[ASA] News from GMTO

[John O'Byrne]

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System Level Preliminary Design Review and Cost and Organizational Review Passed with Flying Colors

Eric Manuel (Structural Engineer, M3) presents designs for the telescope enclosure and facilities. Photo © 2014 George Jacoby.

In January, the GMT team completed two significant reviews, bringing the group closer to the start of the Construction and Commissioning Phase of the project.

The System Level Preliminary Design Review investigated the overall technical readiness of the project, while the Cost and Organizational Review analyzed the financial plan, including a close look at estimated costs and contingencies, and GMTO's organizational structure. Feedback from both review panels has been highly positive. In their report, the System Level Preliminary Design Review panel recommended that the GMT proceed with the construction phase "as rapidly as possible."

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Bruce Bigelow joins GMTO as Opto-Mechanical Systems Lead


Bruce Bigelow, GMT Opto-Mechanical Systems Lead
Photo © 2013 Poppy de Garmo.
In November, Dr. Bruce C. Bigelow joined GMTO as the Opto-Mechanical Systems Lead. 

Bigelow has worked on large astronomical telescopes and their instrumentation for more than 25 years. Most recently, he held the position of Research Astronomer at the University of California Observatories, where he was the project manager lead engineer for the Multi-Object Broadband Imaging Echellette (MOBIE) spectrograph, a wide-field optical spectrograph for the Thirty Meter Telescope project.

Bigelow earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from UC Santa Barbara and his Ph.D. in Physics and Astronomy from University College London. Among his past positions, he was Project Leader for the Keck Observatory ESI Spectrograph, Project Manager and Chief Engineer for the Magellan imaging spectrograph (IMACS) for the Carnegie Observatories, and a Senior Research Engineer at the University of Michigan, where he worked on U.S. Department of Energy "dark energy" missions including the SNAP space telescope and the Dark Energy Camera for the CTIO 4m Blanco telescope.

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Third Segment of the GMT Primary Mirror Unveiled 

GMT's third primary mirror is unveiled at the University of Arizona's Steward Observatory Mirror Lab. Photo © 2013 Chris Summitt, Steward Observatory, University of Arizona.
 
On December 6, 2013, GMT's newest primary mirror segment was unveiled at the University of Arizona's Steward Observatory Mirror Lab. This is the third of seven segments that will function together as one primary mirror once the telescope is operating at full capacity. 

The event was attended by the GMT community and distinguished guests. Presenters included University of Arizona President, Ann Weaver Hart; Chair of the GMTO Board of Directors, Wendy Freedman; Dean of the University of Arizona College of Optics, Tom Koch; and Steward Observatory Director, Buell Jannuzi, among others.

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