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), July 31
   • Reviews must be complete by 23:59 HST, August 14;
   • Results will be announced by August 21;
   • Observations must be ready by September 01 and will remain valid until the end of November;
   • FT observations will be merged with the queue and observable on queue nights. 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~17 hrs to ~10 hrs can be accepted during this cycle. Note that RAs near 17 will only be accessible for a few hours during the first month (September). RAs near 10 will only be accessible for a few hours during the final month (November).
   • 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 most or all of Sep-Nov. NIFS will be available only in the latter part of November. There is only one LGS run scheduled, also during the latter part of November. See the schedule posted here
   • 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, it is expected that there will be ~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).


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 is now merged into the regular queue and not reserved for separate FT nights.
   • If <7 proposals are received, the program will not be cancelled (as happened earlier). We will instead send proposals to a standing panel of external reviewers, as well as PIs (or designated co-Is) reviewing each other's proposals in the usual way. See rule 12 and this blog post.