COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: The Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment

AST-0926815/0926641/0928636 Gebhardt/Schneider/DePoy Hobby-Eberly望远镜暗能量实验暗能量问题的解决方案将需要我们对宇宙的理解发生根本性的转变，接受任何模型都需要大量的观测证实。 Hobby-Eberly望远镜（HET）暗能量实验（HETDEX）提供了一种技术上清洁且观测上稳健的方法来测量暗能量的影响。 HETDEX包括对HET进行升级以获得更宽的视野，部署可见光积分场可复制单元摄谱仪（VIRUS），并完成一项广泛的实地调查，该调查将使用1400小时的观测来获得近100万个莱曼α发射星系的红移。 该项目的重要部分已经在各种来源的支持下进行，包括大量的私人捐款。调查将确定当地的哈勃膨胀在红移2. 4，并测量角直径距离到该红移，都达到0. 8%的精度，并确定结构的增长到2%。 几乎所有其他暗能量调查都针对较低的红移，而HETDEX旨在提供暗能量演化的高红移信息，并且即使在后期也足以测量暗能量效应。 HETDEX将进一步测量宇宙的曲率，约为0.1%，比目前的项目好一个数量级，是对其他当前和计划中研究的有力补充。 虽然HETDEX是为测量膨胀历史而优化的，但调查中有重要的辅助科学，例如收集了25万颗恒星和140万个其他星系的光谱。 考虑到它的能力，VIRUS即使不是HET的主要仪器，也将在许多年内继续作为HET的主要仪器。对暗能量的重要见解，具有大量辅助科学的大型数据库，以及HET上独特而强大的积分场摄谱仪将在整个天文学界产生广泛的影响。 暗能量之谜的吸引力使HETDEX能够包括涉及麦克唐纳天文台游客中心和Stardate电台的重要公共宣传活动，包括为游客提供互动展示和K-12教师的参与，以及一个受欢迎的网页http://www.hetdex.org。

AST-0926815/0926641/0928636Gebhardt/Schneider/DePoyThe Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy ExperimentThe solution to the problem of dark energy will require a fundamental shift in our understanding of the Universe, and acceptance of any model will require significant corroboration by observations. The Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) Dark Energy Experiment, HETDEX, offers a technically clean and observationally robust approach to measuring the effects of dark energy. HETDEX includes an upgrade of the HET for a wider field of view, deployment of the Visible Integral-field Replicable Unit Spectrograph (VIRUS), and completion of a wide field survey which will use 1400 hours of observation to obtain nearly a million redshifts of Lyman-alpha emitting galaxies. Significant parts of the project are already underway with support from a variety of sources, including substantial private donations.The survey will determine the local Hubble expansion at redshift 2.4 and measure the angular diameter distance out to that redshift, both to an accuracy of 0.8%, and determine the growth of structure to 2%. Nearly all other dark energy surveys target lower redshifts, while HETDEX was designed to provide high-redshift information on the evolution of dark energy, as well as being sufficiently powerful to measure dark energy effects even at late times. HETDEX further will measure the curvature of the Universe to about 0.1%, an order of magnitude better than current projects, and a strong complement to other current and planned studies. Although HETDEX is optimized for measures of the expansion history, there is significant ancillary science from the survey, such as a collection of spectra of a quarter of a million stars and 1.4 million other galaxies. Given its capabilities, VIRUS will remain a, if not the, primary instrument for HET for many years.The significant insights on dark energy, the large database with substantial ancillary science, and the unique and powerful integral field spectrograph on the HET will have a broad impact throughout the astronomical community. The attraction of the dark energy enigma enables HETDEX to include significant public outreach involving the McDonald Observatory Visitors Center and Stardate radio, including an interactive display for visitors and the involvement of K-12 teachers, as well as a popular webpage at http://www.hetdex.org.