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Former Gemini Intern Receives Fellowship

Alex Gagliano_REU_Intern-36
Former Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) intern at Gemini South (and Virginia Tech student) Alex Gagliano is a recipient of the Wayne and Claire Horton Fellowship http://www.univhonors.vt.edu/html/scholarships_Horton.html . The fellowship provides support for Alex to travel to Gabon, West Africa, where he plans to help develop astronomy programs for teachers to use in their classes. Alex (left in photo) worked with science fellow Juan Madrid (right in photo) on extragalactic globular cluster while interning at Gemini.
According to Alex, “I’ll be traveling to Gabon, a Francophone country in Western Africa, to help developing French astronomy programs that teachers can use in their classes and also [participate in] a week of astronomy workshops for the general public, preceding a total annular eclipse on September 1st, 2016.” In addition, Alex is going to photograph and study the culture of Gabon, specifically the traditional stringed instruments of the region. “I’m going to participate in a few music festivals while I’m there,” he adds. To round out his experience Alex plans to explore the stories and culture surrounding astronomy knowledge in the region and photograph gorillas, elephants, and baboons during a two week trek through the largest rainforest in the country.
Have a great adventure Alex!
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Astronomy Internship at Gemini North

Gemini North Intern Profiles

David Wyrick

David Wyrick, with a Physics degree from Washington State University, is currently working as an intern at Gemini North. David began in December 2014 under his mentor, and Gemini scientist, Andre-Nicolas Chene.  His internship runs through early April, 2015.
David’s primary work while at Gemini is developing analysis tools to study the fundamental parameters of clusters observed in the VISTA Variables in the Via Lactea survey.  Specifically, his work focuses on the study of clusters that (may) contain at least one Wolf-Rayet (WR) star.   David has nearly completed the analysis of a dozen clusters and plans to soon begin an investigation of the common characteristics of all galactic clusters with WR stars.
Classical Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars are evolved stars that were born with a mass of at least 20 time the mass of the Sun. However, some WR stars are unevolved stars with masses of the order of 100s of the Sun’s mass. They are losing  mass by means of a fast and dense stellar wind and are expected to explode in a supernova within the next 100,000 years.
By studying young star clusters that contain these massive stars, new insights will help scientists understand massive star’s evolution, which is still somewhat of a mystery.   David has completed the analysis of a dozen clusters. Currently, he is trying to use his results and those published in literature to investigate the common characteristics of young galactic clusters with WR stars.
Astronomy Internship Gemini North

David Wyrick poses in front of the Gemini North telescope on a recent observing run.

 

Find out now if there is an internship that is right for you, and don’t forget to subscribe for notification as new internships become available!

Other interns previously featured this year…

Marcel Dussert

Samuel Castle & Alex Gagliano

Jorge Quinteros

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Astronomy Day in Chile

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Día Nacional de la Astronomía en Chile

Este fin de semana, Chile celebra el Día Nacional de la Astronomía con actividades en diversas partes del país. Las actividades centrales se realizarán en el Planetario de la Universidad de Santiago (USACH). Varios miles de estudiantes han visitado la muestra desde ayer en Santiago. Empleados de distintos observatorios astronómicos se integran a la actividad en Santiago, La Serena y Vicuña incluyendo a Gemini, Cerro Tololo y Cerro Mayu. En La Serena, Gemini coordinó (en conjunto con la Municipalidad local, la Oficina de Protección de los Cielos del Norte (OPCC), la Universidad de La Serena, Cerro Tololo y los Observatorios Cerro Mayu, y Alfa Aldea, talleres educativos gratuitos para la comunidad en temas tan variados como la espectrografía, astrofotografía, lectura de mapas estelares y leyendas de arqueoastronomía. En Vicuña, el Planetario Natural Alfa Aldea ofrecerá charlas en 3D la noche del sábado y posteriormente los presentes podrán observar con telescopios nuestros cielos. Quieres unirte y observar el cielo? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6w6V9wVKyVE

National Day of Astronomy in Chile

This weekend Chile celebrates the first annual National Day of Astronomy with activities in many parts of the country. The “core” activities are hosted by the University of Santiago Chile’s Planetarium.  Already, several thousand students have participated in programming in Santiago.  Staff from many Chilean observatories are joining in the fun in Santiago, La Serena, and Vicuña including Gemini, Cerro Tololo, and Cerro Mayu. In La Serena Gemini is co-sponsoring (along with the City Hall, The Light Pollution Protection Office, The University of La Serena, Cerro Mayu, Alfa Aldea and Cerro Tololo) a number of very popular educational workshops. These workshops cover diverse topics in spectrography, astrophotography, reading star maps, and archeoastronomy legends. In Vicuña the Natural Planetarium Alfa Aldea is hosting a 3-d astronomy talk series on Saturday night and providing telescope tours of our skies.

Do you want to join us and observe our skies? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6w6V9wVKyVE (video in spanish)

 

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Gemini Mask Making Software v1.0.4

Laser Milling Machine-32

In this image, Victor Pinto, Instrument Maker 2 from the AURA instrument shop, is operating the laser milling machine at the AURA recinto in La Serena, Chile.

Attention Users: Gemini Spectroscopic Mask Making Software was Updated February 27th.

A new version of Gemini’s Mask Making Preparation Software is now available. This update supports both Gemini Multi-Object Spectrographs (GMOS) at Gemini North (GN) and Gemini South (GS) detector configurations.
Once updated, users can expect improvements in efficiency and compatibility (older version mask designs may be rejected by Gemini). For more on the software’s major changes, please visit the mask-making software website.

GMOS (North and South) offers the ability to obtain spectra of several hundred objects simultaneously in their Multi-Object Spectroscopic (MOS) modes. The GMOS MOS design is based upon precisely fabricating and locating a plate containing many small slits within the spectrograph’s entrance aperture. Typically a single mask can have between 30-60 slits; or, if a narrow-band filter is used, you can have several hundred slits per mask. A total of 18 masks can be loaded into GMOS at any given time. Actual mask production for GN and GS is done with a laser milling machine located in La Serena, Chile.

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Flamingos-2 — Ready for Action!

Flamingos 2

Cooling F2’s detector down to 80 kelvin as preparations are made for its observing run.

Flamingos-2 Prepares for a Date with the Universe

After a series of updates (and maintenance) to further improve performance, the mid-infrared imager and spectrograph Flamingos-2 (F2) is back on the Gemini South telescope in preparation for queue observations. Gemini scientists, engineers, and technicians worked in collaboration at the Cerro Pachón instrument lab over the last week in preparation. F2 is now equipped with a new spectroscopic filter (to access longer wavelengths), and focal plane mask (a new slit) which is narrower and longer than the ones regularly available on the instrument. The team also fixed the alignment of a baffle that is intended to block thermal radiation from the “bridge valve” which was adversely impacting data. F2 is currently in the telescope and taking science data.

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