Gemini e-Newscast #19 -- September 1, 2009
Aug 31, 2009
Gemini reaches out to Easter Island (Rapa Nui)
Members of the Gemini Public Information and Outreach team and the
Argentina National Gemini Office visited Easter Island (Rapa Nui) as
part of the International Year of Astronomy. About a third of the island's
entire population participated in the week's events, which included
planetarium shows and workshops. The island is appropriately located
almost equidistant from the Gemini North and South telescopes, 3,700
km from continental Chile.
See http://www.gemini.edu/node/11321 for more information.
Laser Service Enclosure installed on Gemini South
The 5100-kg laser service enclosure (LSE) was installed on the Gemini
South telescope. The LSE will house and protect the laser for the
Gemini Multi-conjugate adaptive optics System (GeMS).
FLAMINGOS-2 on the flexure rig
The near-infrared multi-object spectrograph FLAMINGOS-2 has been
reassembled on Cerro Pachón. It is currently undergoing flexure tests
in the laboratory. FLAMINGOS-2 will be offered for community use
after these and on-sky acceptance tests are successfully completed.
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