[ASA] AAT Proposal Call (Semester 2014B): deadline 5PM, 17 March 2014

[AAT Technical Secretary]

           Call for AAT proposals in Semester 2014B

The proposal deadline for AAT time in Semester 14B (1 August 2014
to 31 January 2015) is:

       **Monday, 17 March 2014, at 17:00** (AEDT, i.e. UTC + 11 hrs)

Proposals can be submitted from the 1st of March 2014 using the AAT 
online proposal form, and are welcome from astronomers worldwide.

General information on applying for AAT time can be found at:
http://www.aao.gov.au/astro/apply/ATAC_AAT.html

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Important notes for 14B applicants:

* Time available for new proposals: Because of existing Large Programs 
and other obligations, there are 73 nights available for new proposals 
in Semester 14B (14 dark, 37 grey, 22 bright). Details of existing Large 
Programs can be found on the long-term programs page 
(http://www.aao.gov.au/astro/apply/longterm.php).

* Instrument upgrades during Semester 14A: AAO is planning to upgrade 
the CCDs in AAOmega during Semester 14A. It is expected that the quantum 
efficiency will be significantly higher in the red channel, and that 
both CCDs will be cosmetically improved. More details can be found on 
the instrument status page 
(http://www.aao.gov.au/astro/apply/inst-status.html)

* HERMES status: Following successful commissioning of the HERMES 
spectrograph (http://www.aao.gov.au/HERMES/) during Semester 13B, AAO is 
making it available as a general-user instrument starting in Semester 
14B. Questions about expected instrument performance should be directed 
to the HERMES Project Scientist, Gayandhi de Silva (gayandhi.desilva - at - 
aao.gov.au).

* KOALA status: Starting in semester 14A, KOALA (Kilo-fibre Optical AAT 
Lenslet Array) is replacing SPIRAL as the integral-field capability to 
AAOmega. KOALA has a 2x areal increase in the field-of-view over SPIRAL 
(at the same spatial resolution), a selectable spatial resolution of 
0.7" or 1.25", an increase in throughput at all wavelengths, 
particularly at the extreme blue, and simplified field rotation. 
Information on KOALA performance can be found in the February 2013 AAO 
newsletter (http://www.aao.gov.au/library/newsletter/feb13.pdf). 
Questions about expected performance should be directed to the KOALA 
instrument scientist, Andy Green (andrew.green - at - aao.gov.au).

* Remote observing: Since Semester 13A the AAO has been encouraging 
remote observing from AAO headquarters as an option for all AAT facility 
instruments. We are developing a framework for offsite remote observing 
at a later stage, in order to allow astronomers across Australia to 
observe from their home institutions. Until that system is ready, 
observers who wish to travel to Sydney to carry out remote observations 
can continue to access the existing Travel and Accommodation support 
offered to AAT observers.

* AAO-CTIO time-swap arrangement: The AAO and NOAO/CTIO have initiated a 
time-swap arrangement, to allow our respective communities to maximise 
their scientific opportunities through access to a broader range of 
facilities. The f/8 secondary in the 4m Blanco telescope has been 
repaired and reinstalled. In Semester 14B, the DECam imager, the ISPI IR 
imager and the COSMOS spectrograph are available for Australian 
proposals. COSMOS is scheduled for commissioning in semester 14A, and 
will consequently be offered in shared-risk mode in 14B. Imaging and 
longslit spectroscopy (slit width of 0.6" or 0.9") are available. All 
scheduled observations in 14B will be carried out in classical mode with 
observers required to travel to the telescope.

In Semester 14B there will be 5 nights available to the Australian 
community to apply for CTIO time.

Those who wish to apply for this time should do so using the regular AAT 
proposal form, selecting CTIO/DECam, CTIO/ISPI or CTIO/COSMOS in the 
"instrument" section. Links to the CTIO webpages for further information 
about the telescope and instrument capabilities are given below, and 
will also be available from the proposal form:

     http://www.ctio.noao.edu/noao/content/dark-energy-camera-decam

     http://www.ctio.noao.edu/noao/content/ispi

     http://www.noao.edu/nstc/kosmos/news.html

The standard proposal page limits and recommendations regarding 
technical justifications should be followed. The proposals will be 
assessed by ATAC, and graded proposals provided to CTIO for scheduling.

* Proposal page limits: ATAC reminds the community that page limits and 
formatting requirements for AAT proposals are strictly enforced. The 
main science case of your proposal should be no more than three pages 
long, with a maximum of two pages for the Science Case and a maximum of 
one page for Technical Justification. All figures and references must 
also fit within those three pages. Excessively long or dense proposals 
will be rejected without review.

-- 
Sarah Martell
AAT Technical Secretary
aatts - at - aao.gov.au