Science requirements and performances for EAGLE for the E-ELT

Christopher Evans (1) , Matthew D. Lehnert (2) , Jean-Gabriel Cuby (3) , Simon L. Morris (4) , Mathieu Puech (2) , Niraj Welikala (3) , A. M. Swinbank (4) , Hermine Schnetler (1)

1 UKATC - UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Royal Observatory Edinburgh
2 GEPI - Galaxies, Etoiles, Physique, Instrumentation
3 LAB - Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux [Pessac]
4 Duke University [Durham]

EAGLE is a Phase A study of a multi-IFU, near-IR spectrometer for the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT). The design employs wide-field adaptive optics to deliver excellent image quality across a large (38.5 arcmin²) field. When combined with the light grasp of the E-ELT, EAGLE will be a unique and efficient facility for spatially-resolved, spectroscopic surveys of high-redshift galaxies and resolved stellar populations. Following a brief overview of the science case, here we summarise the functional and performance requirements that flow-down from it, provide illustrative performances from simulated observations, and highlight the strong synergies with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA).

Domaines: Astrophysique [astro-ph]

Christopher Evans, Matthew D. Lehnert, Jean-Gabriel Cuby, Simon L. Morris, Mathieu Puech, et al.. Science requirements and performances for EAGLE for the E-ELT. Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy III, Jun 2010, San Diego, California, United States. ⟨10.1117/12.856098⟩. ⟨hal-03734596⟩