SparsePak Basic Observing Information

IRAF Data Acquisition Windows: (black, lhs of screen)

These screens appear in the upper-left virtual desktop and are started with the ARCON options on the main mouse menu. Only do data-taking commands, or set detector and observation parameters. All other IRAF commands should be don in accompanying IRAF reduction window.

Data acquisition and detector controlling commands:

detpar - set detector parameters. Use default gain setting; determine x range (typically xstart=450 dx=1100); and x binning (1 or 2).

obspar - set observing parameters. You should only need to set the frame number. Data will go into whatever directory you are in.

zero - take bias frames
dflat - take dome flats
sflat - take sky flats
comp - take comparison (ThAr) lamps
obs - take target observations

more [n] - take n more of whatever you just took.

Spectrograph Setup

These screens appear in the upper-right virtual desktop and are started with the Bench option on the main mouse menu.

See main SparsePak web page (Observing information) for specific setup parameters.

Typical steps include, in this order:

1. In Bench Spectrograph Setup window (right) put all filters into "out" position.

2. In spectrograph room . . .

+ select desired filter
+ connect to filter pole in slot B (push gently, horizontally towards bench)
+ manually lower filter and pole until bottom filter edge just enters slot

In Bench Spectrograph Setup window, set . . .

3. fiber focus (nominally -162)
4. camera focus
5. grating position (degrees or lambda)
6. fiber cable (Densepak ok)
7. grating order
8. grating
9. camera-collimator angle
10. dewar azimuth angle
11. grating-camera distance

Hit the apply buttom and have a little patience. Check setting in Bench Spectrograph window (left).

WIFOE control of pellicle optics

These screens appear in the upper-right virtual desktop.

The following are usually setup by the Instrument Scientist. In case you have to reboot / have a catastrophe, here is how you set things up.

open xterm on vanilla
% xhost +pearl
% rlogin -l wiyn_cd pearl

On pearl:

% setenv DISPLAY vanilla:0.0
% /usr/local/gui/tclsrc/scripts/wifoe/startwifoePos2

Wait for this window to appear with this menu:

Initialize

Pellicle in

Pellicle out

Pos1

Screen

REBOOT

Quit

Click "REBOOT" (possibley twice)
Click "Initialize"

Then select either "Pellicle in" for acquisition, "Pellicle out" for observations, and "Screen" for taking comparison lamps.

In status window, check status:

New Position = 3: Pellicle in
New Position = 4: Pellicle out

Buttons turn green when pellicle wheel in position and cursor is off the button.