Instrument Availability and Target Accessibility: 2006A

The tables below indicate the current best estimates of instrument availability and corresponding target (RA, dec) accessibility for 2006A. 

The anticipated arrival of NIFS and TEXES at Gemini North, and NICI and Flamingos-2 at Gemini South, means that the instrument ports on both telescopes will be overfilled. Instrument swaps will be required and therefore not all instruments will be available for the entire semester. The defined RA ranges combined possible instrument exchanges with best-guess schedules. Where possible we have tried to provide the least restrictions to applicants and thus it is possible that some targets or entire programs might not be feasible when the final queue and schedule are assembled at ITAC.

Typically several observations or programs are rejected at the ITAC each semester because of target accessibility so please read carefully the following notes:

• For each given declination, the table shows the target RA that has two hours above airmass = 2 at the start of the night early in the semester ("minimum" RA) and the target RA that has two hours above airmass = 2 at the end of the night late in the semester ("maximum" RA).
• For some high and low declinations (noted *), an airmass limit of 2.5 is used.
• If best image quality is desired, typically achieved at smaller zenith distance, the RA range should be reduced appropriately.
• The comments column indicates whether all RAs are potentially observable. 
• "no restriction" means that all RAs are potentially observable. 
• "restricted" means that only RAs between the "minimum" and "maximum" would be observable given the stated assumptions. Targets with RA less than the "minimum" would set too early in the night and targets with RA greater than the "maximum" would rise too late.
• At the extrema of the RA range, shown by the early- and late-semester values, targets may not be observable in practice due to detailed instrument and engineering schedules and other constraining factors (e.g. lunar phase). Moreover, the time for which the target (RA, dec) is accessible may be very limited and applicants should bear this in mind for faint targets. The likelihood of execution is greatly increased if extreme RAs are avoided. 

Last update August 21, 2005; Phil Puxley