CRIRES — LLMpedia

CRIRES
Name	CRIRES
Country	Chile
Organization	European Southern Observatory
Location	Atacama Desert
Telescope	Very Large Telescope
Wavelength	Near-infrared
Resolution	High
Status	Active

Contents

CRIRES

CRIRES is a high-resolution near-infrared spectrograph built for the Very Large Telescope on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert operated by the European Southern Observatory. The instrument enables detailed studies of stellar atmospheres, exoplanet atmospheres, interstellar medium and solar system bodies through precision spectroscopy and adaptive optics correction. CRIRES has been integral to programs involving observatories and institutions such as the Max Planck Society, Leiden University, University of Amsterdam, Cambridge (UK), Oxford University, and collaborations with agencies like the European Space Agency and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Overview

CRIRES was conceived to deliver spectral resolving power suitable for investigations by researchers affiliated with ESO Member States, including teams from Germany, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, Poland, Finland, Greece, Belgium, Austria, Norway, Ireland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia, and Lithuania. The instrument interfaces with the Unit Telescope 1 at the Very Large Telescope array and complements other facility instruments such as UVES, X-shooter, NACO, SPHERE, and FORS2. CRIRES serves science cases linked to programs in stellar physics involving groups at Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Leiden Observatory, the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge, and the European Southern Observatory Science Division.

The optical design employed a cross-dispersed echelle layout optimized for near-infrared bands used by researchers at University of Arizona and University of Hawaii who study brown dwarfs and planetary atmospheres. The cryogenic cryostat and vacuum enclosure were developed with contributions from Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Observatoire de Paris, INAF, and SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research. Adaptive optics coupling used components compatible with wavefront sensors from groups at Institut d'Optique Graduate School, Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, and European Southern Observatory technical teams. Major mechanical subsystems were fabricated by contractors in Germany, France, and Italy, with detectors based on arrays supplied by Teledyne Technologies used in projects including James Webb Space Telescope instrument teams and collaborations with European Space Agency instrument groups.

CRIRES provided single-order and multi-order high-resolution modes, achieving resolving powers comparable to instruments like HIRES at W. M. Keck Observatory and CRIRES+ successors. The instrument supported long-slit and nodded staring techniques used by teams working on exoplanet spectroscopy at University of Geneva, University of Bern, ETH Zurich, and Max Planck Institute for Astronomy. Performance assessments were benchmarked against observations from facilities such as Subaru Telescope, Gemini Observatory, Keck Observatory, ALMA, and Hubble Space Telescope follow-ups executed by investigators from California Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University.

CRIRES enabled programs on radial-velocity searches for exoplanets related to surveys led by groups at Observatoire de Haute-Provence, University of Geneva, Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, and Queen Mary University of London. It contributed to spectroscopic characterization of atmospheres of hot Jupiters studied by teams at University of Exeter, University College London, and University of Cambridge. Studies of young stellar objects involved collaborations with Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Leiden Observatory, University of Barcelona, and Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias. Work on the interstellar medium and molecular clouds leveraged lines targeted by astronomers at Institute of Space Sciences (Spain), Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, University of Cologne, and University of Manchester. Solar system investigations of Titan and comets were pursued by groups from Paris Observatory, University of Bern, and Open University, producing data complementary to missions such as Cassini–Huygens, Rosetta, and planning for JUICE.

The CRIRES+ project expanded capabilities through cross-dispersion, upgraded detector arrays, and enhanced calibration units developed in partnership with European Southern Observatory, Leiden Observatory, Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, Observatoire de Genève, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, and industrial partners across Germany and The Netherlands. CRIRES+ integrated new calibration sources inspired by techniques used at National Institute of Standards and Technology and laser frequency comb development by groups at Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics collaborators, aiming to reach stability targets sought by radial-velocity programs run by teams at Geneva Observatory and University of Groningen.

CRIRES was installed on the Very Large Telescope and entered science operations supported by European Southern Observatory staff alongside visiting astronomers from institutions such as Max Planck Society, Leiden University, University of Cambridge, Universidad de Chile, Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, University of São Paulo, and University of Tokyo. Scheduling and service-mode operations were coordinated with other facilities including ESO Paranal Observatory instruments and community programs involving collaborations with ALMA Partnership members and time-exchange partners at NOAO and AURA.

Data reduction pipelines and calibration suites for CRIRES were developed drawing on software practices from projects at European Southern Observatory, Leiden Observatory, Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, and open-source packages maintained by communities associated with Astropy Project contributors and users at Space Telescope Science Institute. Calibration strategies used telluric standard observations coordinated with teams from Gemini Observatory, laser frequency comb development groups, and atmospheric monitoring from site teams at Paranal Observatory. Data products were archived in systems interoperable with ESO Science Archive Facility and utilized by researchers at Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, University of Oxford, University of Amsterdam, and numerous international groups.