Keck – Page 6 – A Darker View

NASA Study Using Keck Telescope Hints at Possible Change in Water ‘Fingerprint’ of Comet

A trip past the sun may have selectively altered the production of one form of water in a comet – an effect not seen by astronomers before, a new NASA study suggests.

C/2014 Q2 Lovejoy & M45 — Comet C/2014 Q2 Lovejoy passing by the Pleiades star cluster

Astronomers from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, observed the Oort cloud comet C/2014 Q2, also called Lovejoy, when it passed near Earth in early 2015. Through NASA’s partnership in the W. M. Keck Observatory on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, the team observed the comet at infrared wavelengths a few days after Lovejoy passed its perihelion – or closest point to the sun.

Scientists from NASA’s Goddard Center for Astrobiology observed the comet C/2014 Q2 – also called Lovejoy – and made simultaneous measurements of the output of H2O and HDO, a variant form of water. This image of Lovejoy was taken on Feb. 4, 2015 – the same day the team made their observations and just a few days after the comet passed its perihelion, or closest point to the sun.

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Flashlights

A Laser Above the Summit

Utilizing the Keck 1 Laser Guide Star during the night

Lasers Across the Milky Way — The Keck 2 and Subaru lasers cross the Milky Way above Mauna Kea

Dual Lasers on the Galactic Center — Both Keck lasers aimed at the center of the Milky Way galaxy

Keck 2 Lasing — The Keck 2 AO laser works the northern sky

Keck 2 Lases in the North — Keck 2 lasing to the north in the dawn the lights of Waimea and Honolulu behind.

Two Lasers — Two AO lasers aimed at the galactic center with a large red glow coming from Kilauea

Keck 1 Laser Engineering — The Keck 1 AO laser undergoing engineering testing

Keck 2 Laser — The new Keck 2 laser shines brightly during a system engineering night

First Target of the Night — The Keck 2 laser acquires the first target of the night with the glow of sunset behind

Zodiacal Light Over Keck — Bright zodiacal light silhouettes Keck Observatory with the Keck 2 laser

Keck 1 AO Laser — The Keck 1 laser in use on a moonlit night

Both Keck lasers in operation — Both the Keck 1 and Keck 2 lasers in operation under a nearly full Moon

Three Strikes — Three AO lasers aimed at the center of our Milky Way galaxy, the lasers are from both Keck 1 and Keck 2 as well as the Subaru telescope

Three Lasers — Three lasers in operation, Subaru, Keck 1 and Keck 2, 23 x 4min with a Canon 60D

Dual Lasers — Dual Keck lasers on the galactic center

First laser Light — The Keck 1 Laser piercing the sky for the first time on 28 Jan 2010

Solar Viewing

Shutter

Astronomy Team Releases Planet-Search Data

UC Santa Cruz press release…

An international team of astronomers has released the largest ever compilation of exoplanet-detecting observations made using a technique called the radial velocity method. By making the data public, the team is offering unprecedented access to one of the best exoplanet searches in the world.

Planet Hunters Paul Butler and Steve Vogt — UCSC astronomer Steve Vogt (foreground) with collaborator Paul Butler at the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii. Photo by Laurie Hatch

The data were gathered as part of a two-decade planet-hunting program using a spectrometer called HIRES, built by UC Santa Cruz astronomer Steven Vogt and mounted on the 10-meter Keck-I telescope at the W. M. Keck Observatory atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii.

“HIRES was not specifically optimized to do this type of exoplanet detective work, but has turned out to be a workhorse instrument of the field,” said Vogt, a professor emeritus of astronomy and astrophysics. “I am very happy to contribute to science that is fundamentally changing how we view ourselves in the universe.”

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Dwarf Star 200 Light Years Away Contains Life’s Building Blocks

W. M. Keck Observatory press release…

Many scientists believe the Earth was dry when it first formed, and that the building blocks for life on our planet — carbon, nitrogen and water — appeared only later as a result of collisions with other objects in our solar system that had those elements.

Keck in the Dawn — The twin domes of Keck Observatory lit by the first rays of dawn

Today, a UCLA-led team of scientists reports that it has discovered the existence of a white dwarf star whose atmosphere is rich in carbon and nitrogen, as well as in oxygen and hydrogen, the components of water. The white dwarf is approximately 200 light years from Earth and is located in the constellation Boötes.

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Over 100 New Exoplanet Candidates Discovered With W. M. Keck Observatory

W. M. Keck Observatory press release…

Exoplanet GJ 411 — HIRES instrument helps detect potential exoplanets. Artist’s conceptions of the probable planet orbiting a star called GJ 411, courtesy of Ricardo Ramirez.

An international team of astronomers today released a compilation of almost 61,000 individual measurements made on more than 1,600 stars, used to detect exoplanets elsewhere in our Milky Way galaxy. The compilation includes data on over 100 new potential exoplanets. The entire dataset was observed using one of the twin telescopes of the W. M. Keck Observatory on Maunakea over the past two decades. The search for new worlds elsewhere in our Milky Way galaxy is one of the most exciting frontiers in astronomy today. The paper is published in the Astronomical Journal.

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Drill Bits

Hammered

Various types of hammers await use in the Keck machine shop