Description:

Numerous international astronomy reports have recently highlighted the need for fully dedicated, large aperture, massively multiplexed spectroscopy in the optical and near-Infrared wavelength regimes. Such a facility is the most obvious missing link in the emerging network of ground-based observational facilities world-wide. The Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE) is a planned 11-m telescope facility designed to fill this scientific gap. MSE is an evolution of the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope and is completely dedicated to multi-object optical and near-Infrared spectroscopic surveys of millions of astrophysical objects at a range of spectral resolutions. In this talk I will review the current design status of the project and provide an overview of MSE's wide range of scientific capabilities.

Speaker: Jennifer Marshall, Texas A&M University

Host: Giles Novak

Keywords: Physics, Astronomy, Astrophysics