Workshop Description:
The Gemini and Subaru Observatories are hosting a
meeting on WFMOS science May 19-21, 2008, in
Waikoloa, Hawaii. The meeting is co-sponsored by
JSPS, NOAO, STFC, and AAL. WFMOS is the proposed Wide-Field
Fiber Multi-Object Spectrograph being jointly
pursued by Gemini and Subaru that will feature
highly-multiplexed optical spectroscopy for a
variety of science projects. Undergoing conceptual
design studies now, the starting point for the
design is a fiber-fed instrument mounted at the
prime focus of the Subaru telescope with ~3000
fibers going to optical R~2000 spectrographs and an
additional ~1500 fibers going to R~40000
spectrographs covering a field of view ~1.5 degrees
in diameter.
Workshop Purpose:
The meeting will focus on the entirety of science
made possible by WFMOS. This science includes the
two key projects relating to Galactic archaeology
and dark energy, but also many other spin-off
science projects made possible by such a unique
instrument. Some of the latter topics include
galaxy formation and evolution, dark matter and
neutrino measurements, star formation in other
galaxies and a host of other possible surveys.
While other imaging surveys are currently in
operations and planning stages, WFMOS will be
relatively unique in its highly-multiplexed
spectroscopic capabilities and will open up a wide
variety of new science opportunities. This meeting
will feature invited talks, contributed talks, and
poster sessions. We welcome participation from
everyone interested, although the number of
participants is limited, so please register early.
The conference organizers wish to express their
gratitude to the following funding agencies for their generous
support of the WFMOS Workshop: Gemini Observatory,
Subaru, the National Optical Astronomical Observatory (U.S.), the STFC (UK science council), and AAL (Astronomy Australia Limited).
This workshop is also supported in part by JSPS (Japan Society for Promotion of Science) Core-to-Core Program "International Research Network for Dark Energy".
The Subaru telescope is Japan's premier optical-infrared telescope operated by the National
Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). The detailed description
of the telescope facility and its organization can be found in the official webpage.
The Gemini Observatory provides the astronomical communities in each
partner country with state-of-the-art astronomical
facilities that allocate observing time in proportion to each
country's contribution. in addition to financial
support, each country also contributes significant
scientific and technical resources. The national
research agencies that form the Gemini partnership
include: the US National Science Foundation (NSF), the
UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC),
the Canadian National Research Council (NRC), the
Chilean Comisi?n Nacional de investigaci?n Cientifica
y Tecnol?gica (CONiCYT), the Australian Research
Council (ARC), the Secretaria de Ciencia, Tecnolog?a e
Innovaci?n productiva (SECYT) and the Brazilian
Minist?rio da Ci?ncia e Tecnologia (MCT). The Observatory is managed by the
Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy,
inc. (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with the
NSF. The NSF also serves as the executive agency for
the international partnership.
Organizing Committee:
Geraint Lewis (SOC co-chair)
Yasushi Suto (SOC co-chair)
Nobuo Arimoto (SOC)
Masashi Chiba (SOC)
Ofer Lahav (SOC)
Bob Nichol (SOC)
Kouji Ohta (SOC)
Motohide Tamura (SOC)
Rosie Wyse (SOC)
Toru Yamada (SOC)
Joseph Jensen (LOC-Gemini)
Scot Kleinman (LOC-Gemini)
Terry Kaonohi (LOC-Gemini)
Hisanori Furusawa (LOC-Subaru)
Mari Endo (LOC-Subaru)
