DOT external usage

From 2008 onwards we are no longer funded to operate the DOT in the service-mode fashion in which the telescope was used before then, with Dr. Peter Sütterlin acting as principal DOT observer on a a daily basis also when the telescope was used for external campaigns.  Since January 2008, Dr. Sütterlin is employed at the SST instead of the DOT.  Likewise, since January 2008 Ir. Felix Bettonvil moved onward to EST design studies.  Both gentlemen remain present on-site, but can do no more than advise re DOT observing.  This loss of manpower implies that from January 2008 external DOT usage is necessarily in external-user mode, in which a user is responsible for telescope targeting, data acquisition, and speckle processing with the DOT Speckle Processor.  These tasks are far from trivial and require a capable on-site observer with a long on-site learning period.  In 2008 and 2009, respectively, Santiago Vargas Dominguez and Vyacheslav Olshevsky performed these roles on outside funding that is no longer available.

In addition, we no longer have funding for DOT operation costs outside OPTICON periods. We therefore invite potential DOT users to consider supplying funding for DOT operation including manpower to handle the observing and speckle reconstruction.  The return consists of guaranteed DOT observing time.  Enquiries: email R.J.Rutten at uu.nl and F.C.M.Bettonvil at uu.nl.

For 2010 the DOT is entered into such a formal partnership with Helio Research (USA) which will control and perform the DOT observing.