Gemini 8-M Telescopes Project, Aura, 950 N Cherry Ave, PO Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726-6732

58 -- LASER FOR GEMINI OBSERVATORY'S ADAPTIVE OPTICS SYSTEM SOL N991297 POC Andrew Flach, 520-318-8537 WEB: General information about the Gemini Observatory; no, http://www.gemin.edu. E-MAIL: Gemini Contracts Manager, aflach@gemini.edu. The Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. is seeking qualified vendors to develop and provide a Laser System to be used as part of Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics System for the Gemini North Observatory, an 8 meter optical/infrared telescope located on the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii. Adaptive optics systems remove distortions caused by atmospheric turbulence by making corrections to the incoming wavefront using a bright point of light in the area being observed as a reference. This reference point can be a bright star, or an artificial light source created by shooting a laser at the sky to excite mesospheric sodium atoms located 90 miles above the ground. This procurement is for the Laser System portion of the Gemini adaptive optics system. The Laser System will need to be precisely tuned to the sodium D2 transition line (near 589 nm) and will need to be unusually powerful for a laser at this wavelength. The output power requirement will depend on the laser temporal and spectralformat, which determines the laser's efficiency at exciting mesospheric sodium atoms. The laser output power requirement range varies between 7 to 24 W depending on the laser characteristics. The laser system will be either pulsed or continuous wave. If the laser system is pulsed, the repetition rate will be between 600 Hz and 1 kHz (goal is 1 kHz) or above 5 kHz. The laser beam must have excellent beam quality and operation of the laser must be fully automated. The laser system must be able to work in the Mauna Kea telescope enclosure and stand harsh environmental conditions such as high altitude (14,000 feet), cold (around 0 Celsius degree), dust, changing gravity orientation, etc. Finally, the laser system must have a robust design capable of operating reliably for 10 hours a night for years of operation with minimal maintenance, troubleshooting, or operator time. The Gemini Observatory is an international collaboration to build and operate two 8 meter telescopes, one located on Mauna Kea in Hawaii, the other to be located on Cerro Pachon in Chile. The Gemini partners include the USA, United Kingdom, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Australia. The Gemini project is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under contract to the National Science Foundation. Firms that are interested in receiving Request for Proposal No. N991297 for this procurement should fax a letter of interest by no later than 1 October, 1999, to the Gemini 8m Telescopes Project, 950 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, Arizona 85719, Attn: Contracts Manager, Request for Proposal No. N991297. Facsimile 520-318-8590. Posted 09/15/99 (W-SN380504). (0258)

Loren Data Corp. http://www.ld.com (SYN# 0216 19990917\58-0001.SOL)