[ASA] ngCFHT Workshop, 27-29 March 2013

[John O'Byrne]

ngCFHT Workshop
27-29 March 2013, Imiloa Center, Hilo, Hawaii



*First Announcement, September 2012*


A large number of wide-field photometric and astrometric surveys that
are either underway, or planned for the coming decade, will soon map
much the sky at a range of wavelengths. However, a gap in
optical-infrared capabilities has emerged: there is an urgent need for
complementary spectroscopic observations that can maximize the
scientific return from these rich datasets and enable independent
scientific programs that require large amounts of telescope time.

There are number of wide-field spectroscopic instruments being
commissioned or proposed on 4m-class facilities, as well as
observational campaigns on existing 10m-class telescopes using current
(ESO-GAIA) or planned (Subaru/PFS) facility instruments. To date,
however, there is no dedicated, 10m-class, wide field telescope capable
of conducting large spectroscopic surveys of faint targets (1E3 -1E7
with g>19) at a range of spectral resolutions (R ~ 2,000 to >=20,000),
over large areas (1 - 10,000 square degrees). Such a capability is the
natural complement to the large photometric studies of the next decade,
and will provide the key data required for science areas as diverse as
the mapping of the interstellar medium, stellar astrophysics, near field
cosmology and Gaia follow-up, extragalactic astronomy, and the nature of
dark matter and dark energy.

The Next Generation CFHT is a proposal to replace the current 3.6m
telescope with a wide-field 10m facility using the same pier and within
the same three-dimensional envelope as the current telescope. The
baseline for this facility is that it will be equipped with a dedicated
multi-object spectrograph capable of obtaining more than 3,000 spectra
simultaneously over a 1.5 square degree field of view at spectral
resolutions spanning from R=2,000 to at least R=20,000. Developing such
a facility requires establishing a new and expanded partnership. To this
end, a team of more than 60 scientists and engineers from ten countries
have been defining the science cases and capabilities required for such
a facility, and have investigated key technical challenges in the
construction of the telescope and spectrographs.

This workshop is intended as a forum for discussion of the science cases
and technical status that has emerged from the feasibility study. It
will last for 2.5 days, with summary talks discussing the science
drivers and current technical status. Contributed talks and posters are
encouraged to highlight synergies with current and future facilities and
to propose opportunities for subsequent development. A large amount of
time will be made available for discussion. This will be a key
opportunity to define a strategic roadmap for the scientific and
technical development of the project, and establish a foundation for the
growth of the new partnership that will deliver this unique scientific
facility to the international community.

Venue capacity limits the number of attendees. Pre-registration and
abstract submission is now open and encouraged. Please check the website
regularly for details.

http://ngcfht.cfht.hawaii.edu/home.php

Patrick Cote & Alan McConnachie (NRC Canada)
Workshop & SOC Co-chairs



*Scientific Organizing Committee (SOC)*

Nobuo Arimoto (Subaru/NAOJ, Japan)
Michael Balogh (University of Waterloo, Canada)
Piercarlo Bonifacio (GEPI, France)
Bruno Castilho (Labóratrio Nacional de Astrofsica, Brazil)
Len Cowie (University of Hawaii, USA)
Ken Freeman (Australian National University, Australia)
Eric Peng (Peking University, China)
Swara Ravindranath (Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, India)
Doug Simons (CFHT, USA)
Shiang-Yu Wang (ASIAA, Taiwan)
Jong-Hak Woo (Seoul National University, Republic of Korea)

SOC contact:    ngcfhtSOC_2013 at cfht.hawaii.edu

*Local Organizing Committee (LOC)*

Patrick Cote (NRC Canada)
Klaus Hodapp (Institute for Astronomy, UH-Hilo)
Pam Lau (Institute for Astronomy, UH-Hilo)
Nadine Manset (CFHT)
Alan McConnachie, (NRC Canada)
Doug Simons, (Chair), (CFHT)
Mercedes Stevens (CFHT)

*LOC contact:*   ngcfhtLOC_2013 at cfht.hawaii.edu



-- 
K.C. Freeman FAA FRS                                                  
Phone: +61 (0)2 6125 0264
Duffield Professor                                                        
FAX:   +61 (0)2 6125 0233
Research School of Astronomy & Astrophysics        Email: kcf at mso.anu.edu.au
The Australian National University



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