Dr. Steven S. Vogt

APF: Automated Planet Finder Telescope

• The 2.4-meter APF, currently under construction, is the first telescope capable of detecting rocky planets that may support life. Every night it will search robotically for these planets. [More]
• Steve leads the team that designed and is building the Levy spectrograph, optimized for speed and radial velocity precision. Spectrograph will detect changes in a star’s velocity as small as 1 meter per second--human walking speed.
• Images
• Press Release
• APF homepage

 

Exoplanets: Planets Beyond our Solar System

• The ultimate goal of extrasolar planet search is to discover a solar system similar to our own with earth-like planets capable of supporting life.
• Steve's roles in Exoplanet project:
• Planet hunter Geoff Marcy's PhD thesis advisor back in early 1980's
• Built Hamilton spectrometer,with which many of the first planets were found
• Re-optimized the Hamilton optics in 1994 to increase the Exoplanet's rv precision from 10 m/s to 3 m/s
• Built HIRES for Keck and incorporated Iodine cell for possible future planet work
• Formally joined the Exoplanet team in 1995 and led the effort in starting a Keck exoplanet survey using HIRES
• Principal member of the California-Carnegie Exoplanet Team for past 12 years
• P.I. of the UC/Keck LMAP (Long Duration Multi-Epoch Approved Program) that provides all of UC/Keck time for the team's exoplanet work
• Artist's images of Extrasolar Planets: Lynette Cook's illustrations
• Exoplanet.org homepage

TMT: Thirty Meter Telescope

• TMT will be an extremely large telescope, with a 30-meter mirror comprised of 492 hexagonal-shaped segments. The spectrometer will analyze light in visible and infrared wavelengths to help astronomers answer such profound questions as "How do planets form?" and "What is the ultimate fate of our galaxy?"
• Steve completed and tendered to the TMT project a detailed design study for a Moderate-To-High-Resolution Spectrometer (MTHR) which will enable TMT to deliver the full advantage of its large aperture at first-light for high-resolution optical spectroscopy. [Read more]
• Project Manager's Reports: Status of TMT
• Spectrograph CAD rendering
• TMT homepage

HIRES: High Resolution Echelle Spectrograph

• HIRES is a high resolution optical spectrometer mounted permanently on the Keck 10-meter telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii.
• Steve designed and built the Keck HIRES from 1987 - 1993.
• Spectrograph illustration
• 2004 CCD Upgrade
• Keck Observatory
• HIRES homepage

Hamilton Echelle Spectrograph

• The Hamilton Spectrograph, designed by Steve Vogt and installed at the coudé focus of Lick Observatory's Shane telescope in 1987, is still frequently used to observe distant objects.
• Steve roles in Hamilton Spectrograph Project:
• P.I. of project
• Originated the concept
• Designed the optics with Harland Epps
• Oversaw all detailed mechanical, electronic, and optical design and fabrication
• Installed and commissioned spectrograph
• Read Steve's paper on the Hamilton Spectrograph and the philosophy behind its design
• Public information about the Hamilton Spectrograph

Publications: Refereed Papers   HTML   PDF

Image Gallery