Colloquium
Science in the Spanish community with Adaptive Optics in GTC: the power of FRIDA
Abstract
The implementation of Adaptive Optics at the GTC, combined with the science instrument FRIDA -- an imager and integral field spectrograph operating in the near-infrared —- represents a factor of 10 to 15 improvement in angular resolution compared to current or planned GTC instruments. These resolutions are still a factor of 1.5 to 4 better than those achieved by the finest space telescopes, JWST and HST. This presentation highlights the imminent realisation of these capabilities at the GTC and the unique scientific opportunities enabled by the GTC+AO+FRIDA combination. To this end, I will outline possible science pathways that are uniquely possible with GTC+AO+FRIDA, ranging from stellar surface mapping to studies of the Local Group at the finest spatial scales and the high-redshift Universe.
About the talk
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About the speaker
She completed her PhD at the ESA International Ultraviolet Explorer observatory, then moved to the Space Telescope European Coordinating Facility as an ESA postdoc. Since then, her major responsibilities have included the final calibration of the ROSAT-X-ray instrumentation at the Max-Planck Institute in Garching, the design of the VLT Service Mode operation for infrared instrumentation at ESO, the coordination of the first extragalactic studies with Adaptive Optics at the Max-Planck-Institute in Heidelberg. Since 2003, she is the Principal investigator of the Central Parsec of Galaxies project, PARSEC, and the Spanish Principal investigator of the first Adaptive Optics instrument for GTC, FRIDA. She joined the IAC as senior astronomer in 2006, and as of 2020, is Associated Scientist at the University-Observatory of Munich. Her research interests include black hole accretion, nuclear star formation and extreme angular-resolution instrumentation.