Related papers: The Future of Multi-Object Spectroscopy: a ESO Wor…

We describe the current status of the ESO-Sculptor Survey. The observational goal has been to produce a new multi-color photometric catalogue of galaxies in a region located near the southern galactic pole, complemented by a spectroscopic…

We describe the current plans for a spectroscopic survey of millions of stars in the Milky Way galaxy using the Guo Shou Jing Telescope (GSJT, formerly the Large Area Multi-Object Spectroscopic Telescope - LAMOST). The survey will obtain…

This white paper summarizes the conclusions of the Snowmass White Paper "Spectroscopic Needs for Imaging Dark Energy Experiments" (arXiv:1309.5384) which are relevant to the calibration of LSST photometric redshifts; i.e., the accurate…

The large surveys and sensitive instruments of modern astronomy are turning ever more examples of variable objects, many of which are extending the parameter space to testing theories of stellar evolution and accretion. Future projects such…

We outline the science case for a 30-40 m optical/infrared telescope in the Northern Hemisphere, optimised for transformative time-domain astronomy in the 2040s. Upcoming multi-wavelength and multi-messenger facilities will reveal fast,…

Mid- and far-infrared (IR) photometric and spectroscopic observations are fundamental to a full understanding of the dust-obscured Universe and the evolution of both star formation and black hole accretion in galaxies. In this work, using…

U-band observations with the LSST have yet to be fully optimized in cadence. The straw man survey design is a simple coverage of the medium-deep-fast survey. Here we argue that deep coverage of the four deep drilling fields (XMM-LSS, ECDFS,…

We perform a deep search for galaxies in the redshift range 6.5<z<7.5, to measure the evolution of the number density of luminous galaxies in this redshift range and derive useful constraints on the evolution of their Luminosity Function.…

The ultraviolet (UV) astronomy is a very demanded branch of space astronomy. Many dozens of short-term UV-experiments in space, as well as long-term observatories, have brought a very important knowledge on the physics and chemistry of the…

The upcoming generation of telescopes, instruments, and surveys is poised to usher in an unprecedented "Big Data" era in the field of astronomy. Within this context, even seemingly modest tasks such as spectral line analyses could become…

The LSST survey was designed to deliver transformative results for four primary objectives: constraining dark energy and dark matter, taking an inventory of the Solar System, exploring the transient optical sky, and mapping the Milky Way.…

For the first time in history, humans have reached the point where it is possible to construct a revolutionary space-based observatory that has the capability to find dozens of Earth-like worlds, and possibly some with signs of life. This…

Through a combination of deep wide-field imaging and multi-object spectroscopy, the Next Generation Space Telescope will be able to chart with unprecedented accuracy the evolution of cosmic structures after the `dark ages' (z<5), when…

Cosmological observations in the new millennium have dramatically increased our understanding of the Universe, but several fundamental questions remain unanswered. This topical group report describes the best opportunities to address these…

The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), the next-generation optical imaging survey sited at Cerro Pachon in Chile, will provide an unprecedented database of astronomical measurements. The LSST design, with an 8.4m (6.7m effective)…

The High-Resolution Multi-Object Spectrograph (HRMOS) is a facility instrument that we plan to propose for the Very Large Telescope (VLT) of the European Southern Observatory (ESO), following the initial presentation at the VLT 2030…

The major cornerstone of future ground-based astronomy is imaging and spectroscopy at the diffraction limit using adaptive optics. To exploit the potential of current AO systems, we have begun a survey around bright stars to study…

The ongoing optical time-domain astronomy surveys are routinely reporting fifty transient candidates per night. Here, I investigate the demographics of astronomical transients and supernova classifications reported to the Transient Name…

We present results of performance modelling for METIS, the Mid-infrared European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) Imager and Spectrograph. Designed by a consortium of NOVA (Netherlands), UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK), MPIA Heidelberg…

High-performance instruments at large ground-based telescopes have made integral field spectroscopy (IFS) a powerful tool for the study of extended objects such as galaxies, nebulae, or even larger survey fields on the sky. Here we discuss…