Instrument Availability
Before applying for CfA Telescope time, please check telescope and instrument availability below. Before applying for a PI instrument, contact the Principal Investigator and obtain a letter of approval to be submitted with your proposal.
First time users are expected to read the documentation and speak with the instrument PI if they have questions; the TAC chair can point people to recent users for practical tips.
COVID-19 update:The observatories have returned to normal operations and welcome astronomers. Please check Observatory policies for current travel guidance.
NIGHTS AVAILABLE
- 6.5m MMT telescope, located on Mt Hopkins in Arizona. Approximately 28 dark + 15 gray + 28 bright nights are currently available to CfA Scientists per 6 month semester.
- 6.5m Magellan telescopes, located on Las Campanas in Chile. Approximately 7 dark + 3 gray + 7 bright nights are currently available to CfA Scientists on each telescope per 6 month semester.
- Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory (FLWO), located on Mt Hopkins in Arizona. The 1.2m telescope is dedicated to imaging; the 1.5m telescope is dedicated to spectroscopy. Approximately 60 dark + 32 gray + 60 bright nights are available on each telescope per 6 month semester.
SCHEDULING
- Available? The availability of instruments is indicated below. PI instruments require the permission of the PI to propose and use.
- Queue? MMT and FLWO instruments are mostly run in queue mode by the observatories, Magellan facility instruments are not. For instruments run in a queue, PI's submit their observing plan and target catalog before the scheduled observing run.
- Remote? MMT Blue Channel and some Magellan instruments can be operated by PI's remotely via internet.
- Service? MMT and FLWO queue instruments are run by service observers at the observatories. At Magellan, we have a service observer available to CfA PIs; the service observer will observe most Magellan nights unless PIs choose otherwise.
INSTRUMENTS
| 1.2m FLWO | Available? | Queue? | Remote? | Service? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Optical | KeplerCam - CCD imager | YES | YES | no | robot |
| 1.5m FLWO | Available? | Queue? | Remote? | Service? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Optical | FAST - moderate dispersion single-slit spectrograph | YES | YES | no | YES |
| TRES - high dispersion single-fiber echelle spectrograph | YES | YES | no | YES | |
| 6.5m MMT | Available? | Queue? | Remote? | Service? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Optical | Binospec - moderate dispersion multi-slit spectrograph and imager | YES | YES | no | YES |
| Hectospec - moderate dispersion 300-fiber spectrograph | YES* | YES | no | YES | |
| Hectochelle - high dispersion 240-fiber echelle spectrograph | YES* | YES | no | YES | |
| Blue Channel - moderate dispersion single-slit spectrograph | YES | no | YES | no | |
| MMT Cam - small field-of-view imager | YES | YES | no | YES | |
| SPOL - imaging spectropolarimeter | Contact PI | ||||
| Near-IR | MMIRS - multi-slit spectrograph and imager | YES | YES | no | YES |
| ARIES - adaptive optics imager and spectrograph | no** | ||||
| MMT-Pol - imaging polarimeter | no** | ||||
* Hectospec/chelle will be decommissioned at the end of 2026A.
** MMT Adaptive Optics System is still being commissioned.
| 6.5m Magellan I = Baade | Available? | Queue? | Remote? | Service? | |
| Optical | IMACS - moderate dispersion multi-slit spectrograph and imager | YES | no | YES | YES |
| ROSIE-IFU - image slicer IFU for IMACS | Contact PI | YES | |||
| MagE - moderate dispersion single-slit echellette spectrograph | YES | no | YES | YES | |
| LLAMAS - moderate dispersion integral field spectrograph | Contact PI | YES | |||
| Near-IR | FourStar - wide-field imager | YES | no | YES | YES |
| FIRE - high dispersion single-slit echelle spectrograph | YES | no | YES | YES | |
| 6.5m Magellan II = Clay | |||||
| Optical | Megacam - wide-field imager | yes* | no | YES | YES |
| LDSS-3 - moderate dispersion multi-slit spectrograph | YES | no | YES | YES | |
| MIKE - high dispersion single-slit echelle spectrograph | YES | no | YES | YES | |
| M2FS - fiber fed multi-object spectrograph (planning) (reductions) | Contact PI | YES | YES | ||
| IFUM - integral field unis for M2FS | Contact PI | YES | YES | ||
| PFS - high dispersion single-slit echelle spectrograph | Contact PI | YES | YES | ||
| PISCO - parallel imager | NO | YES | YES | ||
| Near-IR | WINERED - Warm INfrared Echelle spectrograph | Contact LCO | YES | ||
| MagAO - adaptive optics imager(s) | Contact PI | ||||
* Be advised, Megacam requires a secondary change and so is only scheduled when there is sufficient (multi-night) demand for a run; IMACS is available every night and is easier to schedule.
[Updated August 22, 2025 by WRB.]