quite bad and likely will not be usable for more science cases. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-03-06: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned around however improvement is barely measureable and expected to be slow for the next few weeks. Red lines still have 3 peak profiles however the wings are close enough to the central core that Russet believes that theamount of signal can be coadded for science purposes. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation but the rate appears to have slowed and is close to turn around. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-02-27: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned around however improvement is barely measureable and expected to be slow for the next few weeks. Red lines still have 3 peak profiles however the wings are close enough to the central core that Russet believes that theamount of signal can be coadded for science purposes. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation but the rate appears to have slowed and is close to turn around. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-02-20: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned around however improvement is barely measureable and expected to be slow for the next few weeks. Red lines still have 3 peak profiles however the wings are close enough to the central core that Russet believes that theamount of signal can be coadded for science purposes. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation but the rate appears to have slowed and is close to turn around. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-02-13: No further update this week from Russet. Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned around however improvement is unmeasureable for the next few weeks. Red lines still have 3 peak profiles however the wings are close enough to the central core that Russet believes that theamount of signal can be coadded for science purposes. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation but the rate appears to have slowed and is close to turn around. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-02-06: No further update this week from Russet. Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned around however improvement is unmeasureable for the next few weeks. Red lines still have 3 peak profiles however the wings are close enough to the central core that Russet believes that theamount of signal can be coadded for science purposes. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation but the rate appears to have slowed and is close to turn around. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-01-30: No further update this week from Russet. Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned around however improvement is unmeasureable for the next few weeks. Red lines still have 3 peak profiles however the wings are close enough to the central core that Russet believes that theamount of signal can be coadded for science purposes. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation but the rate appears to have slowed and is close to turn around. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-01-23: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned around however improvement is unmeasureable for the next few weeks. Red lines still have 3 peak profiles however the wings are close enough to the central core that Russet believes that theamount of signal can be coadded for science purposes. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation but the rate appears to have slowed and is close to turn around. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science at this time is questionable at thie time.
2023-01-17: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has turned aroud however improvement is unmeasureable for the next few weeks. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available but useful science atthis time is questionable at thie time.
2022-12-12: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. Red progression has slowed and may start turning aroud and improve in the next few weeks. Blue is showing signs of continued degredation. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available for use.
2022-12-05: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available for use.
2022-11-28: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available for use.
2022-11-21: Contamination appears to be horrible on both cameras as reported by Russet. The hope is with a few weeks to months (based on previous experience) it will level off enough that the energy distributed in the wings of the PSF will be redirected back into the core. DIS is still available for use.
2022-11-14: Contamination may be degrading slowly over the next few weeks to months on the red camera but expected (historically) to turn around and improve. The blue camera contamination seems steady at this time. No recent report fromRusset on contamination status. DIS is available for use.
2022-11-07: Contamination may be degrading slowly over the next few weeks to months on the red camera but expected (historically) to turn around and improve. The blue camera contamination seems steady at this time. No recent report fromRusset on contamination status. DIS is available for use.
2022-10-31: The instrument vacuum servicing is complete. Contamination may be degrading slowly over the next few weeks to months on the red camera but expected (historically) to turn around and improve. The blue camera contamination seems steady at this time. DIS is available for use.
2022-10-24: The instrument vacuum servicing is complete. The water spots on the red camera have been cleaned. Contamination however is moderate from a partial warmup on Friday. DIS is available for use.
2022-10-21: The instrument vacuum servicing is complete. Waiting on Russet's report
2022-10-17: The instrument is undergoing vacuum servicing. It is unavailable for use until the 4th week of October.
2022-10-10: The instrument is undergoing vacuum servicing. It is unavailable for use until the 4th week of October.
2022-10-03: The instrument is undergoing vacuum servicing. It is unavailable for use until the 4th week of October.
Important note concerning the red camera flat field lens. It has significant and noticable water spots that are affecting data collection. Extended object science is not recommended with the red channel at this time. We will not be able to address the problem until late fall or it may return quickly.
2022-09-26: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good but worse than in July. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-09-19: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good but worse than in July. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-09-12: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good but worse than in July. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-09-06: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good but worse than in July. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-08-29: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good but worse than in July. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-08-22: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good but worse than in July. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-08-15: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good but worse than in July. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-08-01: The instrument is operating nominally. Blue scattered light is quite good. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved. Servicing is currently planned for October.
2022-07-25: The instrument is back to operating nominally. Blue scattered light has improved. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved.
2022-07-18: The instrument is back to operating nominally. Blue scattered light has improved. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved.
2022-07-11: The instrument is back to operating nominally. Blue scattered light has improved. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved.
2022-07-05: The instrument is back to operating nominally. Blue scattered light has improved. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved.
2022-06-27: The instrument is back to operating nominally. Blue scattered light has improved. Water spots on red have not gotten worse but have not improved.

KOSMOS

2023-09-25: The disperser wheel has been getting stuck changing between red/blue positions. The observing specialists need to intervene.
2023-09-18: The disperser wheel has been getting stuck changing between red/blue positions. The observing specialists need to intervene.
2023-09-11: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-09-04: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-08-28: Instrument is operating nominally. Vacuum was serviced during shutdown.
2023-07-14: Instrument is operating nominally. Vacuum pressure is running a bit soft. Raised the alarm setpoint, will warm bake out getter and cool during shutdown.
2023-07-10: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-07-03: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-06-26: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-06-19: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-06-12: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-06-05: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-05-30: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-05-22: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-05-15: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-05-08: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-04-24: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-04-17: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-04-10: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-04-03: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-03-27: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-03-20: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-03-13: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-03-06: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-02-27: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-02-20: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-02-13: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-02-06: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-01-30: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-01-23: Instrument is operating nominally.
2023-01-17: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-12-12: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-12-05: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-11-28: Instrument is operating nominally. There was a report this weekend of a small number (less than 5) of exposures with unusual noise that was bleeding into the overscan region.
2022-11-21: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-11-14: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-11-07: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-10-31: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-10-24: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-10-17: Instrument is operating nominally. Fixed many of the fits header items from the punch list..
2022-10-10: Instrument is operating nominally. Adjusted internal calibration lamp brightnesses further.
2022-10-03: Instrument is operating nominally. Adjusted internal calibration lamp brightnesses further.
2022-09-26: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-09-19: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-09-12: Instrument is operating nominally.
2022-09-06: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter was relaced with a cold rated version over summer shutdown. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. Adjusted ND filter to a OD 0.9 before the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses. The punchlist has been updated on the KOSMOS instrument page.
2022-08-29: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter was relaced with a cold rated version over summer shutdown. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. Adjusted ND filter to a OD 0.9 before the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses. The punchlist has been updated on the KOSMOS instrument page.
2022-08-22: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter was relaced with a cold rated version over summer shutdown. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. Adjusted ND filter to a OD 0.9 before the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.
2022-08-15: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter is still having intermittent failures but at less frequent intervals now we are in warmer weather. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. We are discussing going back in again and adjusting the amount of ND material at the output of the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.
2022-08-01: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter is still having intermittent failures but at less frequent intervals now we are in warmer weather. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. We are discussing going back in again and adjusting the amount of ND material at the output of the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.
2022-07-25: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter is still having intermittent failures but at less frequent intervals now we are in warmer weather. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. We are discussing going back in again and adjusting the amount of ND material at the output of the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.
2022-07-18: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter is still having intermittent failures but at less frequent intervals now we are in warmer weather. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. We are discussing going back in again and adjusting the amount of ND material at the output of the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.
2022-07-11: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter is still having intermittent failures but at less frequent intervals now we are in warmer weather. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. We are discussing going back in again and adjusting the amount of ND material at the output of the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.
2022-07-05: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter is still having intermittent failures but at less frequent intervals now we are in warmer weather. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. We are discussing going back in again and adjusting the amount of ND material at the output of the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.
2022-06-27: Instrument is operating nominally. The kcamera (slitviewer) shutter is still having intermittent failures but at less frequent intervals now we are in warmer weather. A small handful of instances which required restart of ICC software because of image write issues or exposures hanging. A user characterized the internal flat field lamps using the ND5 filter in filter wheel 2 and found lots of artifacts. We are discussing going back in again and adjusting the amount of ND material at the output of the integrating sphere for the Internal calibration brightnesses.

NICFPS

2023-09-25: The Shield Temperature Temp sensor failed on Sunday. Raised setpoint as not to trigger false alarms. Likely will need to be addressed in the future. The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-09-18: The Shield Temperature Temp sensor failed on Sunday. Raised setpoint as not to trigger false alarms. Likely will need to be addressed in the future. The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-09-11: The Shield Temperature Temp sensor failed on Sunday. Raised setpoint as not to trigger false alarms. Likely will need to be addressed in the future. The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-09-04: The Shield Temperature Temp sensor failed on Sunday. Raised setpoint as not to trigger false alarms. Likely will need to be addressed in the future. The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-08-25: The Shield Temperature Temp sensor failed on Sunday. Raised setpoint as not to trigger false alarms. Likely will need to be addressed in the future. The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-07-14: The Shield Temperature Temp sensor failed on Sunday. Raised setpoint as not to trigger false alarms. Likely will need to be addressed in the future. The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-07-10: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-07-03: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-06-26: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-06-19: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-06-12: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-06-05: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-05-30: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-05-22: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-05-15: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-05-08: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-04-24: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-04-17: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-04-10: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-04-03: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-03-27: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-03-20: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-03-13: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. There was a report over the weekend of a "serial register cleared" however it was able to be reset quickly.
2023-03-06: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-02-27: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-02-20: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-02-13: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-02-06: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-01-30: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-01-23: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2023-01-17: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2022-12-12: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2022-12-05: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2022-11-28: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2022-11-21: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2022-11-14: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2022-11-07: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images.
2022-10-31: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range (rotator angle = -90 to +90) to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. Last night however there were a large cluster of corrupted images that required several resets and ICC resets to correct.
2022-10-24: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-10-17: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-10-10: The instrument rotation has been restricted to less than its full range to reduce the number of resets required. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-10-03: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-09-26: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-09-19: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-09-12: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-09-06: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-08-29: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-08-22: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-08-15: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-08-01: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-07-25: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-07-18: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-07-11: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-07-05: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.
2022-06-27: No change in the status. The instrument is performing nominally with the occasional need to reset the array controller due to corrupted images. These have been seen most often when the instrument is upside down. You may asked to rotate your field 180 degrees to minimize these events.

TRIPLESPEC

2023-09-25: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-09-18: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-09-11: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-09-04: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-08-25: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-07-10: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-07-03: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-06-26: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-06-19: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-06-12: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-06-05: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-05-30: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-05-22: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-05-15: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-05-08: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-04-24: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-04-17: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-04-10: The instrument is performing nominally. The ICC computer froze over the weekend and needed to be retarted.
2023-04-03: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-03-27: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-03-20: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-03-13: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-03-06: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-02-27: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-02-20: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-02-13: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-02-06: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-01-30: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-01-23: The instrument is performing nominally.
2023-01-17: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-12-12: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-12-05: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-11-28: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-11-21: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-11-14: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-11-07: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-10-31: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-10-24: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-10-17: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-10-10: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-10-03: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-09-26: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-09-19: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-09-12: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-09-06: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-08-29: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-08-22: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-08-15: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-08-01: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-07-25: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-07-18: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-07-11: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-07-05: The instrument is performing nominally.
2022-06-27: The instrument is performing nominally.

MISC

NA2 GUIDER

2023-09-25: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-09-18: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-09-11: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-09-04: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-08-25: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-07-14: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-07-10: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-07-03: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-06-26: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-06-19: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-06-12: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-06-05: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-05-30: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-05-22: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-05-15: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-05-08: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-04-24: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-04-17: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-04-10: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-04-03: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-03-27: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-03-20: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-03-13: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-03-06: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-02-27: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-02-20: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-02-13: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-02-06: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-01-30: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-01-23: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2023-01-17: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2022-12-12: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2022-12-05: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2022-11-28: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2022-11-21: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2022-11-14: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2022-11-07: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day.
2022-10-31: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-10-24: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-10-17: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-10-10: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-10-03: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-09-26: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-09-19: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-09-12: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-09-06: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-08-29: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-08-22: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-08-15: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-08-01: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-07-25: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-07-18: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-07-11: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-07-05: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example
2022-06-27: The instrument is operating nominally. There has been the occasional need (becoming more frequent) to restart the ICC sofware each day. This occured again last night during checkout for example

Apache Point Observatory New Mexico, USA

ARC 3.5-m Instrument News

News Worthy Items

Current Status

The information on this page is up to date as of September 25, 2023. This page is maintained by the 3.5-m Telescope Engineer .

Apache Point Observatory
New Mexico, USA