June 2015 Call for Proposals

Gemini North is accepting proposals for the Fast Turnaround (FT) pilot program. Here, we give information specific to this proposal cycle. Please see the other FT pages - particularly the rules - for general information about the program.

1. Important dates
   • Proposal deadline: 23:59, Hawaiian Standard Time (HST), June 30
   • Reviews must be complete by 23:59 HST, July 14;
   • Results will be announced by July 21;
   • Observations must be ready by August 01 and will remain valid until the end of October;
   • Starting in August, FT observations will be merged with the queue. They will not be scheduled only on specific Fast Turnaround nights as was done previously.


2. Eligibility
   • PIs from all partners taking part in the FT program may apply for this cycle.
   • PIs from partner countries whose FT time for the semester has been used up should not apply for the remainder of the semester. Currently no partners have reached their limit but Canada has approximately 6 hrs remaining. See the rules and Q&A for more information.


3. Acceptable RA ranges
   • Targets from RA~15 hrs – 8 hrs can be accepted during this cycle. Note that RAs of 15-17 will only be accessible for a few hours during the first month (August). RAs of 6-8 will only be accessible for a few hours during the final month (October).
   • Approximate coordinates of targets in the current FT queue are given here.


4. Available instruments and observing modes
   • Gemini North (only) is participating in the FT trial
   • GMOS, GNIRS, and NIRI will be available for the entire cycle. NIFS will not be available. See the schedule posted here
   • Short observations can generally be accommodated on non-FT nights (see rule 10 ). However, the visiting instrument DSSI is not offered for FT proposals.
   • MOS observations are not available through the Fast Turnaround program. As discussed in the rules and Q&A, please contact the Fast Turnaround team in advance of the deadline if you would like to propose for an unusual instrument configuration or observing mode.


5. Time available
   • Assuming typical weather loss, we expect to have about 20 useable hours to allocate to FT programs during this cycle. Very roughly, this implies:
     • i. 4 hrs of 20%-ile conditions (IQ=20, for example; see this web page)
     • ii. 10 hrs of 50%-ile conditions
     • iii. 14 hrs of 70%-ile conditions
     • iv. 17 hrs of 85%-ile conditions
   • PIs may propose for up to roughly the amount of time in their most restrictive observing conditions (see the rules).
   • While very good conditions can be requested, please note that FT observations will be executed in a “mini-queue” on dedicated nights with no compensation for weather losses.


6. PIT information
   • Proposals must be submitted using the version of the Phase I Tool specified on this web page (in the "Time Requests" tab, select Fast Turnaround Observing at Gemini as the proposal class).
   • In the Time Requests tab, select "Fast Turnaround Observing at Gemini" as the proposal class and specify the reviewer (and mentor, if appropriate).
   • Please use the GemPhase1.tex/doc template to prepare the pdf required by the PIT, following the page limits specified in that file.
   • Submitting the same proposal more than once during a given cycle (e.g. after correcting/editing a submitted version) should be avoided if at all possible.


7. Changes to rules/policies since last CfP
   • As noted above, FT programs will now be merged into the regular queue and not reserved for separate FT nights.