News from the US Extremely Large Telescope Program

Mark Dickinson (NOAO)

The US Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) Program (US-ELTP) is a collaboration between NOAO, the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) and the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) to enable the whole US astronomical community to carry out research using these next-generation observatories with 25% or greater share of open-access observing time. The Program has recently welcomed a Project Director and submitted white papers in support of the upcoming Decadal Survey.

Welcome Sidney Wolff. The Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) is pleased to welcome Dr. Sidney Wolff as Project Director for the AURA/NOAO US-ELTP team. Dr. Wolff has previously served as Director of NOAO, Gemini, and LSST, and brings extensive experience with new initiatives in ground-based optical/infrared astronomy.

Astro2020 White Papers. The 2020 Decadal Survey of Astronomy and Astrophysics (Astro2020) recently solicited white papers on “Activities, Projects, and State of the Profession Considerations” (APC). Members of the US-ELTP collaboration submitted several white papers in response to this call. These include:

• The US Extremely Large Telescope Program (S. Wolff et al.) An overview of the US ELT Program and the TMT and GMT observatories.
• Multiwavelength Astrophysics in the Era of the ngVLA and the US ELT Program (A. Beasley, S. Wolff et al.) This white paper discusses scientific programs that are uniquely possible using the combination of unparalleled sensitivity and high angular resolution of TMT/GMT, operating at optical and infrared wavelengths, together with that of the Next Generation Very Large Array (ngVLA), operating at 1.2 to 116 GHz. The white paper also examines issues raised by the costs of building and operating flagship facilities, and strategies that can maintain the health of the US astronomical community and its international leadership.
• Observatory Operating Costs and Their Relation to Capital Costs (R. Goodrich et al.) This white paper examines the relationship between operating and construction costs for modern ground-based observatories, with projections for the next generation of giant segmented mirror telescopes.

Additional APC white papers submitted by members of the community discuss a variety of initiatives and technical considerations for ELT instrumentation, particularly in regard to the study of extrasolar planets. Lists of APC and science white papers relevant to the US ELT Program are available at the NOAO US-ELTP web site.