Senior Review of NSF Facilities

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Senior Review of NSF Facilities NOAO Users
Committee October 4, 2005
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http//www.nsf.gov/mps/ast/ast_senior_review.jsp

• MEMBERSHIP -- Senior Review Committee
• Chair - Dr. Roger Blandford, Kavli Institute for
  Particle Astrophysics Cosmology, Stanford U
• We have requested suggestions for membership from
  members of the community, advisory committees,
  such as the Astronomy and Astrophysics Advisory
  Committee (AAAC) and the Committee on Astronomy
  and Astrophysics (CAA), the AAS, and the
  facilities managers and directors.
• We have received many nominations, and are in the
  process of convening the committee. We expect
  membership to be finalized shortly, and will post
  it here when complete.

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Goal of the Senior Review

• examine the balance of NSF investments
• enable progress on recommendations of Decade
  Survey, including
• operations funds for ALMA,
• other priorities.
• preserve grow healthy core program of
  astronomical research.
• seed the next generation of capability, and
• attract, train, and retain the next generation of
  astronomical researchers
• Charge to the committee TBA

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What will the 30M/year be spent on ?

• operations funds for ALMA
• 24M/year, US share
• other priorities
• not defined yet
• guess
• GSMT Design Development needs 8M/year
• Gemini Aspen instruments need 7M/year (US share)
• LSST Design Development (already funded)
• NVO Operations (already funded)
• Committee not advising on expenditure
• Priorities are those of the Decadal Survey

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SCHEDULE

• several meetings through the fall and winter
• final recommendation/report to NSF spring2006
• first meeting October 19,20 at NSF, closed.
• committee will consider material observatories
  have provided and be presented with several
  scenarios developed by NSF.
• Directors of the national observatories will be
  present for brief sessions to answer questions
  and provide clarifying background information.
• second meeting in December or January
• perhaps with a public session with an opportunity
  for community input.
• final meeting several months later (April)
• committee gt final recommendations and report

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TOWN MEETINGS

• NSF will hold a number of town meetings
• to provide an opportunity for NSF staff to
• interact with the community, answer questions,
• listen to concerns, observations, and suggestions
• meet one-on-one with interested individuals.
• Boston, Massachusetts - 29 September 2005
• Minneapolis, Minnesota - 7 October 2005
• Washington, DC - 14 October 2005
• Clemson, South Carolina 15 October 2005
• Boulder, Colorado 24 October 2005
• Berkeley, California - December 2005,
• Washington, DC, AAS Mtg 8-12 January 2006        

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COMMUNITY INPUT

• NSF welcomes constructive input to deliberations
  of senior review committee. astsenior-review_at_nsf.g
  ov
• Over the next few months, we expect to formulate
  some questions for the community to address. We
  look forward to your response.
• Contributions from national facilities to the
  senior review are public, posted at
• http//www.naic.edu/  for NAIC,
• http//www.noao.edu/dir/seniorreview/  for NOAO,
• http//www.nrao.edu/  for NRAO,
• http//www.nso.edu/senior_review/  for NSO
• http//www.aura-astronomy.org/nv/nuresult.asp?nuid
  97   for Gemini.

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NSF Senior Review of Astronomy Facilities
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NOAO submission to NSF Senior Review

• There is a very strong science case for OIR
  facility based astronomy in the coming decades
• The optimum (economical) approach for NSF is to
  fund a non-redundant OIR system
• NOAO is already doing its share to create an
  accessible system of 1 to 30 meter OIR telescopes
• A transition plan is presented which retains 50
  share of the four meters for peer reviewed access
  through 2011
• backed by AURA Observatories Council and
• NOAO Users Committee
• Performance metrics for oversubscription,
  publication, citation, and broader impacts are
  strong

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Refereed publications
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Details of unique wide field and infrared
capabilities
Observatory Instrument Capability Field Size
KPNO Mosaic on Mayall CCD imaging 36 x 36 arcmin
CTIO Mosaic on Blanco CCD imaging 36 x 36 arcmin
KPNO or CTIO NEWFIRM on 4-m Wide field IR imaging 28 x 28 arcmin
WIYN Hydra MOS CCD spectroscopy 1 degree (93 fibers)
CTIO Hydra MOS CCD spectroscopy 40 arcmin (138 fibers)
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Planned development of unique wide field and
infrared capabilities
Telescope Instrument Capability Field Size First light
WIYN ODI CCD imaging 1 degree 2009
Blanco DECam CCD imaging 2 degrees 2009
SOAR SAM GLAO Optical AO imaging 1-2 arcmin 2007
Gemini-S MCAO IR AO imaging 1-2 arcmin 2007
Gemini-Subaru WFMOS CCD spectroscopy
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Last weeks request for info all
centersProgram Plan funds FY05
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What would be a good outcome for NOAO ?

• NRAO pays for ALMA operations
• radio/OIR firewall/levy leaks but doesnt burst
  -- not in the charge
• NOAOs 1.4M/year offering is recycled
• AURA GSMT (1 in decadal survey) gains 4 x 0.5
  M/year from our rich siblings

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Epilog

• economist J.K. Galbraith
• politics is not the art of the possible. Rather
  it consists of choosing between what is
  disastrous and what is merely unpalatable