IRIS2 The AAO Infrared Imager & Spectrograph The images above show the Orion Nebula as imaged by IRIS2 in the H2 v=1-0 molecular line during commissioning in October 2001, and IRIS2 itself mounted at the Cassegrain focus of the 3.92-m Anglo-Australian Telescope.

The IRIS2 infrared imager and spectrograph was built in-house by the AAO, and commissioned between October 2001 and July 2002. It provides the AAO with an infrared facility for

• Wide field imaging (~8'x8')
• Moderate resolution (R=2400) long-slit spectroscopy, and
• Moderate resolution (R=2400)  multi-object spectroscopy


At its heart is a 1024x1024 Rockwell HAWAII-1 HgCdTe infrared detector, illuminated by a f/8 to f/2.2 focal reducer. Spectroscopy is achieved by the implementation of a slit wheel allowing the insertion of a 1" wide slit (or multi-slit masks), and a wheel in the collimated beam containing grisms. These grisms use ~50mm 45-degree prisms of sapphire to deviate the beam and feed replica transmission gratings applied to their surfaces.

The spatial scale of IRIS2 is 0.4486"/pixel, giving a field of view of 7.7' x 7.7. The 1" slit for spectroscopy corresponds to limiting spectroscopic resolution of 2.2 pixels on the detector. At this resolution the dispersion of the sapphire grisms provide R~2400.

If you have any queries about the status or use of IRIS2, please do not hesitate to contact either Chris Tinney, or Stuart Ryder.

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These pages are under development. Please bear with us as we try to download as much of our experience with this new instrument into these pages, as possible.


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• News
  • New IRIS2 Spectroscopy Data Reduction Recipes for ORAC-DR (Jan 30, 2004)
  • IRIS2 Officially Dedicated (February 21, 2003)
  • IRIS2 Wins Prestigious Engineering Awards (November 23, 2002)
  • IRIS2 Multi-object Spectroscopy - First Results (August 26, 2002)
  • Pipeline Reduction of IRIS2 Data with ORAC-DR (August 8, 2002)
     
• IRIS2: An Overview for Proposers
  • Optics
  • Cryogenics and Dewars
  • Wheels
  • Filters
  • Spectroscopic Formats
    
  • Detector
  • Image Scale and Orientation
  • Slit Orientation
  • Imaging Sensitivity & Imaging Exposure Time Calculator
  • Spectroscopic Sensitivity & Spectroscopic Exposure Time Calculator
  • Multi-object spectroscopy
       
• The IRIS2 Observing Cookbook : A typical night's observing
   
• The IRIS2 Observing Guide : Almost everything you'd ever need to know about IRIS2
  • Operating IRIS2
    • Startup, Shutdown and Problems
    • The IRIS2 Interface
       
  • Observing Sequences
     
  • Imaging Observations with IRIS2
    • Photometric standards
    • Dome flats: Broad-band filters
    • Dome flats: Narrow-band filters
       
  • Spectroscopic Observations with IRIS2
    • Acqusition
    • Calibration
      • Spectroscopic flats
      • Wavelength Calibration
      • Smooth spectrum standards
      • Spectrophotometric standards
    • Sequences
    • Processing
      • Sky subtraction
      • Straightening
      • Extraction
      • Wavelength Calibration
    • Multi-Object Spectroscopy
      • Acquisition
         
• Data Processing with ORAC-DR
   
• IRIS2 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
• IRIS2 Frequently Made Mistakes (FMM)
• IRIS2 Common Problems
   
• IRIS2 Technical Information : Everything else you'd ever need to know about IRIS2
  • Filters (with profiles, sky brightnesses and count-rates)
  • Flexure & Focus
  • Astrometric Distortion
  • Detector Performance
  • Detector Linearity & Correction
  • Wavelength Formats & Calibration Details
  • IRIS2 Software
    • IRIS2 Software System Overview: Word Document or HTML Document (hard to read!)
    • SKYCAT
    • Portable Telescope Control System (PTCS)
    • The SPECTRO task
      
  • IRIS2 Benchmarks
• Miscellaneous
  • Why did we build IRIS2? - A guide for the non-astronomer
  • Old (Pre-commissioning) IRIS2 WWW page
  • Anthony Dunk's IRIS2 development image pages

These pages contain information on the functionality of the IRIS2 Infrared Imager and Spectrograph. Pages maintained by Chris Tinney mailto:cgt@aaoepp.aao.gov.au, Stuart Ryder (sdr@aaoepp.aao.gov.au) and Simon Ellis (sce@aaoepp.aao.gov.au).

Page last modified on February 9, 2004 by Stuart Ryder