Gary D. Henson

The Remote Observatories of the Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy (SARA)

We describe the remote facilities operated by the Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy (SARA), a consortium of colleges and universities in the US partnered with Lowell Observatory, the Chilean National Telescope Allocation Committee, and the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias. SARA observatories comprise a 0.96m telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona; a 0.6m instrument on Cerro Tololo, Chile; and the 1m Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope at the Roque de los Muchachos, La Palma, Spain. All are operated using standard VNC or Radmin protocols communicating with on-site PCs. Remote operation offers considerable flexibility in scheduling, allowing long-term observational cadences difficult to achieve with classical observing at remote facilities, as well as obvious travel savings. Multiple observers at different locations can share a telescope for training, educational use, or collaborative research programs. Each telescope has a CCD system for optical imaging, using thermoelectric cooling to avoid the need for frequent local service, and a second CCD for offset guiding. The Arizona and Chile instruments also have fiber-fed echelle spectrographs. Switching between imaging and spectroscopy is very rapid, so a night can easily accommodate mixed observing modes. We present some sample observational programs. For the benefit of other groups organizing similar consortia, we describe the operating structure and principles of SARA, as well as some lessons learned from almost 20 years of remote operations.

Rapid GRB Afterglow Response With SARA

The Clemson GRB Follow‐Up program utilizes the SARA 0.9‐m telescope to observe optical afterglows of Gamma Ray Bursts. SARA is not yet robotic; it operates under direct and Target‐of‐Opportunity (ToO) interrupt modes. To facilitate rapid response and timely reporting of data analysis results, we developed a software suite that operates in two phases: first, to notify observers of a burst and assist in data collection, and second, to quickly analyze the images.

The International Small Telescope Cooperative (ISTeC)

Although the emphasis in mainstream astronomy has moved increasingly toward larger and space-based telescopes, it is the small to intermediate size telescopes (in the 0.4- to 2.0-m range) that have been the backbone upon which contemporary astronomy has been built Numerous institutions and individuals with such small aperture telescopes exist throughout the world. Such facilities tend to be largely undersubscribed yet they are ideal for supporting areas of research that cannot or will not be scheduled on large telescopes. The International Small Telescope Cooperative (ISTeC) was established to bring to the attention of the general astronomical community the distribution and availability of such small telescope facilities and their research capabilities. The cooperative functions mainly through an Internet website that contains an information listing of the facilities that have volunteered to become a member of the cooperative. The purpose of this listing is to provide research astronomers worldwide with potential sources of data on a larger scale and in a more time efficient manner than is currently available using large national facilities alone. Looking toward the future, advances in telescope automation, detector technology, and worldwide communications will provide the opportunity to make even the smallest of telescopes a productive research instrument. It is the intent of ISTeC to preserve and advance the role of small telescopes in astronomical research by fostering both national and international research collaborations via the Internet.