Related papers: Ground Layer Adaptive Optics for the W. M. Keck Ob…
As part of the National Science Foundation funded "Gemini in the Era of MultiMessenger Astronomy" (GEMMA) program, Gemini Observatory is developing GNAO, a widefield adaptive optics (AO) facility for Gemini-North on Maunakea, the only…
The advent of Wide Field Adaptive Optics (WFAO) systems marks the beginning of a new era in high spatial resolution imaging. The newly commissioned Gemini South Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics System (GeMS) combined with the infrared camera…
In this paper we present the Adaptive Optics Lucky Imager (AOLI), a state-of-the-art instrument which makes use of two well proved techniques for extremely high spatial resolution with ground-based telescopes: Lucky Imaging (LI) and…
Near-diffraction limited imaging and spectroscopy in the visible on large (8-10 meter) class telescopes has proved to be beyond the capabilities of current adaptive optics technologies, even when using laser guide stars. The need for high…
The image quality from Ground-Layer Adaptive Optics (GLAO) can be gradually increased with decreased contiguous field of view. This trade-off is dependent on the vertical profile of the optical turbulence (Cn2 profiles). It is known that…
High quality, repeatable point-spread functions are important for science cases like direct exoplanet imaging, high-precision astrometry, and high-resolution spectroscopy of exoplanets. For such demanding applications, the initial on-sky…
We are building a next-generation laser adaptive optics system, Robo-AO-2, for the UH 2.2-m telescope that will deliver robotic, diffraction-limited observations at visible and near-infrared wavelengths in unprecedented numbers. The…
Accurate and precise measurements of the Hubble constant are critical for testing our current standard cosmological model and revealing possibly new physics. With Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging, each strong gravitational lens system…
Astronomical adaptive optics systems are used to increase effective telescope resolution. However, they cannot be used to observe the whole sky since one or more natural guide stars of sufficient brightness must be found within the…
We present the testbench aimed at integrating the GRAVITY+ adaptive optics GPAO. It consists of two independent elements, one reproducing the Coud{\'e} focus of the telescope, including the telescope deformable mirror mount (with its…
Direct detection and detailed characterization of exoplanets using extreme adaptive optics (ExAO) is a key science goal of future extremely large telescopes (ELTs). However, wavefront errors will limit the sensitivity of this endeavor.…
While astronomical twilight closes the observing window for optical astronomers, the infrared sky remains dark even through sunrise, allowing IR astronomers to observe through twilight. The Slicer Combined with an Array of Lenslets for…
Optical imperfections, misalignments, aberrations, and even dust can significantly limit sensitivity in high-contrast imaging systems such as coronagraphs. An upstream deformable mirror (DM) in the pupil can be used to correct or compensate…
Gravitational wave (GW) astronomy offers the potential to probe the wave-optics regime of gravitational lensing. Wave optics (WO) effects are relevant at low frequencies, when the wavelength is comparable to the characteristic lensing time…
Direct imaging and spectral characterization of exoplanets using extreme adaptive optics (ExAO) is a key science goal of future extremely large telescopes and space observatories. However, quasi-static wavefront errors will limit the…
Adaptive optics laser guide star systems perform atmospheric correction of stellar wavefronts in two parts: stellar tip-tilt and high-spatial-order laser-correction. The requirement of a sufficiently bright guide star in the field-of-view…
Liger is an adaptive optics (AO) fed imager and integral field spectrograph (IFS) designed to take advantage of the Keck All-sky Precision Adaptive-optics (KAPA) upgrade to the Keck I telescope. Liger adapts the design of the InfraRed…
In ground-based astronomy, Adaptive Optics (AO) is a pivotal technique, engineered to correct wavefront phase distortions and thereby enhance the quality of the observed images. Integral to an AO system is the wavefront sensor (WFS), which…
The point-spread function (PSF) of an adaptive optics (AO) system is often poorly known. This ignorance can lead to significant systematic errors in photometry. Since the degree of AO correction is sensitive to the observing conditions:…
The availability and performance of laser-based adaptive optics (AO) systems are strongly dependent on the power and quality of the laser beam before being projected to the sky. Frequent and time-consuming alignment procedures are usually…