Principal Instrument Upgrade at the BYU West Mountain Observatory

ast - 0618209 j。杨百翰大学不像美国西部那些晴空万里的州，犹他州没有现代天文望远镜。这种情况令人痛心，因为以杨百翰大学为首的犹他州大学，比美国其他任何一个州授予的本科物理学位都要多。杨百翰大学有一个特别强大的项目，2004年有64个天文学专业的学生。这些本科生参加了全国最好的研究生课程。为了美国天文学的最大利益，他们应该在最先进的设备上接受适当的训练。建立一个山间设施，可以用于论文、独立研究项目和支持其他地方大型望远镜工作的研究项目，也符合美国天文学的最大利益。美国国家科学基金会和presst计划的范围和使命是通过帮助确保犹他州的现代望远镜来改善教育和研究。杨百翰大学是犹他州最重要的天文学项目，它在犹他湖的南端拥有20年历史的西山天文台（WMO）。该设施本身状况良好，但其50年历史的0.6米望远镜（犹他州最大的望远镜）已经破旧不堪，无法用于现代研究。这笔资金将用于将0.6米望远镜替换为0.9米DFM望远镜，并为其配备现代化的成像仪、光谱仪和制导系统。这个尺寸很适合现有的设施。按照现代标准，0.9米的望远镜是很小的。更大的望远镜的出现改变了它们的用途和焦点，但并没有使它们在进行一线研究时被淘汰。小型望远镜对时间序列工作和专业测量很有用，而这类工作通常在人满为患的大型天文台是不可能完成的。研究项目包括星云和河外成像、近星系核光谱学、恒星光度学和恒星光谱学。改造后的气象组织将用于杨百翰大学的研究和教育项目，并通过时间分配程序每年向校外大学提供10个星期。除了这10周外，杨百翰大学在爱达荷州和夏威夷的姐妹学校每年还将为学生提供2周的学习时间。这台新望远镜将使校园内的0.4米望远镜专门用于扩大教育和公共宣传项目。该奖项将极大地加强杨百翰大学的天文学项目，并为目前无法获得位于便利和黑暗地点的现代化设施的机构和学生提供天文学研究和教学机会。该奖项由天文科学部和多学科活动办公室资助。

AST-0618209J. W. MoodyBrigham Young UniversityUnlike most states in the clear-skied, western part of America, there are no modern astronomical telescopes in Utah. This situation is distressing since Utah universities, lead by BYU, and grant more undergraduate physics degrees per capita than any other state in the union. BYU has an especially strong program with 64 astronomy majors as of 2004. These undergraduates go to all the best graduate programs in the nation. It is in the best interest of American astronomy that they be properly trained on state-of-the-art facilities. It is also in the best interest of American astronomy to establish an intermountain facility that can be used for dissertations, stand-alone research projects, and research projects that support the work done on larger telescopes elsewhere. It is within the scope and mission of the NSF and the PREST program to improve education and research by helping secure a modern telescope in Utah.The premier astronomy program in Utah is at BYU, which owns the 20-year-old West Mountain Observatory (WMO) at the southern end of Utah Lake. The facility itself is in good condition but its 50-year-old 0.6m telescope (the largest telescope in Utah) is worn out and inadequate for modern research. Funds from this award will be used to replace the 0.6m telescope with a 0.9m DFM telescope and outfit it with a modern imager, spectrometer, and guiding system. This size is a good fit for the existing facilities. A 0.9m telescope is small by modern standards. The advent of larger telescopes has changed their use and focus but has not made them obsolete for doing front-line research. Smaller telescopes are useful for time-series work and specialized surveying of the type not usually possible at over-subscribed larger observatories. Programs of research in nebular and extragalactic imaging, nearby galaxy nuclear spectroscopy, stellar photometry and stellar spectroscopy will be pursued. The retrofitted WMO will be used for research and education projects at BYU and made available for 10 weeks per year to outside universities through a time allocation process. In addition to these 10 weeks, 2 weeks per year will be made available to students at the BYU sister institutions in Idaho and Hawaii. This new telescope will enable the campus 0.4m telescope to be used exclusively for an expanded education and public outreach program. This award will greatly strengthen the astronomy program at BYU and extend astronomical research and teaching opportunities to institutions and students that currently do not have access to modern facilities located on a convenient and dark site.This award is funded by the Division of Astronomical Sciences and the Office of Multidisciplinary Activities.