Hectospec 300-Fiber Spectrograph

Hardware	Hectospec is a moderate-resolution, multiobject optical spectrograph fed by 300 optical fibers. It operates at the f/5 Cassegrain focus of the 6.5-meter MMT on Mount Hopkins in Arizona. The instrument is composed of a robotic positioner and a large, bench-mounted spectrograph, joined by a bundle of 25m long optical fibers. Dual robots, dubbed Fred and Ginger, reconfigure all 300 optical fibers in just 300 seconds. [Instrument home page] [Hectospec instrument paper in PDF] [Fiber positioner paper in PDF]
Observing	Observers Manual Observers' Responsibilities Fiber Assignment Quick Look Reductions at the Telescope Exposure Time Calculator
Processing	CCD characteristics and the basic method for reduction of Hectospec fiber spectra New IDL-based pipeline, HSRED v2.0 now in use at the TDC [Definitions] [Preparation] [Observation] [Reduction Pipeline, Process] [Distribution] [Archiving] Getting Good Coordinates for Hectospec Hectospec Header Keyword Dictionary ADASS Pipeline Paper: "Automated Reduction of Multifiber Spectra from the MMT's Hectospec and Hectochelle", Douglas J. Mink, William F. Wyatt, Nelson Caldwell, Maureen A. Conroy, Gabor Furesz, Susan P. Tokarz, in Astronomical Data Analysis Software and Systems XVI, ASP Conference Series, Vol. 376, Edited by R. Shaw, F. Hill, and D. Bell, San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 2007, pp. 49-52 [Abstract] [HTML paper] [PDF paper] [web presentation] [PDF poster] ADASS Processing Philosophy Paper: "Creating Data that Never Die: Building a Spectrograph Data Pipeline in the Virtual Observatory Era", Mink, D.J., Wyatt, W.F., Roll, J.B., Tokarz, S.P., Conroy, M.A., Caldwell, N., Kurtz, M.J., Geller, M.J., in Astronomical Data Analysis Software and Systems XIV, ASP Conference Series, Vol. 347, Edited by P.L. Shopbell, M.C. Britton, and R. Ebert, San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 2005, p.228. [Abstract] [HTML paper] [PDF paper] [web presentation] [PDF poster] Hectospec Reduction Software Hectospec Calibration Spectrum Current Status
Reduced Data Archive	Virtual Observatory accessible search through all reduced data
Published Data Archive	Permanent access to data from several early observing programs
Sample Image (Click for larger image)
Sample Extracted Spectra	Good signal-to-noise data from a very preliminary reduction of engineering data taken in October 2003 (absorption and emission lines are marked based on cross-correlation redshifts) (Click for larger graphs) Here is some information on sky subtraction testing.

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Modified 30-Dec-2011 by Jessica Mink