Performance report on FEROS, the new fiber-linked echelle spectrograph at the ESO 1.52-m telescope

Abstract

FEROS is a new fiber-fed bench-mounted prism-crossdispersed echelle spectrograph which has been recently cornmissioned at the ESO 1.52-rn telescope at La Silla. The opto-rnechanical concept and performance predictions have been presented by Kaufer & Pasquini.1 In this contribution we present the test results as obtained during two commissioning runs in October and December 1998. Special emphasis is given to the measured performances in efficiency, spectral resolution, straylight contamination, and spectral stability. The definite highlight of the FEROS instrument performance is the high peak detection quantum efficiency of 17% at 550nm (1%©360nm, 16%©440nm, 11%©790nm, 6%@9OOnm). These measured numbers include the 2-mirror telescope, the fiber link, the instrument, and the detector while the whole wavelength range is covered by a single exposure on a thinned EEV 2kx4k 15 micron pixel CCD and a constant resolving power of R = 48.000. In addition the FEROS instrument proved its high spectral stability by radial-velocity observations as carried out on the known radial-velocity standard star 7 Ceti over a time base of 2 months. By recording a calibration-lamp spectrum in parallel with the object spectrum and by the use of a simple cross-correlation technique, a rms of 21 rn/s has been obtained for a data set of 130 individual measurements. FEROS has been made available to the ESO community in January 1999.

The variable stellar wind of Rigel probed at high spatial and spectral resolution

“…The optical observations of Rigel during the 2006−2007 campaign were carried out with the high-resolution echelle spectrograph FEROS (Kaufer et al 2000) at the ESO/MPG 2.2-m telescope at La Silla. A total of 183 spectra with a resolving power of R = 48 000 and a wavelength coverage of 3600−9200 Å were collected in 20 nights between October 3, 2006, and March 31, 2007 campaign the BESO (Bochum Echelle Spectrograph for OCA) spectrograph at the 1.5-m Hexapod-Telescope at the Observatario Cerro Armazones (OCA), Chile, was used.…”

RAFT – I. Discovery of new planetary candidates and updated orbits from archival FEROS spectra

“…The data were obtained using the Fiber-fed Extended Range Optical Spectrograph, FEROS (Kaufer et al 1999), mounted on the 2.2m MPG/ESO telescope, at La Silla Observatory. The raw data are available in the ESO archive.…”

Orbital eccentricity of the symbiotic star MWC 560

“…FEROS is a fiber fed echelle spectrograph, providing high resolution of λ/∆λ = ⋆ based on: observations obtained in ESO program 074.D-0114 ⋆⋆ corresponding author: e-mail: rkz@astro.bas.bg 48000 and an wide wavelength coverage from about 4000Å to 8900Å in one exposure (Kaufer et al 1999). 16 of the analyzed spectra are from our observations of the MWC 560 with the 2.2-m telescope at ESO, La Silla (ESO program 074.D-0114).…”