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Post Info TOPIC: La Silla Observatory
Blobrana


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RE: La Silla Observatory
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ESO's La Silla Observatory, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, became the largest astronomical observatory of its time. It led Europe to the frontline of astronomical research, and is still one of the most scientifically productive in ground-based astronomy.
With about 300 refereed publications attributable to the work of the observatory per year, La Silla led the forefront of astronomy.
La Silla has led to an enormous number of scientific discoveries, including several "firsts". The HARPS spectrograph is the world's foremost exoplanet hunter. It detected the system around Gliese 581, which contains what may be the first known rocky planet in a habitable zone, outside the Solar System. Several telescopes at La Silla played a crucial role in discovering that the expansion of the Universe is accelerating and in linking gamma-ray bursts -- the most energetic explosions in the Universe since the Big Bang -- with the explosions of massive stars. Since 1987, the ESO La Silla Observatory has also played an important role in the study and follow-up of the nearest supernova, SN 1987A.

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Blobrana


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Title: GROND - a 7-channel imager
Authors: J. Greiner, W. Bornemann, C. Clemens, M. Deuter, G. Hasinger, M. Honsberg, H. Huber, S. Huber, M. Krauss, T. Krühler, A. Küpcü Yolda, H. Mayer-Hasselwander, B. Mican, N. Primak, F. Schrey, I. Steiner, G. Szokoly, C.C. Thöne, A. Yolda, S. Klose, U. Laux, J. Winkler

We describe the construction of GROND, a 7-channel imager, primarily designed for rapid observations of gamma-ray burst afterglows. It allows simultaneous imaging in the Sloan g'r'i'z' and near-infrared JHK bands. GROND was commissioned at the MPI/ESO 2.2m telescope at La Silla (Chile) in April 2007, and first results of its performance and calibration are presented.

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Blobrana


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First Light for Gamma-Ray Burst Chaser at La Silla

A new instrument has seen First Light at the ESO La Silla Observatory. Equipping the 2.2-m MPI/ESO telescope, GROND takes images simultaneously in seven colours. It will be mostly used to determine distances of gamma-ray bursts.
Taking images in different filters simultaneously is important for the study of many astrophysical sources, and in particular of variable sources, such as close binaries or active galactic nuclei. But it is most crucial in the follow-up of gamma-ray bursts. Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are short flashes of energetic gamma-rays lasting from less than a second to several minutes. They release a tremendous quantity of energy in this short time making them the most powerful events since the Big Bang.

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