• Preliminary Tasks
• On-sky Commissioning Tasks
• NIRSPEC On-Sky Commissioning Log
• First Light Images!
• GUI and Malign Images

Commissioning Schedule and Log

Run 1: 25-28 April, 1st Light!

25 April 1999

NIRSPEC's first night has been an enormous success. Though only 1/2 of the sky time was available (AO had the 2nd half), a great deal of work was accomplished:

• A star was acquired on SCAM before sunset!
• The first high resolution spectrum was obtained within the initial 75 minutes of sky time!
• The SCAM and PXL cameras were adjusted for parfocal imaging. Image quality was measured at 0.45 arcsec in SCAM, using only a coarse focus loop.
• Functionality of SCAM guiding was verified by 10pm. This includes the myriad of tasks needed to coordinate sky de-rotation, offsetting in the proper directions at the right scale, and closed loop guiding.
• SCAM and SPEC throughput data was obtained, the latter while guiding and precision offsetting along the slit.
• PXL offset guiding works and final adjustments to pointing origins will be completed tomorrow.
• Engineering test 835 summary: Parts 1-19/20 essentially complete; REFA pointing origin and DREF calibrations only remain.

26 April 1999

NIRSPEC's second night on K2 featured the first extensive science verification observations, refinements of pointing and offset guiding, and a plethora of somewhat unusual faults.

The evening began with continued work on offset guiding with the PXL. Hilton and William tested the offsetting and rotation correction functionality; it was proven to work with offsets allowed within the guide box size, so the summit effort shifted to observations of Kelu-1, one of the first field BD's. Leading up to and during these observations a number of menehune penetrated the system, causing: significant secondary offsets from last night; an ACS blow-up; a failure of the DCS time-stamping reference, causing the date to shift +/- 3 months every 5 minutes; and a few NIRSPEC crashes requiring host reboots. The Kelu-1 observations and calibrations continued right up until 3 minutes before the telescope W limit was reached.

After this the guiding SW was upgraded to allow for large offsets. After some imalign imaging was conducted, the 2nd science program ensued of high-res full-band observations of the galactic center.

The following system level tasks were completed tonight:

• Full-fledged guiding and offsetting with the PXL, including rotation correction.
• Analysis of imalign focus mode images.
• Autofoc on SCAM.

• Long-term guiding and slit nodding while taking a series of 300s high-resolution spectra.
• The SCAM was utilized as a pointing camera to monitor and adjust pointing of a science object on the slit.
• The EFS was used to generate and run observing scripts to first order. More complicated scripting was tested during the galactic center observations, but was halted in favor of direct control due to crashes.

27 April 1999

The third night of this first light run was more placid operationally than last, and also more exciting scientifically. Four major targets were observed: M82 (see the M82 SCAM images and Aladdin spectra, the Galactic Center, Arp-220, and NGC7027.

Operationally, the following transpired:

1. The NIRSPEC+K2 system was run as a scientific operation, with PXL guiding/offsetting, while acquiring the slit images and taking object spectra.
2. A complete set of direct images in all filter bands was taken of standard FS21.
3. A full set of K-band high-resolution spectra were taken of an Elias standard.
4. More malign images were taken and analyzed, and the malign script was run (though without ACS control).
5. NIRSPEC was run in the last hour at HQ by the members of the NIRSPEC scientific team there.
6. Focusing was done manually on the SCAM as on previous nights.
7. The NIRSPEC flatfield lamp output was adjusted to below saturation.
8. The main stumbling block was that the computer link to the on-board transputer control continued to lock up, though not at the frequency of late last night; we had to reboot on the average of once/hour early in the night, and once/1.5 hrs late. The recovery from crashes was improved thanks to Jon Chock's efforts, taking only about 5 min each. The situation still requires remediation.

1. DCS and Guider/SCAM Operations (ECR 237)
1. TV/INST coordinates.
2. SCAM as a Guider; merge UCLA xguide changes with CARA version.
3. PXL guider NOGROT issues.
4. Centering on non-central pixel.
2. DCS/NIRSPEC configuration.
   1. Tkrose orientations for NIRSPEC SCAM and PXL.
   2. Malign for NIRSPEC SCAM; define rotations and image parameters.
   3. DCSGUI: Select NIRSPEC and focal station (RNAS) issues.
   4. Resolve pointing origin definitions.
   5. Define focal plane coordinates for PO's.
   6. Resolve NIRSPEC keyword library installation on kalama/kawa.
3. DCS/NIRSPEC on-sky interaction.
   1. Image rotation modes: PA, vertical, physical.
4. NIRSPEC SW configuration.
   1. Install IDL-ui SW on pelekane and manele /kroot's.
   2. nirspec and nspec account configurations.

On-sky DCS/NIRSPEC Commissioning Tasks