Keck Science Meeting 2017

Time Domain Astronomy (TDA)

Keck Observatory and Time Domain Astronomy (TDA) Workshop

On Wednesday, September 13th, 2017 at Hotel Paradox in Santa Cruz, we will hold a workshop featuring some of the leaders of the new time domain telescopes, LSST (Large Synoptic Survey Telescope), Pan-STARRS, ZTF (Zwicky Transient Factory), the proposed NASA mission, NEOCAM, and the challenges of cadence observing and twilight observing. After hearing about the wide range and variety of properties of transients, we will disperse in the afternoon to different groups to discuss the observing methods Keck can develop to take best advantage of the TDA discoveries, allowing the WMKO community to exploit opportunities provided by initial TDA discoveries. This will no doubt allow our community to both discover and define new science goals for the future. Our goal is to improve Keck’s ability to accommodate the discoveries coming from these new facilities, and to engage the Keck community in discussions about how best to do that.

Registration closed September 6th, 2017.

Download or view a printable PDF of the Agenda.




TDA Agenda

Time Speaker or Event Title
7:30 Continental Breakfast  
8:15 Anne Kinney Welcome
8:30 Lars Bildsten The Context for Transients in the next 20 years of astronomy
9:00 Tom Prince Zwicky Transient Factory Discoveries
9:30 Steve Ridgeway LSST Alerts: Target numbers and discovery rates
10:00 Coffee Break  
10:30 Ken Chambers Pan-STARRS Discoveries
11:00 Amy Mainzer NEOCAM, a NASA Mission Concept
11:30 Randy Campbell Review of current Keck flexible time policies; Support implications
12:00 Jessica Lu Micro-lensing events and follow up with Keck
12:30  Lunch  
2:00 Ryan Foley Supernova Observations within Hours of Explosion
2:30 Luca Rizzi Review of the "Building the Infratructure of TDA in the LSST Era" meeting
3:00 - 5:00 Breakout Sessions






Registered TDA Participants





Meeting information

The meeting will take place at The Hotel Paradox in Santa Cruz, CA. The address is 611 Ocean Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95064. For driving directions click here.

There are a number of lodging options in the City of Santa Cruz, some of which provide discounts for UCSC affiliates.

Parking is complimentary for registered participants of the Keck Science Meeting 2017 and the TDA workshop at Hotel Paradox.

Breakfast and lunch will be provided at Hotel Paradox on both days of the meeting.

For dinners, Santa Cruz has a lively restaurant scene. There are many restaurants downtown in walking distance to Hotel Paradox, please view some restaurant recommendations here.