Search
Text Size:
Smaller Text Normal Text Larger Text

Target-of-Opportunity programmes at the NOT

A class of research projects concerns objects which appear unpredictably and fade rapidly - "Targets of Opportunity" (ToO). A few of these have been judged by the NOT Observing Programmes Committee (OPC) to be of sufficiently high scientific merit that they have been awarded "ToO status" at the NOT. This privilege implies that the Principal Investigator (PI) of such a programme is authorised, within specified conditions, to contact the observer at the NOT and request that an approved set of observations of a target from the approved list be executed within a delay specified for each programme.

When approving this type of programme, the NOTSA Council fully realised that such interruptions are made at the expense of other valuable, approved scientific projects. The criteria for approval of ToO programmes are therefore particularly strict. The hope is that, in this way, we may enable Nordic teams to carry out some truly unique science justifying the inconvenience to others. Progress will be closely monitored to ensure that this remains the case.

The relationships between the NOT Observer (NO), the PI, and the NOT staff are defined by the following rules:

  1. ToO status is awarded only upon explicit application and review by the OPC and is given to a specific programme for a specific period at a time. Only the PI of an approved ToO programme or her/his deputy is authorised to contact the NOT observer directly.

  2. Each ToO programme is awarded a fixed number of alerts per period, with agreed amounts of time to be devoted to the ToO at each alert, as well as a total time limit per semester.

  3. In case of alerts by more than one programme in a given night, their order of priority follows that in which they are listed below. The total amount of time taken up by ToO programmes in a given night is limited to three (3) hours, unless the observer accepts an extension.

  4. The NOT Director will inform all observers at the NOT of the existence of approved ToO programmes. By accepting the allocated observing period at the NOT, observers accept to perform these programmes according to the present rules.

  5. ToO programmes approved by NOT are only authorised to interrupt other observations during the share of the time allocated by NOT; in Spanish or CCI time, the PI is free to contact the observer, but is not entitled to demand his/her cooperation.

  6. If any questions of doubt arise concerning the interpretation of these rules in specific situations, the NOT Deputy Director or his/her delegate is authorised to decide the issue.

    7. April, 2012
    Johannes Andersen
    Director, NOTSA

ToO programmes approved April 1, 2012 - October 1, 2012:
  1. P45-002: Building a Complete Sample of Swift Gamma-Ray Bursts (PI: P. Jakobsson, University of Iceland)

    No. of alerts approved in period: max. 12
    Reaction time: Immediately (NB: May also interrupt ongoing integrations!)
    Instrument: ALFOSC/NOTCam/MOSCA/StanCam/FIES/SOFIN
    Observing time each night: max 3 hours 1st and 2nd epoch (only if there is no clear candidate in the 1st epoch observations) for new discoveries (9 alerts), or;
    max 3 hours first night + 2 hour following nights for follow-up (3 alerts, max 1.5 night total per alert)
    Total accumulated time authorised in semester: 10.0 nights

  2. P45-005: Core-collapse supernova ToO (PI: J. Sollerman, Stockholm University)

    No. alerts for new SNe in period: max. 6 (2 epochs per SN)
    Reaction time: Same or next night
    Instrument: ALFOSC (possible StanCam for imaging)
    Max. observing time each night: 1.5 hour

    No. of follow-ups of SNe: max. 8
    Reaction time: Not time critical. Will be scheduled trying to minimize impact.
    Instrument: ALFOSC (possible StanCam or MOSCA for imaging)
    Max. observing time: Follow-up of each SN on 4 epochs max. 1 hr each
    Total accumulated time authorised in semester: 5.0 nights

  3. P45-008: NOTCluless: NOT Cluster Lensed Supernovae Survey (PI: A. Goobar, Stockholm University)

    In case of SN detection:
    Doubling i-band cadence of regular observations
    Reaction time: Not time-critical. Will be scheduled in between scheduled observations of program trying to minimize impact
    Two epochs with two extra filters (among rgz)
    Max. observing time: 3 hr per night
    Total accumulated time authorised in semester: 15 hrs

    In case of bright SN (i<20 mag): max. 2 alerts
    Spectroscopy
    Reaction time: Not time-critical. Will be scheduled trying to minimize impact
    Max. observing time: 1 hr per trigger
    Total accumulated time authorised in semester: 2 hrs

  4. P45-009: Perfecting Type Ia Supernovae as standard candles (PI: R. Amanullah, Stockholm University)

    No. alerts for classification of new SNe Ia in period: max. 6
    Reaction time: Same or next night
    Instrument: ALFOSC
    Max. observing time each night for classification: 1 hour

    No. of follow-ups per SNe: max. 4 over a month
    Reaction time: Not time-critical. Will be scheduled trying to minimize impact but within +/-3 days
    Max. observing time: 4 epoches with 1 hr for spectroscopy and photometry in each night
    Instrument: ALFOSC

    No. alerts for CSP SNe Ia candidates in period: max. 5
    No. of follow-ups per SNe: max. 5
    Reaction time: Not time-critical. Will be scheduled trying to minimize impact but within +/-3 days
    Max. observing time: 5 epoches with 1 hr for spectroscopy in each night
    Total accumulated time authorised in semester: 6.0 nights

  5. P45-106: High resolution optical spectroscopy of the early moments of classical novae in outburst (PI: S. Shore, University of Pisa)

    No. alerts for classification of Classical Novae in period: Any Nova discovered before maximum light with V < 8 and with the first low and/or medium resolution spectroscopic observations show P Cyg absorption on the Balmer lines with a velocity of at least 1000 km/s
    Reaction time: Same or next night
    Instrument: FIES
    Max. observing time each night: 30 min

    No. of follow-ups per Nova: max. 3
    Reaction time: Not time-critical. Will be scheduled at intervals of one to two weeks depending on the speed class of the nova trying to minimize impact
    Max. observing time: 3 epoches of 30 min each
    Instrument: FIES

    Total accumulated time authorised in semester: 4.0 nights

In case of an event of exceptional scientific interest, the PIs may request additional time on the following nights, to be decided by the Deputy-director in consultation with the scheduled observer.
Back to top Last modified: 14-May-2012