Proceedings Article | 17 September 2012
KEYWORDS: Galactic astronomy, Spectroscopy, Stars, Telescopes, Galaxy evolution, Astrophysics, Spectrographs, Astronomy, Multiplexing, Space telescopes
A concept study is underway to upgrade the existing 3.6 meter Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) to a
10 meter class, wide-field, dedicated, spectroscopic facility, which will be the sole astronomical resource capable
of obtaining deep, spectroscopic follow-up data to the wealth of photometric and astrometric surveys planned
for the next decade, and which is designed to tackle driving science questions on the formation of the Milky Way
galaxy and the characterization and nature of dark energy. This unique facility will operate at low (R ∼ 2000),
intermediate (R ∼ 6000) and high (R ∼ 20000) resolutions over the wavelength range 370 ≤ λ≤ 1300nm,
and will obtain up to 3200 simultaneous spectra per pointing over a 1.5 square degree field. Unlike all other
proposed or planned wide field spectroscopic facilities, this “Next Generation CFHT” will combine the power
of a 10m aperture with exquisite observing conditions and a mandate for dedicated spectroscopic studies to
enable transformative science programs in fields as diverse as exoplanetary host characterization, the interstellar
medium, stars and stellar astrophysics, the Milky Way galaxy, the Local Group, nearby galaxies and
clusters, galaxy evolution, the inter-galactic medium, dark energy and cosmology. A new collaboration must
be formed to make this necessary facility into a reality, and currently nearly 60 scientists from 11 different
communities - Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Hawaii, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, USA - are
involved in defining the science requirements and survey strategies. Here, we discuss the origins of this project,
its motivations, the key science and its flow-down requirements. An accompanying article describes the technical
studies completed to date. The final concept study will be submitted to the CFHT Board and Science Advisory
Committee in Fall 2012, with first light for the facility aiming to be in the early 2020s.
