Documentation

K1DM3 Control System

Software User's Guide(html)
Software User's Guide(pdf)

Maintenance

Manual (pdf)
Manual (word)
Spares List
Copies of Vendor Docs that are referenced in the Maintenance and Software manuals.

Electronics

Schematics

Mechanical Engineering

Drawings
      Assembly Tree View
      Documents Tree View
Technical Notes

Requirements, Proposal, and Reviews

Requirements, v3.1
MRI Proposal
PDR Report
DDR Report

SPIE Papers

2018 — Fabrication, etc
2016 — Detailed Design
2014 — Design development
2012 — “Depolyable” tertiary mirror

Motivations

Target of Opportunity

Target of Opportunity objects are astronomical events that cannot be planned for and need quick response to observe. In many cases a change of instrument is necessary.

Cadence Observing

On a given night an astronomer may want to only look at an object over a lengthy period of time but only want to take a couple exposures per night. K1DM3 will allow cadance observing for a greater number of insturments. Removal of the current tertiary is close to a 24 hour process, with K1DM3 the transition will be below five minutes allowing more opportunities for cadance observing.

Low Maintenance

The K1DM3 Module is designed to stay in the Tertiary tower of Keck 1. Since K1DM3 allows for light to pass through to Cassegrain focus there is no need for removal. The only planned removal of the instrument is for recoating the mirror surface.

How K1DM3 Works

The W.M. Keck observatories are the most advanced telescopes that are available to scientists in the western hemisphere. With the Keck 1 Deployable Tertiary Mirror (K1DM3) we hope to make more efficient time of the suite of instruments at Keck 1 observatory by using a retractable tertiary mirror that allows quick transitions from Nasmyth to Cassegrain focus by folding out of the field of view. What we hope to achieve with the K1DM3 module is to have quicker access to different instruments and to utilize as much time as possible in a given night.