ENR CTIO Blanco 4-m 2016-02-11

DECamObserver (02/12/2016 05:44:03)

Observing Team

DES Observers: Alex Drlica-Wagner, Andres Plazas
Telops: Alberto Alvarez, Manuel Hernandez, Carlos 
Remote Support: Klaus is everywhere
Also Present: Keith Bechtol

Observing Plan

1. Afternoon calibrations (normal set)
2. Weather is predicted to be cloudy (but no DECals scans)
3. Evening Standards
4. Turn on ObsTac (shoot for the sucker holes)
5. Mid-night standards
6. Handover to community observers (04:57 UTC + 8 min)
7. [Non-DES: Run Bizarro ObzTak (try not to break anything…)]

Conditions

1. Sky half covered by clouds at the outset. Some clear area to the west. Clouds generally moving from west to east.
2. Wind: (Q1) ~4 mph, (Q2) ~5 mph, (Q3) ~5 mph, (Q4) ~4.5 mph [Quarters of the full night]
3. Waxing moon: 15% (setting early)
4. Seeing: (Q1) 0.75”(z)/0.9”(i,r)/1”(g), (Q2) 1” (g,r,i), (Q3) 1” (g,r), (Q4) 1” (g,r)
5. DIMM seeing: ~0.7”
6. Low dome/primary mirror differential temperature are 2-3 deg C.
7. Humidity: (Q1) 45%, (Q2) 36%, (Q3) 45%, (Q4) 50%

Accomplishments

1. Dome flats good (still high on r, VR, and a little on u)
2. 3 standard star fields: SDSSJ0843-0000, SDSSJ0200-0000, C26202/HST (cloudy)
3. 119 wide survey exposures
4. 2 standard star fields: SDSSJ0933-0005, SDSSJ1227-0000 (cloudy)

Narrative

1. Applied assessements (all survey exposures good). Noted that 2016A-0366 exposures had also been included in assessments. Checked propid in the exposure table, appears to be correct.
2. Could not get pointing solution on first attempt due to clouds.
3. Increased exposure time to 10s. First offset RA=43.6,DEC=-4.1; second offset RA=1.4,DEC=-3.0
4. Standard stars subject to large extinction due to clouds
5. First obstac exposure at 00:48 (516328)
6. At the start of observations clouds were in the NE while ObsTac chased the setting footprint in the SW.
7. PSF is good (~0.75 z-band at airmass 1.38)
8. QC may have failed for 516428
9. SISPI gave interlock DECam (LATCH) error on exposure 516441. After a reset, everything behaved again and ObsTac continued. Exposure 516441 was not taken.
10. Last obstac exposure at 04:50 (516447).
11. Handover at 05:04 (reimbursed from the community)