Announcements

10 June 2010: A Canadian-U.S. team led by Patrick Dufour (University of Montreal) discovered the most metal-rich white dwarf known to date by examining thousands of stars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Their analysis, based on follow-up observations using the Gemini North telescope and the Multiple-Mirror Telescope (MMT), shows a clear signature of a tidally destroyed dwarf planet that once orbited the parent star. White dwarfs are essentially dead stars that no longer have nuclear reactions in their core. Thus, they slowly cool off by simply radiating the remaining thermal energy left in the core at the end of their lives. They are also very compact objects with surface gravities on the order of 100,000 times larger than that of Earth. As a result, heavy elements sink rapidly toward the center of the star while light elements tend to float at the surface. Consequently, most white dwarfs are found to have nearly …

8 June 2010: The central star is HD 56925, a massive Wolf-Rayet star nearing the end of its lifetime, which is responsible for the wind sweeping through the surrounding molecular cloud. Also listed as NGC 2359, this image was obtained at CTIO by the PROMPT consortium. When not chasing gamma-ray bursts, PROMPT serves a wide variety of users, including Star Shadows Remote Observatory (SSRO), a group of astrophotographers. This image was captured using broadband and narrowband filters: the blue-green color is oxygen emission.

3 June 2010: Using the Gemini Near-Infrared Imager and spectrometer (NIRI) on the Gemini North telescope, James De Buizer and William Vacca (SOFIA-USRA) obtained spectra that, for the first time, directly identify the origin of “green fuzzy” emission. The Spitzer Space Telescope survey of the central plane of the Milky Way Galaxy revealed an unusual feature of some massive star forming regions in the galaxy: areas of extended emission that appear to have enhanced flux at 4.5 microns (which is usually assigned the color green when constructing three-color images from Spitzer data). These so-called “green fuzzies” (or “extended green objects”) were previously associated with massive young stellar objects (MYSOs) in star forming regions, but the exact origin of the emission could not be determined from the images alone. In one source, known as G19.88-053, the new NIRI data revealed that the enhanced 4.5 micron emission arises from a prominent molecular hydrogen emission line …

12 May 2010: NEWFIRM, an infrared camera now installed on the CTIO Blanco 4- meter, imaged NGC 1999 at the KPNO Mayall 4-m before going to the southern hemisphere. Here a combination of infrared filters from NEWFIRM (blue) and from the ESO Herschel Space Observatory (green and red) show the region around the triple star known as V380 Orionis, near the top of the image. Previously thought to be an opaque cloud, the dark region now appears to be a cavity in the dense gas and dust — a hole in space carved out by a jet from one of the young stars in the V380 Ori system.

27 April 2010: Gemini Observatory aims to be one of the most energy efficient astronomical facilities, with the highest standards of environmental protection. Since it first encouraged, in 2008, staff proposals to reduce its carbon footprint, the organization has formalized its energy planning efforts and developed many initiatives to reduce energy consumption and help the Observatory “tread more lightly on the Earth.” There are many challenges to creating an effective, organization-wide energy-reduction program for two of the world’s largest telescopes, based in two countries, on two continents. Differing energy infrastructures, government systems, cultural norms, and business resources have all required us to remain flexible and creative as we work to reduce, re-use, and recycle wherever possible, but we have already chalked up several successes and a few of the highlights from this program follow: Electricity Chile enjoys relatively low electricity costs, but Hawaii’s are the highest in the United States. In February 2008, …

19 April 2010: Counterclockwise from top; Leaving KPNO, Arriving at CTIO, NEWFIRM camera hoisted to Blanco main floor, NEWFIRM undergoing a major filter change and thorough internal inspection in the new CTIO clean room, Guider assembled into the truss

25 March 2010: A striking new Gemini Observatory image of the Owl Nebula, a prominent object visible in the northern sky, was released today (March 25, 2010) as the culmination of a nationwide student essay contest in Canada. Upon winning the award, high school student Émilie Storer from Collège Charlemagne, in Pierrefonds, Quebec, said, “I definitely want to be an astronomer now!” Émilie was recognized at a celebration held at Collège Charlemagne in Pierrefonds, Quebec, hosted by Canadian Gemini Office Astronomer André-Nicolas Chené, as well as former Gemini Science Fellow Étienne Artigau (now at Université de Montreal). At the event, attended by over 250 students, the scientists explained how the planetary nebula formed and what is known about it from previous studies, as well as what Émilie’s new observations might bring. In addition, a live video-link to the Gemini North control room allowed students to see where the observations were made and talk …

11 March 2010: Galaxies are the building blocks of the universe, so accounting for their formation is an essential problem in astronomy. Most galaxies are either spiral or elliptical, with the latter tending to be larger and more massive. One suggestion that is grounded in fundamental measurements of the universe as a whole is that merging spiral galaxies form elliptical galaxies. A way to test the predictions of this merger hypothesis is to observe examples of galaxy merging in process. Barry Rothberg and Jacqueline Fischer of the Naval Research Laboratory (US) have done that, drawing important conclusions about the objects they observed and the techniques astronomers use to measure them. One critical property of a galaxy is its mass. The motion of stars is sensitive to the gravitational effect of the mass, so measuring the stellar motion can yield a galaxy's mass. Observations of characteristic features in the spectra of stars are sensitive …

11 March 2010: Consequences of galaxy-scale outflows are profound in the early universe, and an international team led by David Alexander at Durham University (UK) provides insight into the process using new observations with the Gemini Near-Infrared Integral Field Spectrometer (NIFS) on Gemini North. The material between galaxies is observed to be enriched in metals (elements more complex than helium) compared with primordial abundances, which requires early generations of star formation to produce the metals. The galactic outflows thought to be responsible for this enrichment must be extremely energetic for the material to escape a galaxy’s strong gravitational pull. Moreover, outflows and superwinds may provide some of the feedback that suppresses further star formation, thus accounting for the sharp decline in the cosmic star-formation rate from its peak at redshifts between z ≈ 2 to 3. Either the stars themselves (through winds and supernovae) or winds and jets that are a result of …

10 March 2010: Our national astronomy observatory was dedicated on Kitt Peak 50 years ago in March 1960. In celebration of the 50th anniversary, Kitt Peak National Observatory’s first Director Dr. Aden B. Meinel will speak about the history of the national observatory and Bernard Siquieros, Education Curator of the Tohono O’odham Nation’s Cultural Center and Museum, will share a Tohono O’odham perspective on the meaning and history of Iolkam Du’ag, or Kitt Peak, and the Baboquivari Range. The program entitled “Why Kitt Peak?” will be presented at the Steward Observatory, 933 North Cherry Avenue, Room N210, at 7:30 pm on Monday, March 22nd; it is free of charge and open to the public. Following the talks, the telescope in the Steward Observatory dome will be open for public viewing of the night sky (weather permitting). The site for the proposed national observatory was constrained by practical considerations that limited the choice to …

1 March 2010: In celebration of the 50th anniversary of our national astronomy observatory, Dr. Alan Dressler will present “The Living History of the Universe” at the Marriott University Park, 880 E 2nd Street, on March 17 at 7:30 pm. This special program is available to the public at no cost. Every minute of every day, light from the remote past arrives at Earth, much of it originating before the Earth itself was born. Astronomers look at the history of the Universe as it actually happened, by gathering the light from faint, distant galaxies that are frozen as slices in time. Drawing connections between what we see in the young, distant Universe to the one of our own time is challenging, however. A small history of this difficult endeavor, recounted by one of its key players, reveals how science works and the persistence of human curiosity. Alan Dressler is an astronomer at the …

28 February 2010: The staff of Gemini Observatory extends its deepest sympathies to the families of those who suffered losses or are displaced due to the major magnitude 8.8 earthquake that struck southern Chile early Saturday morning, February 27, 2010. Gemini was fortunate that there were no significant structural damages to any of our facilities. The earthquake disrupted observations on early Saturday morning for less than 30 minutes. Subsequent operations have been essentially normal with the exception of Internet connectivity. We are dealing with communications and minor power inconsistencies that should be solved once general Chilean infrastructure issues are resolved. The temblor struck about 700 kilometers south of Gemini South which is on Cerro Pachón. Both of the Gemini telescopes are located in seismically active locations and on October 15, 2006 Gemini North experienced a major (magnitude 6.7) earthquake that inflicted significant damage to the telescope and related systems. In total 26 nights …

25 February 2010: With Issue 101 we will begin producing only two issues a year, in March and September. Additionally, we are changing the section organization to make the Newsletter more useful and informative to our readers.

15 February 2010: The groundbreaking for the viewpoint Vista Sidney Wolff took place on February 1, 2010 on the road to the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) in Chile. The site features a beautiful view of the SOAR and Gemini telescopes and also of the site selected for the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). The construction of the vista point is a tribute to Dr. Sidney C. Wolff's leadership in enabling the construction of these world-class facilities on Cerro Pachon high in the Andes mountains. Dr. Wolff served as President of the SOAR Board and first Director of the Gemini Observatory.

26 January 2010: It has been assumed for some time that binary supermassive black holes (SMBH) should be common in the universe, given that galaxies regularly interact and merge and that most, if not all, galaxies contain a SMBH. Such a SMBH will only be detected as a quasar when it is accreting matter. And galaxy merging is a leading proposal to trigger such accretion. Now the first luminous, spatially resolved binary quasar that clearly inhabits an interacting/merging galaxy pair has been reported. ( SDSS J1254+0846: A Binary Quasar Caught in the Act of Merging, Green et. al., Ap. J accepted Jan. 2010 ). The unique properties of this system allow detailed numerical simulations to create plausible scenarios for the histories of both the host galaxies and the SMBH that inhabit them. The first spectrum confirming this binary QSO was taken by A. Myers at the KPNO Mayall 4-meter using R-C Spectrograph on …

15 January 2010: Two symposia will take place in Tucson during the month of March, 2010. From First Light to Newborn Stars happens from March 14-17, followed by The Eventful Universe March 17-20. On March 17th both symposia will meet together for talks by our distinguished invited speakers (including Vera Rubin, Nick Suntzeff, Heather Morrison, Charlie Lada, and Alan Dressler) to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the National Observatory. Please go to the link above to register for either symposium.

11 January 2010: Looking into the distant universe, astronomers look into the past. Observations of distant galaxies directly reveal those galaxies as they once were. They also indicate indirectly the stages of development that result in the nearby galaxies that are typical of our own Milky Way and other older galaxies today. Christopher Conselice (University of Nottingham, UK) and collaborators used the Near Infrared Imager (NIRI) with the adaptive optics system Altair and laser guide stars on the Gemini North telescope to investigate galaxies at redshifts from z =1 to 2 (when the universe was only 25 to 40% of its current age). They show that the massive galaxies of their sample tended to be extremely compact. These instruments afford high angular resolution, which is essential to measure fine spatial scales in the distant galaxies. In a sense, the galaxies grow "inside-out," adding mass to the outer regions beyond an initial dense core. …

7 January 2010: Gemini Astronomer Percy Gomez presented the work of an international research team (Gemini, Chile and Canada) studying the dynamics of the super group of galaxies Abell 1882. His oral presentation on Wednesday, January 6th was part of the Galaxy Cluster I session at the 215th meeting of the American Astronomical Society. The Abell 1882 super group of galaxies is located at redshift z=0.138, and it is anticipated to eventually form a massive galaxy cluster like Coma. The adjacent figure from this work presents an overlay of the extended X-ray emission originating from at least three distinct groups of galaxies. It also shows the position of the galaxies in the cluster. The team identified over 300 galaxy member candidates (open circles) in the cluster from the SDSS photometric survey and used the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph on Gemini South (GMOS-S) to measure new redshifts for over 90 galaxy members. In this way …

7 January 2010: Gemini’s Bernadette Rodgers, Inger Jorgensen, Michelle Edwards, and Gelys Trancho shared details about Gemini’s success in gender equality in their poster: “Women Astronomers at Gemini: A Success Story,” which they presented on Tuesday, January 5th at the 215th meeting of the American Astronomical Society. The poster compares the percentage of Gemini Ph.D. scientists to that of the US average between 2006-2008 and finds that Gemini recruited 31% female astronomers compared with only 13.9% for the United States overall. Even more impressive is the gender equity in Gemini’s science management team which is 75% female with a 50% gender balance (currently) in directorate-level positions. The authors also find that the positive gender balance attracts a high level of female applicants for science staff positions and has resulted in significantly higher retention for female vs. male science staff with 88% retention for females compared with 64% for males over the same period. …

6 January 2010: Most searches for planets around other stars, also known as exoplanets, focus on Sun-like stars. Those searches have proven successful, turning up more than 400 alien worlds. However, Sun-like stars aren’t the only potential homes for planets. New research by astronomers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) confirms that planet formation is a natural by-product of star formation, even around stars much heftier than the Sun.