Pathways to US
Instrumentation
Scot Kleinman
Astromanager LLC

https://www.astromanager.net

Image courtesy of Amagi Observatory (天城天文台)

Who am I?

Astromanager
https://www.astromanager.net

2

Who am I?

Astromanager
https://www.astromanager.net

3

Who am I?

Astromanager
https://www.astromanager.net

4

My start in astronomy
instrumentation

https://www.astromanager.net

Phatphot

https://www.astromanager.net

My current
instrumentation
TMT WFOS

https://www.astromanager.net

CFHT
Pathfinder-IFU
1000 fiber 31”x31” optical IFU

Instrument scales…
Phatphot
SCORPIO• Motivated by a specific• Motivated to fill a strategic, scientific mandate
observational challenge• Involves 6+ institutions• One graduate student; one• Prior experience: many ground-based andmachinist
spaced-based instruments• Prior experience: rebuilding a VW
• Extensive requirements flowdown
engine• 6 formal reviews + numerous internal and• Requirements: Schnock
peer reviews• Review process: Thesis adviser• 292 pages of contract documents• No budget, no schedule, no plan
• Fixed schedule: Working by start of LSST
• Cost: ~$15k USD• $15M contract + ~20% “complexity”
WFOS ~$95M
https://www.astromanager.net

Instrument motivation
The standard model
1. Start with a scientific question
2. Figure out what observations
you need to answer it
3. Derive requirements for an
instrument to make thoseobservations
4. See if one already exists you
have access to
5. If not, build one
https://www.astromanager.net

Reality
1. Identify some cool new technology
2. Figure out a way to use it for yourscience
3. Identify the specs for the major
accompanying technology andcalculate what the instrument can do
4. Figure out what part of your science
you can do with such an instrument
5. Find someone willing to fund yourinstrument
6. Derive requirements consistent withthe funder’s requests, your science,and the technology you foundWhy not just build the best
you can?

If we’re going base our science and instrument design on
the capabilities of existing technology, why bother withrequirements? Why not just build the best instrument wecan? As good as possible – isn’t that what we really wantanyhow?
https://www.astromanager.net

Why not just build the best
you can?
••••

How do you know when you’re done?
Impossible to control cost and schedule.
What if as good as possible in one area means a little less than possible inanother? How do you decide?
There are always trades to be made in one capability versus another. If you
don’t have a consistent way to make those trades, you end up with an
instrument that does nothing well.

An instrument designed to do something well, usually does something else well,too.
An instrument designed to do nothing well, usually ends up doing nothing well.
https://www.astromanager.net

Requirements• A requirement is a statement of one thing a product must do or a quality it musthave.
• Requirements flow from higher and to lower-level requirements.
• Requirements are testable.

Requirement flow is important:
1. To understand the impact of changing one thing here on something over there(and on your top-level objectives and science cases)
2. To provide a series of tests to catch problems at their earliest catchable time(ex. when a lens comes back from a vendor versus when the camera isassembled into the instrument and tested on sky)https://www.astromanager.net

ASTRO 2020
Science Cases

TMT Detailed
Science Cases

TMT MODHIS: Requirement
Traceability Example
MODHIS
Requirements(level 2)

Limits to Doppler studies
due to stellar activity

ScienceRequirement(SRD, level 0)

Observatory
Architecture
Requirement(OAD, level 1)

TMT's Role in the Doppler
Study of Exoplanets

Spectral pixel sampling.
PRV mode.
Systematic errors.
Spectral stability.

[REQ-0-SRD-1166] MODHIS shall provide an instrumental
radial velocity precision of ≤ 30 cm/s (goal of 10 cm/s).

Temperature control.
Vibration isolation.
CAL Source brightness.

Characterization of Transit
Planet Hosts

https://www.astromanager.net

Requirements & Verification

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https://www.astromanager.net

This is not project management

https://www.astromanager.net

Project management
For most real projects, it is essentially impossible to fix all three of these.
→ You need priorities and contingencies.
Cost
Schedule Ability to use scope contingency decreases as the instrument progresses.
→ You should descope early, even when you may have cost contingency
Scopeavailable.

TeamStakeholders
Risk

Stakeholders: team, users, funders, vendors, contractors,governance, line management, customers: facility director
and support staff, …

The risk register is a primary tool to convince
stakeholders of the need to take action and toensure you meet the triple constraints.

https://www.astromanager.net

Gemini: The SCORPIO Process
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Gemini governance wants next instrument to be strategically complementary to LSST +Gemini Science and Technology Advisory Council have their own view on how best to do thisGemini issues RfP for funded feasibility studies for instruments that support #1, stating #2 as a known
viable option
Gemini receives multiple proposals all supporting #2 and selects 4 to fundGemini takes results of the 4 studies and issues an RfP for a specific instrument with broad bandwidth
imaging and spectroscopy (i.e., #2)
After a complicated review process, Gemini selects one team to award the design and build contract
After CoD, team trouble reaches a peak and the management structure changes
We began PD with a new PI and namehttps://www.astromanager.net

US Instrumentation
options: Universities
Universities with their owntelescopes:
University of Texas
University of California
CaltechUniversities with instrument
programs:
Johns Hopkins
Princeton
Texas A&M

Build instruments for your own
use based on scientific interests- Internal and external funding- Hard or soft funding--

https://www.astromanager.net

Scientific interest- Exchange for telescope time
- Response to observatory calls- Mostly external funding- Positions generally soft fundinghttps://www.astromanager.net

US Instrumentation
options: Labs
US Labs with instrumentation:
JPLFermiLab
Lawrence Berkeley
SwRI
NASA originated and funded- Response to observatory call
- Collaborations with universities and observatories- Positions often depend on ability to bring in contracts-

https://www.astromanager.net

Observatory/Lab/University/Industry Consortium
SCORPIO:- Initiated by Gemini to be
responsive to LSST …
- Stated preference for“wide” field optical to IR
imager and spectrograph- Competitively selected- Built by a consortium ofuniversities and labs

https://www.astromanager.net

US Instrumentation
options: Observatories
NOIRLab/Gemini/Kitt Peak/CTIO
Keck, CFHT. LBT, …
GMT, TMT
Commission instruments in response to user demand orscience caseUpgrade instruments with new technology
Receive/support user-built instruments
Often built via collaborations with universities/labs
Typically hard money positions
https://www.astromanager.net

TMT: WFOS

Project Leads
••••
•
•

PI Chuck Steidel (CIT)PS Eric Peng (NOIRLab)PM Scot Kleinman (TIO)→ Alastair Heptonstall (TIO)
SE John Miles (TIO)
Optical Jason Fucik (CIT)
Mechanical Reston Nash (CIT)(Current) Teams: A well-developed. representative partnership• Caltech – SSTR, RSTR, SE, PI• India TMT Coordination Center – Software, Electronics, CAL, GRX,FX, Camera rotator: Ramya Sethuram, Sivarani Thirupathi• National Astronomical Observatories of Japan – SMX, grating
development, IFU concept: Shinobu Ozaki• Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics – ADC: Tao LV• National Astronomical Observatories of China – ADC coating,Collimator: Hangzin Ji

There may be opportunities soon to get involved
in WFOS: ADC, electronics, software, CSU?

https://www.astromanager.net

TMT: MODHIS••••••The driving science case for MODHIS is the study of exoplanets,
but it is capable of a broad range of science.
Near-Infrared (from y-band to K-band; 0.98—2.46um)
wavelength region
Stable and high-throughput High-Dispersion (R>100,000)
spectroscopy
MODHIS will be mounted on the top port of NFIRAOS
Light from diffraction-limited images provided by NFIRAOS will
be injected into Single-mode fibers
Two spectrographs (y-J and H-K bands) will be located in a stableenvironment off of NFIRAOS and will include no moving parts
Project Manager: Hiroshi Terada

The MODHIS team is interested inbringing in new partners.
https://www.astromanager.net

Above: MODHIS top-end instrument is fed byNFIRAOS. Below: The MODHIS spectrographs

Instrument expertise needed• Science – determine and assess ability to do driving science cases• Observations/Operations – translate science objectives and approach to operating
scenarios• Systems Engineering – build requirements flow from science cases toinstrument/systems/sub-systems/…; oversee multi-level requirement testing• Engineering – machining, optics, mechanics, cryogenics, electronics, software,computing, ….
• Legalese – read and respond to RfPs; negotiate work contracts; purchasing• Finance – budget estimation; deliver to a fixed cost• Project management – develop and deliver to a fixed schedule• General management – manage stakeholders, write reports, document, …

What’s missing?
https://www.astromanager.net

What’s missing?

Managing your team.
Leading your team.
(Or following.)
https://www.astromanager.net

Problem Solving
1 - Identifying a problem:
2 - Who needs to be involved:
3 - Brainstorms solutions:4 - Emotional responses:
5 - Technical analysis:
6 - How could it go wrong?
7 - Get buy-in:
8 - Do it already!
9 - Did we solve the problem?

https://www.astromanager.net

There’s something wrong here.
We need X-san involved in this.
Here are 5 ways we could solve this.
That’s a great/terrible idea.
Here are the pros and cons.
This approach is the least risky.
Rally the troops!
Let’s do this.
Is this working for you?